A Historical Overview – Part 1
Written by Ahmad Smith
There was an Historically Black College and University (HBCU) that closed in the early 2000s after operating for at least 100 years. The school may not be as well known in Mississippi as Jackson State University, Alcorn State University or Mississippi Valley State University. The college was named after Mary Holmes, a wife, missionary, mother and trailblazer. Have you heard of Mary Holmes College?
The school opened just before 1900 in West Point, Mississippi and was built to educate African American girls. It later became a college that prepared more Black educators after the 1930s. The Presbyterian Church supported and sustained the school. The purpose and scope of the work at Mary Holmes College appeared in the 1925 Annual Catalog, when the institution was called Mary Holmes Seminary:
“Educate her pupils, mentally, morally and spiritually, to train them first to be homemakers, then to be wise leaders in society and the church. It is the only institution in the State for the separate education of colored women.”
The school eventually became Mary Holmes Junior College, a two year college open to all students. It peaked with enrollment of about 800 students in the 1990s. The college later added programs in business, secretarial science, social sciences and education. The campus had active student organizations and sports teams. After continued financial struggles and declining enrollment, Mary Holmes College closed in bankruptcy between 2004 and 2005.
Stay tuned as we explore the people, places, campus life, student activities and sports that made Mary Holmes College great.
