Whitworth Female College was a Methodist women's college in Brookhaven, Mississippi, founded in 1858 by Milton Whitworth.

History

The college was founded in 1858 by Milton J. Whitworth, opened in 1859, and disestablished in 1984. It was associated with the Mississippi Methodist Conference until 1938. During the Civil War the college was used as a

Confederate Confederacy or confederate may refer to: States or communities * Confederate state or confederation, a union of sovereign groups or communities * Confederate States of America, a confederation of secessionist American states that existed between ...

hospital and managed to reopen after the war's end. In August 1878, local

freemasons Freemasonry or Masonry refers to fraternal organisations that trace their origins to the local guilds of stonemasons that, from the end of the 13th century, regulated the qualifications of stonemasons and their interaction with authorities ...

laid the cornerstone for a new brick building at the college, into which a time capsule was placed. Both

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from Mississippi Lucius Quintus Cincinnatus Lamar II and

Jefferson Davis Jefferson F. Davis (June 3, 1808December 6, 1889) was an American politician who served as the president of the Confederate States from 1861 to 1865. He represented Mississippi in the United States Senate and the House of Representatives as a ...

were expected to attend the ceremony but were "unavoidably absent." In 1925 the College was first accredited by the

Southern Association of Colleges and Schools The Southern Association of Colleges and Schools (SACS) is an educational accreditor recognized by the United States Department of Education and the Council for Higher Education Accreditation. This agency accredits over 13,000 public and priv ...

. In 1928 the College began operation as a two-year institution associated with Millsaps College in Jackson, Mississippi. In 1938, because of financial difficulties, the board of trustees of the College voted to cease operations and merge the school with Millsaps College. The city of Brookhaven bought the campus and leased it out to various short-lived colleges between 1941 and 1984, when all educational operations at the location ceased. In 2003 the state of Mississippi opened the

Mississippi School of the Arts The Mississippi School of the Arts (MSA) is an upper high school of literary, visual, and performing arts on the historic Whitworth College Campus in Brookhaven, Mississippi, about sixty miles (100 km) south of Jackson, Mississippi. MSA ...

on the grounds of the former college.

Vardaman's visit

During his term as Governor of Mississippi (1904-1908), white supremacist politician

James Kimble Vardaman James Kimble Vardaman (July 26, 1861 – June 25, 1930) was an American politician from the U.S. state of Mississippi and was the Governor of Mississippi from 1904 to 1908. A Democrat, Vardaman was elected in 1912 to the United States Senate i ...

, known as the "Great White Chief," spoke at the college and was presented with a bouquet and the following poem:

TO THE "WHITE CHIEFTAIN."
White flowers to our chieftain white,
Brookhaven's daughters send;
To welcome him with glad delight
The Southland's truest friend.
Be not afraid! Thou white man's chief,
The Anglo-Saxon Race
Has yet to bend its neck beneath
A victor's cruel mace.
The blood is yours on land and sea
Uphold thro' its supremacy.

Notable alumnae

Lulah Ragsdale Lulah Ragsdale (February 5, 1861 – December 26, 1953) was an American poet, novelist, and actor from the U.S. state of Mississippi. She was one of the state's first women writers. Her novels included ''The Crime of Philip Guthrie'', 1892; ''A S ...

(1862-1953), poet, novelist and actor * Nellie Nugent Somerville, first woman elected to the

Mississippi Legislature The Mississippi Legislature is the state legislature of the U.S. state of Mississippi. The bicameral Legislature is composed of the lower Mississippi House of Representatives, with 122 members, and the upper Mississippi State Senate, with 52 me ...

History

Vardaman's visit

Notable alumnae

References

Further reading