Rust College Purchases the Campus of Its Neighbor

In 1905 the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church founded the Mississippi Industrial College in Holly Springs to “provide literary and industrial training to black youth, to train young men and women in Christian ideals, and to furnish a practical education and to make of them better citizens.”

The 63-acre campus grew to include 10 buildings. The college closed its doors in 1982 and the campus has been vacant ever since. Four of the original buildings have been designated National Historical Landmarks.

Rust College, the historically black educational institution, sits just across the highway from the campus of Mississippi Industrial College. Recently, Rust College purchased the campus for $1.1 million. Discussions are under way on what will be done with the property.

* Teacher training class. Mississippi Industrial College, Neg. No. 2545. Papers and photographs of Jackson Davis, Albert and Shirley Small Special Collections, University of Virginia Library.

Copyright © 2008. The Journal of Blacks in Higher Education. All rights reserved.