Historic photo recreation, exhibition, lectures highlight MC’s 200th birthday celebration

MC students celebrate the Christian University's 200th anniversary during the Bicentennial Birthday Party.

When Joseph H. Hamilton was considering what college to attend, his father made the young high school graduate a generous offer.

“He told me, ‘You can go to any school you want to in the country,’ but the only school he took me to see was Mississippi College,” Hamilton said

The senior Hamilton, a 1914 MC graduate, may have been a bit biased. But his son earned his undergraduate degree at MC in 1954 and went on to become an internationally celebrated scientist and world-class researcher who co-discovered new elements 113, 115 and 117 in the Periodic Table of Chemistry Elements. He even had the honor of naming atomic element 117 – Tennessine – in honor of his home state of Tennessee.

For decades, Hamilton kept a relic of his father’s college days in Clinton: a black-and-white photo of his father and his classmates standing in front of Provine Chapel on the day of their graduation. With the arrival of MC’s Bicentennial year, he thought the photo belonged at the University.

On the warm and sunny afternoon of Thursday, Feb. 12, dozens of current MC faculty, staff, students and alumni crowded in front of Provine Chapel to recreate that photo taken more than a century before. Seated right in front on a wooden pew was Joseph H. Hamilton, representing his father in the modern image: two generations of Hamiltons spread 112 years apart.

“It was a special occasion that honored him as well as all the graduates of MC,” Hamilton said of the photo recreation.

The photo followed a recognition of the chapel’s addition to the National Register of Historic Places by MC President Blake Thompson and Stephanie Busbea, dean of the School of Christian Studies, Humanities and the Arts.

Following many camera clicks, the Choctaw Marching Band played and the crowd sang “Happy Birthday” to MC as Thompson, Tushka, MC’s on-field personality, and student representatives blew out the candles on a three-tier Bicentennial birthday cake.

“This once-in-a-lifetime celebration of MC’s 200th birthday united generations of students, faculty, staff, alumni and friends,” Thompson said. “I’m deeply grateful for those who have shaped our story and are inspired by the legacy we carry forward as we begin our next 200 years together.”

The event kicked off MC’s Bicentennial Birthday Party and other celebratory events, which had been partially postponed by inclement weather during Founders Week in January.

Students on the Campus Programming Board and MC’s Office of Student Engagement hosted a Bicentennial Birthday Party in the Piazza and Jennings Courtyard that included 200 cupcakes, a photo booth, food and drink vendors, and other activities.

The “1826: The Exhibition,” which highlights the University’s rich history in a spectacular display created by the Institute for Southern Storytelling at MC, debuted in its namesake campus building, 1826. The exhibit will be open for visitors throughout the Bicentennial year.

The new Bicentennial Time Capsule, scheduled to be packed with dozens of MC artifacts and reopened sometime in the future, was on display in one of the campus’s historic buildings, Jennings Hall.

Students and alumni who toured the exhibition and time capsule were simply astounded.

Cody Scruggs, a sophomore computer science major from Terry, was fascinated by the exhibit’s display of technology used by MC students through the years, especially the old Macintosh personal computer and the early generation iPhone.

“Seeing all of these things paints a picture in your head of what life in a dorm room could have been like,” Scruggs said. “I’ve been passing by MC since I was 6 years old. Being able to say I was a student here for MC’s 200th birthday celebration is a privilege. Seeing all the different people who have been affiliated with MC being here to celebrate this is amazing.”

Clinton residents Mary Alta Clark, a 1971 MC graduate, and her daughter, Kim Clark Pigott, who graduated from MC in 1986, participated in the photo recreation and stayed to tour the exhibit. They both recognized items from their respective college days.

“I remember my grandmother talking about being at Hillman College, which is represented (in the exhibit),” Pigott said. “A lot of our friends and my ex-classmates, people who I know through my children, are represented. I just love it.”

“I loved the diorama of the campus,” Clark said. “It brings back a lot of old memories. I’ve enjoyed watching the different decades. I want to come back, take my time and read about everything.”

Livi Cate Osborne, a junior Christian Studies major from Birmingham, is the first in her family to attend MC. She said the Bicentennial celebration provides an opportunity for her to share the University’s rich history with her relatives.

“I’ve loved being at MC, and it means so much to show them this place that I’ve made a home for myself,” she said. “I love history, so it’s special for me to be a part of the next 200 years.”

That evening, MC’s Department of Christian Studies hosted a Bicentennial edition of the annual Evangelism Lecture. Shane Pruitt, national next gen director for the North American Mission Board, inspired audience members to take their faith seriously and to share their beliefs with the next generation.

After a “Meet and Greet” with Mississippi College’s first Black graduates, the African American Studies program at MC presented “Success Starts at Mississippi College: Chronicles of MC's African American Contributions to 200 Years of Celebration.” Moderated by Ellis Liddell ’80, co-chair of the Bicentennial Celebration Committee, the event featured MC alumni panelists Larry Myricks ’79, Maggie Wade ’20, Regina Schofield ’83, Camryn Johnson ’22, and Aaron Feazelle ’20.

On Friday morning, Feb. 13, Liddell, fellow members of the Bicentennial Celebration Committee, and guests witnessed Thompson unveil a sign outside Alumni Hall acknowledging the support of those “who helped ensure the success of this historic (Bicentennial) celebration.”

During the brunch that followed, Jim Turcotte, MC vice president and special assistant to the president, recognized members of the Bicentennial Celebration Committee and Bicentennial Working Group and their efforts to make the Bicentennial Celebration a success. 

"I am immensely grateful for the contributions of the MC Bicentennial Celebration Committee, the MC Bicentennial Working Group, and many other MC faculty, staff and student volunteers who have been the driving force behind our celebration activities," Turcotte said. "I appreciate each of you and thank you from the bottom of my heart." 

Liddell closed by encouraging the committee members to continue telling the story of Mississippi College throughout its Bicentennial year and beyond.

“There’s a certain culture that we have as a result of who we are and how we grew up here,” Liddell said. “We must take that culture and share it with the rest of the world. This college has a purpose, and that’s what makes Mississippi College special.”