​We are launching a $1,000,000 capital campaign to preserve and restore the historic home of Dr. McAllister. This vital effort will transform her childhood residence into a living museum, cultural landmark, and educational hub—celebrating her achievements and inspiring future generations.
​
We are seeking funding for the Jane McAllister house at 1403 Main Street. This house was the long-time residence of Vicksburg native, Dr. Jane Ellen McAllister (1899-1996). Dr. McAllister was a nationally renowned professor and the first African American woman in the United States to earn a Ph.D. in Education. She received her undergraduate degree from Talladega College in Alabama (1919), a Master's degree from the University of Michigan (1922), and a Ph.D. from Columbia University (1929). Dr. McAllister later taught at Fisk University, Virginia State, Morgan State, Hampton Institute, Miner Teachers Cottage, and Jackson State University before retiring in 1970. Dr. McAllister's sister, Dorothy McAllister, was a well-known librarian at Howard University and was instrumental in the establishment of the Etta O'Neil Branch Library on Walnut Street.
 
At the time it was built the main library had not been integrated. (This is taken from the Archives Fact Sheet). Her home built in 1910 was named an historic landmark in 2017 and received an Historic Marker in 2019. As the only African American home in Vicksburg designated a Landmark, we have a rare opportunity to tell Dr. McAllister's story through the lens of the 20th Century experiences of African Americans in Vicksburg and the nation. Her impressive achievements in the field of education deserve to be showcased in the home where she lived her entire life. The National Park Service has long understood the importance of historic places defining them "as places that have powerful and provocative stories to tell". Elizabeth Alexander, CEO of the Mellon Foundation reminds us often of the "Urgent and Sacred Mission of Saving Black History Sites" (Preservation Magazine). Of the 95,000 sites listed in the National Register of Historic Places, only 3% focus on the experiences of African Americans.
 
The President of the Trust for Public Land states that "tangible spaces whether buildings or properties, etc., play a critical role in constructing our collective memory. It is critical that we have the opportunity to reflect on, learn from, and honor our past". Dr. McAllister's home is a tangible space which provides a context for all of the other African American spaces to be woven into the history of Vicksburg.
 
Her home will tell the story of her extraordinary career in higher education covering five decades. While teaching at Southern University in Louisiana in the mid-1920s, Dr. Allister became interested in the education provided for Black children. Seventy-five percent of the Black population lived in rural areas and educational opportunities were scarce. Southern University's Teacher Training Program was the only certified program for Black teachers in the state. It was this interest that led her to leave her position at Southern and to begin her Ph.D. work at Columbia University. Her advisor at Columbia commented "the real history of the study of American Negro Education on the advanced level began with Jane McAllister's pioneering dissertation on The Training of Negro Teachers in Louisiana".
 
After retiring from Miner Teachers College in 1951, she returned to Mississippi and Jackson College where she taught from 1951 to her retirement in 1969. Under her guidance, Jackson College became an academic showcase for her many talents. It was there that she transformed the College through several programs including a college readiness program for prominent high school students, a state-wide Superior and Talented Student Project for Black high schools and an institute for teachers of disadvantaged students.
 
One of her students reflected a few years ago "that she was one of the Colleges' premier instructors . . . and the students were in awe of her sense of excitement which she brought to her classroom". The MS Historical Society meeting in March has planned a session on "Three African American Women in MS History. one of whom is Dr. McAllister, and I will make the presentation on her. Clearly, Dr. Mc Allister is deserving of this recognition.
​
​
​
Give today. Preserve tomorrow.