Biography
In 1838, the Mississippi Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church voted to build and endow Centenary College in honor of the one hundredth anniversary of Methodism occurring in 1839. In 1840, the Mississippi Conference named Centenary's board of trustees. Centenary advertised that its preparatory department would open in April 1841 in Clinton, Mississippi. A few months later, the institution announced a new location, located about 30 miles east, in Brandon Springs. The new property and buildings had previously served as Brandon Mineral Springs, a mineral spa facility. The college began holding classes at this new location in November 1841. Thomas C. Thornton served as Centenary College’s president from 1841 to 1844; David Olcott Shattuck served as Centenary’s president pro tem beginning in 1844. In 1845, the trustees and the Mississippi Conference chose to move Centenary to the campus of the recently-closed College of Louisiana (Jackson, La.).
Found in 7 Collections and/or Records:
Collection
Identifier: SC-Cent. Misc. Mss. 11
Scope and Contents
This collection includes a speech given by Joseph Henry Bowdon Sr. at Centenary College of
Louisiana’s Founders Day address in 1964. Titled “Sidelights on the History of Centenary College,” it
contains details about the college during the 19th century as well as Bowdon’s ancestors connected to
Centenary. The collection also includes correspondence dated 1965 between Bowdon and Hugh D.
McCool about the location of Centenary College in Brandon Springs, Mississippi, during the 1840s.
Dates:
1964 - 1965
Collection
Identifier: CCL-Trustees
Scope and Contents
This collection consists of records of the board of trustees of Centenary College (Brandon Springs,
Mississippi) and Centenary College of Louisiana (Jackson, Louisiana). It includes administrative
records (1843-1882), minutes (1841-1906), resolutions (1842-circa 1905), and correspondence and
reports (circa 1845-1904).The administrative records include bylaws (1843), acts of incorporation (1848-1882), property records
(1845-1871), and a construction contract for the Center/Centre...
Dates:
1841 - 1906
Collection
Identifier: SC-Cent. Misc. Mss. 17
Scope and Contents
This collection primarily consists of photocopied material about James B. Dodd. It includes a letter
appointing him professor of mathematics at Centenary College (Brandon Springs, Miss.) dated 1841.
Also included are the following publications by Dodd: “Address, delivered at the opening of the
Centenary College, on the 9th of November, 1841,” (Jackson, MS: Southron Office, 1841); “An essay
on the nature of arithmetical science and the proper method of teaching this science, in opposition...
Dates:
1841 - circa 1970
Collection
Identifier: SC-Cent. Misc. Mss. 193
Scope and Contents
The Winbourne Magruder Drake family papers consist of material about the family and their
connections to Centenary College of Louisiana (Jackson, La.). A typescript copy of William Hezekiah
Nathaniel Magruder’s letter (1845) to Benjamin Michael Drake concerns the move of Centenary
College (Brandon Springs, Miss.) to the site of the defunct College of Louisiana (Jackson, La.). A
photocopy of William Winans Drake’s memoir appeared in the “Annual of the Louisiana Conference of
the Methodist...
Dates:
1845 - 1983
Collection
Identifier: SC-Cent. Misc. Mss. 53
Scope and Contents
Typescript of letter about Centenary College (Brandon Springs, Mississippi). Thornton writes of
travelling with her family from Virginia and arriving in Jackson, Mississippi, in November 1841. She
describes Centenary College’s campus, dormitory, cottages, and a nearby medicinal spring. One of the
college’s buildings is the home of her son, Thomas Chapman Thornton, who serves as the president of
Centenary. She also mentions the people enslaved by her family who have traveled with the...
Dates:
1842
Collection
Identifier: SC-Cent. Misc. Mss. 54
Scope and Contents
Correspondence concerns financial matters and building construction at Centenary College (Brandon
Springs, Miss.). Includes one letter from Thomas Chapman Thornton to an unknown person and one
letter from a Mr. Hunt to W. Robert Keyworth of Washington D. C.
Dates:
1844
Collection
Identifier: SC-Cent. Misc. Mss. 105
Scope and Contents
The William Winans family papers consist of photocopy facsimiles of documents. A letter dated 1836
from William Winans to his wife Martha concerns his trip to Ohio for the General Conference of the
Methodist Episcopal Church. A letter dated 1845 from Wesley P. Winans to his mother Martha
includes Wesley’s report card from Centenary College (Brandon Springs, Miss.), comments on the
newly-formed Methodist Episcopal Church South, and mentions the possible move of Centenary to
Jackson,...
Dates:
1836 - 1897