M.B. Mayfield's House

M.B. Mayfield lived in this house. If you were to walk in while M.B. was still alive, you would see a regular, humble house that featured colorful walls, 70’s style wallpaper, a piano, and many of Mayfield’s current works stacked against the wall. You would also see a painting of his mother and some of his other favorites on the wall. You might not see Mayfield, though, because he could have been in the backyard finding berries and flowers that he would use to create his art supplies. Mayfield would break branches off of trees to use as his paintbrushes and would use dirt from the side of the creek behind his house to craft his paints. The house has been moved from 1051 Old Highway 15 Ecru, Mississippi (MS) to 423 Main Street Ecru, MS, and is currently owned and operated by the M.B. Mayfield Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to honoring Mr. Mayfield's contribution as an artist.

Mayfield grew up in a house much like this one, and that is where our story begins. On a warm early summer day in 1949, Mayfield ran inside to see why his mother was calling him. When he got to the front porch, a man named Dr. Stuart R. Purser introduced himself as the new art professor at the University of Mississippi. Dr. Purser gave Mayfield two things that day, a generous supply of high-quality art supplies and “his offer for me to come to ‘Ole Miss’ and work as a custodian for his Art Department.” When writing his autobiography, Mayfield said, "As I reflect on that incident, I must say that was the major turning point in my life.” Mayfield eventually went to Ole Miss and took art classes in secret under Dr. Purser’s instruction. He eventually had to return here, however. His mother grew sick, so most of his family rushed over to their house to spend time with her. She eventually got better, and the visiting family left, but Mayfield had to stay in Ecru because he knew his mother could not be left alone anymore. After Mayfield’s mother died, he remained in Ecru and got into a car wreck that made him afraid to drive, so he had to rely on his niece, Shirley Ware, to give him rides around town to the doctor or the grocery store.

Mayfield eventually died in this house. Ms. Shirley received a call from the local authorities that she should go up to Mayfield’s house because something had happened. Before this, Shirley was Mayfield’s primary caretaker, and on this particular morning, She had already gotten Mayfield some food for him. She was not allowed inside the house when she got there, and they informed her that he had passed away. Right after explaining this event in her oral history, Shirley says, “The most fun time was when we when we would, he would draw pictures, and we would look at them and go outside.” After Mayfield’s death, the house sat and slowly fell into ruin until Jeannie Speck-Thompson realized what was happening and started this project. The Mayfield House was renewed and moved to this location and is where you are now so that you can go inside and see how Mayfield lived. The Mayfield House Museum is being created in the home to share his story and the story of Ecru through his art and to provide visitor and community access to exciting art programming and events.

Updated by Jeannie Speck-Thompson

Mayfield, M. B. The Baby Who Crawled Backwards: An Autobiography by M. B. Mayfield (2003)

Ole Miss Special Collections (copy signed by author) ISBN:0974233307

Davidson, Glen H. and Slaughter, Lillian, "Davidson, Glen" (2021). Oral History Interviews. 3.

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/mbm_interviews/3

High, Gloria and Foster, Brian, "High, Gloria" (2021). Oral History Interviews. 5.

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/mbm_interviews/5

Thompson, Jeannie and Benn, Lily-Pearl, "Thompson, Jeannie" (2021). Oral History Interviews. 6.

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/mbm_interviews/6

Ware, Shirley and Burns, Keon, "Ware, Shirley" (2021). Oral History Interviews. 7.

https://egrove.olemiss.edu/mbm_interviews/7

Door Ajar - The M.B. Mayfield Story (2019) John Reyer Afamasaga

https://www.amazon.com/Door-Ajar-M-B-Mayfield-Story/dp/B07YVJKM4H