Classroom

M.B. Mayfield was not always famous around Ecru, Mississippi. His friends and family knew of his amazing painting ability, but it was not well known around town. A family friend of Mayfield, Gloria High, wanted Mayfield to be acknowledged though. High convinced him to put up a display of his artwork at the Pontotoc Library in the 1980s. His artwork was displayed at the library for all the locals to see for about a month. The people of Ecru started to recognize Mayfield because of the artwork that had been on display in their library. To celebrate Mayfield, they all decided to declare M.B. Mayfield Day! The next stop on the tour should be the Ecru Park, where the townspeople of Ecru held the formal celebration of M.B. Mayfield Day.

The Pontotoc Library has been a part of the Dixie Regional Library System since 1960 and works with the surrounding counties to provide this area of Northern Mississippi with a structured library system. The Pontotoc Library serves as an important part of the Mayfield story and tour because this is the location that made him notable to the people of Ecru.

Pontotoc County Library

Instructor

Discover sites related to the life and art of M.B. Mayfield, an African American artist who was educated in secret at a pre-integration University of Mississippi. 

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

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.

M.B. Mayfield's House

While in Ecru, one cannot help to notice the Tanglefoot Trail, as it is a centerpiece of the town. How did it come to be, though? In 1871, Colonel William Clark Falkner began building the Gulf and Ship Island Railroad. This railroad stretched down Mississippi, connecting a few of the state’s small towns together. One of these towns happened to be Ecru. Although the railroad served its purpose for many years, it was eventually abandoned and remained that way until September 2013. This was the grand opening date of the Tanglefoot Trail; a biking, walking, or running trail that replaced the forty-four mile railroad tracks through Mississippi. Before his death, M.B. Mayfield painted many scenes along the railroad of the cotton fields and the people that worked in the fields. Now, people all over Mississippi come to experience the trail for themselves. Ready to start your own trip on the trails? On the main street of Ecru, the Friendship Fitness gym offers bicycle rentals, so you can bike and support a local business. There are also many accommodations along the trail for food, sleep, and shopping.Although the railroad seen in his paintings is now the trail, you can easily go back in time trying to find the exact spots of each painting. In the pictures for this location, Some of the paintings that were inspired by the railroad and the surrounding locations are included in the pictures section of this stop on the tour. The trail as seen in many of Mayfield’s paintings is beautiful and full of nature. By seeing how amazing and natural it is in his paintings, you can truly appreciate his art for depicting how the area used to be. If you have the time, try to walk along the trail and spot the approximate locations of the paintings. The easiest one to find off the main street of Ecru is the cotton gin, which is included in one of his more popular works, as it still stands today! The beauty of the trail can be seen in his paintings like the Cotton Gin which can be seen in a beautiful field surrounded by trees. Also, if you do not have the time today on your tour to fully enjoy the trail, consider taking your family or friends back to Ecru for a day trip so you can spend hours exploring, biking, or letting children play. As for the artists among you, this is an excellent place to paint as Mayfield demonstrated time and again.Entry by Ellie Davis and James Geiger

All aboard the Tanglefoot Trail! Once a railroad track that spanned Mississippi from top to bottom, the Tanglefoot Trail is now a walking, running, and biking trail for all to enjoy. Before its creation in 2013, though, M.B. Mayfield used the old railroad tracks and the picturesque fields and daily life of Ecru, Mississippi's citizens as inspiration for his paintings. The Tanglefoot Trail offers the same to you today, so enjoy exploring it as you learn about Mayfield's life.

Tanglefoot Trail

The local markets and stores within the community inevitably become central aspects of that town or city, but in smaller, more rural towns such as Ecru, Mississippi, these markets and shops are essential to everyday life. The Tutor family was and still is today an extensive and influential family in Ecru and Pontotoc County, Mississippi, even having quite a lengthy book in the University of Mississippi archive about their family history. With small towns such as Ecru having a small population it causes most everyone to know each other or of each other because of the close community which rallies around central locations and in Ecru that was the “Tutor brothers’ Store”. While researching M.B. Mayfield and his life many connections were made between members of the Tutor family and Mayfield. The Tutor family had connections throughout the town and country because of their Store and because “Rolling Store,” which is exactly how they sound. Rolling Stores, starting in New York in the early 1900s, were very similar to modern food trucks, but during this time they were more than just convenient. Many families such as M.B. Mayfield did not grow up economically privileged because they grew most of what they needed but something they needed to buy without a car that could be miles. This is where Rolling Stores came into play, allowing the business owner to bring the shop to you, helping both parties. The leading “Tutor Brothers’ Store” and the rolling store kept the Tutors well connected with Mayfield and most of the town but members of the family will go above and beyond what is expected of them. The Oral histories give an exciting insight into hearing real people’s voices and emotions as they recount their stories. The story is told by Mr. John Afamasaga, a New Zealander, who moved to Oxford and fell in love with his work even connecting with some people who actually knew Mayfield, Afamasaga recounts hearing about Phil Tutor and that the Tutor family ran the rolling store which had a large influence on Mayfield's work. Another Oral history that spoke out was from a Senior United States District Judge and Ecru native, Glen Davidson, and he recounts a time when Mr. Knox Tutor, one of the two people on the Ecru School Board, came to Davidson’s father's house because Knox heard that the Klu Klux Klan may attempt something that night. Mr. Knox Tutor and Mr.Davidson sat out, and when the KKK arrived, Mr.Tutor shot some rounds into the air from his pistol, causing the Klan to dissipate. These stories tell us the influence and impact which the Tutor family and the “Tutor Brothers’ Store” had upon Ecru, Mississippi, and M.B. Mayfield.

The “Tutor Brothers’ Store'' was a central part of the community and everyday life for the citizens of Ecru, Mississippi, and Pontotoc county. The Tutor store was a family-run business serving gas to passing cars and providing the essentials of life to the local community, such as the painter M.B. Mayfield who grew up in this rural Mississippi town. The large Tutor family was able to keep the “Brothers’ Store” for a while until it was eventually turned into a Church for the local congregation; despite changing services, the same building still serves the public of Ecru, Mississippi.

The Tutor brothers' Store

M.B. Mayfield had a close relationship with his Christianity and his church all throughout his life. In his autobiography, he mentions that since he was a child, he had been going to churches and their revival events. As a child, Mayfield fondly recalled that his favorite thing regarding revival services was “going to the farthest church at night because the wagon ride was so much fun”. His home church was the Ecru Second Baptist Church, and he attended this church for most of his life. The exact date that the church was established could not be found, but since Mayfield was born in 1923, it is estimated that the church is almost a hundred years old now! Mayfield also wrote a history of the church, but this unfortunately could also not be located because the church owns the only handwritten copies of the history. The building of the church is different now, as the larger building is a new addition that Mayfield would not have attended service in.Later in his life, though, Mayfield transferred to the St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in New Albany, MS. Although this entry is focused on the Ecru Second Baptist Church, a history of Mayfield’s religious life is not complete without mentioning his time at the Catholic Church. At this church, Mayfield made many good friendships and relationships, especially with Father Will Steinbacher, who was over the church at that time. Mayfield saw him as a father figure, even though he was younger than himself. Also while attending the Catholic Church, Mayfield served as a cross bearer, a job that he greatly enjoyed according to his autobiography. Photographs of the St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church are attached to this entry, so you do not have to drive to New Albany to see it.Finally, here is Mayfield’s favorite scripture verse, as declared in his autobiography, Isaiah 40:30-31, “Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.” Entry by Ellie Davis

The Ecru Second Baptist Church has been around for close to one hundred years. This church is where M.B. Mayfield attended for most of his life. Mayfield painted a baptismal painting that is hung over the church’s baptistery. Ecru Second Baptist also currently has an active congregation, so if you are looking for a church, feel free to check this one out!

Ecru Second Baptist Church

Ecru recognized M.B. Mayfield as its most prominent citizen on that day of celebration in July of 1988 at the Ecru City Park. The honor came two years after M.B. Mayfield was invited to exhibit his art in 1986 at the University of Mississippi (UM) Museum in Oxford. Mr. Mayfield donated several of his paintings to the UM Museum from the exhibit.Ecru City Park's Community Center was once the cafeteria for the town's segregation era school, the Ecru High School. The brick high school building was torn down after school consolidation ending racial segregation of the public schools in Pontotoc County. The only remaining building associated with Ecru High School, the community center hosts family and community events and is the voting precinct where Ecru residents cast their votes in elections. Ecru City Park's name was changed in 2005 to the Blake Mounce Memorial Park in memory of another Ecru resident, USMC Corporal Black Mounce. Corporal Mounce was killed in the line of duty in Iraq on July 14, 2005. M.B. Mayfield painted a commissioned portrait of Corporal Blake Mounce's grandparents, Flake and Dorothy Mounce of Ecru in 1980, and that painting was donated by the couple's children in the Summer of 2023 to the M.B. Mayfield Foundation. Mr. Mayfield died in June of 2005, a month prior to the untimely death of USMC Corporal Blake Mounce.Original text-Jasper (Emily) SlidesUpdates-Jeannie Speck-Thompson

The Blake Mounce Memorial Park or Ecru City Park is a hub of activity and a landmark of Ecru, MS. This park is the gathering place for celebrations, t-ball, softball, and baseball games, community-wide Easter Egg Hunts, and an annual memorial 5k "fun" run which raises money to support the park's services. The Ecru City Park is the site of the first celebration of "M.B. Mayfield Day" which took place in July 14, 1988, and it is an important part of the M.B. Mayfield Heritage Trail.

Ecru City Park 

The Judon Line Elementary School was founded by M.B. Mayfield’s grandfather Adam Judon, and it was the only primary school for African American children in Ecru into the 1940's. The original Judon School building was a one room, log-cabin similar in style to the other thirty-two schools for Black students in Pontotoc County. Mayfield's family lived and raised cotton and other crops on a roughly one hundred acre farm that was just across the street from the school. While attending the Judon School, Mayfield learned essential skills like reading, writing, and math. As a child, Mayfield used supplies from school to draw simple sketches of his memories. When he was 13 years old, Mayfield was forced to leave school and work on his family’s farm full-time like many children in farming families at that time. He only completed school through the eighth grade as a result. As an adult, Mr. Mayfield l took the GED exam in 1951 and earned a high school diploma. The Judon School was connected to Mayfield's family history, and it became a subject of his memory paintings when he became an artist. In 1950, Mayfield painted the building that replaced the old Judon Line schoolhouse of his childhood, and he titled that painting The Ecru Colored School. You can see his painting of the Ecru Colored School at the Pontotoc County Library in Pontotoc, Mississippi. Entry by Samantha Rice.Updated by Jeannie Speck-Thompson 1/19/24

Although the Judon Lines elementary school is no longer standing, its legacy lives on through the paintings of M.B. Mayfield. Judon Lines Elementary School, also called the Judon School, was located across the road from Mayfield’s childhood home and was where he spent a large part of his time as a child.

Judon Lines Elementary School

This bus stop marked the start of Mayfield’s journey to refining his art skills at the University of Mississippi. After Dr. Purser discovered Mayfield’s art in the summer of 1949, Mayfield followed Dr. Purser's advice and took the bus to the University of Mississippi in 1949; this would change his life forever. As Mayfield looked out the window of the bus that Monday in October, he reminisced about his life up until that point and dreamed about what lay ahead. Before that first bus ride, he had never even been away from home overnight, and yet, he was about to spend three away from this beloved town of Ecru as he further developed his art style and unofficially became the first Black man to unofficially attend Ole Miss.This stop also was the bus stop he used years later to leave Oxford and return to Ecru when he came back to town to care for his ill mother. However, that journey was not the end; it was just the beginning of his career as a freelance artist.Now, follow Mayfield's journey to Oxford in the second part of our tour to learn more about Mayfield’s story!Entry by Brittany Ellis

You’ve arrived at the last stop of the M.B. Mayfield Walking Tour in Ecru, Mississippi: the old bus stop. While the exact location of the old bus stop is still unknown, M.B. Mayfield would most likely have left out of Ecru this way when he took a bus directly from Ecru to Oxford in 1949 when he took a leap of faith and went to the University of Mississippi to learn art in secret.

Old Ecru Bus Stop

Peabody Hall is an academic building on campus at the University of Mississippi. Constructed in 1913, the building was designed by architect Bem Price and its architecture reflects a Classical Revival style. Early in its lifetime, it housed the School of Education, the College of Liberal Art, and the Department of Mathematics. In 1956, the building transitioned into the home of the Department of Psychology, a function it still maintains today. During its early years, the building served as the original home for the University’s ROTC program, that is until World War II disrupted university life. Along with several other buildings on the Circle, Peabody Hall would sustain damage during the integration of the University of Mississippi in 1962. Beginning on the night of September 30, 1962, segregationists rioted in opposition to the enrollment of James Meredith, the first African American man to officially attend the university. Once the national guard intervened and order had been restored, Meredith took his first class in Peabody Hall, one of the aforementioned math classes. Owing to its historical significance, Peabody Hall was added as a part of the Lyceum - The Circle Historic District which attained designation as a national historic landmark on October 6, 2008.M.B. Mayfield took his first steps on the University of Mississippi campus in 1949 in front of Peabody Hall, where his bus deposited him. He had been sought out by Dr. Purser, an art professor at Ole Miss because of his artistic ability. Mayfield would later refer to Dr. Purser as his friend. Then, hired to work as a janitor, it was here, on the top floor of Peabody Hall, where Mayfield would sit in a broom closet with his easel and art supplies and watch and listen to the art lessons through the cracked door. In his autobiography, Mayfield recalled that this broom closet would also act as a “break” room for Mayfield and he would often spend his “breaks” inside painting and being reminded that he was “interested in an art career” above all. While “strictly on a segregated basis” Mayfield took the lessons just “as seriously as the other students did” and what he learned during these lessons only fueled his artistic ability and talent. His presence was intended to remain a hidden secret shared only between Dr. Purser and Mayfield himself. However, the other students began to realize that Mayfield was not “just a ‘handyman’” and that his presence served a different purpose. Despite their racial differences in a time of racial segregation, many of the other students almost seemed to accept Mayfield as “one of them.” Mayfield detailed how they were “continuously hospitable in different ways” towards him and shared with him their art supplies and offered him their moral support. The very same classroom where Dr. Purser conducted these art lessons would be the same room where James Meredith, the man credited as being the first African American student to attend the University of Mississippi, would attend math class more than ten years later in 1962.Entry by Abigail Browning and Walker Bray

Located on the University of Mississippi campus, George Peabody Hall currently houses the University's Department of Psychology. Built in 1913, the building has played a role in university history throughout the 20th century. African American folk artist M.B. Mayfield unofficially took classes here, despite the university being strictly closed to African American students due to segregation. This training proved to be invaluable to his career as an artist. African American student James Meredith would later enroll at the school in 1962, officially crossing the color line. He would attend one of his first classes at the university in Peabody Hall.

George Peabody Hall

M.B. Mayfield's journey to publicly display his artwork was not easy, but thanks to archival material, it is now a documented one. Mayfield sent Chancellor R. Gerald Turner a copy of his autobiography that he had been working on in June of 1984, asking if the school was interested or could help with the project. It is unknown if the Chancellor himself responded, but the Chair of the English Department, Evans Harrington, received a copy of the manuscript in February 1985; he sent a copy of it to the Chancellor himself and the Chair of the Art Department, Margaret Gorove, and urged that they both get in contact with Mayfield. Although Gorove responded a few months later in April, she was harsh and said that Mayfield’s artwork was better suited for the Center for the Study of Southern Culture than the traditional art department. This did not deter Mayfield, though. Lamar Wilder (his future agent) soon contacted him with plans to showcase some paintings at the Center. The two men drove from Ecru to campus, presenting Dr. William R. Ferris (founding director of the Center) with a resume and sample paintings, and it was set: Mayfield would have an art exhibit the following summer.When summer of 1986 rolled around, Mayfield was no longer hiding in the janitor’s closet---he was center stage with a month-long exhibition at the Center, starting in August. His work was greatly received; Mayfield recounted receiving fan mail, phone calls, compliments, and even commissions. From there, Mayfield’s career reached new heights: Wilder became his official agent, he increased the prices of his work, sold a painting for a thousand dollars to Tupelo Bank, had an exhibit at the Mississippi Educational Television in Jackson, won at the Center for Contemporary Arts in New Orleans, had an exhibit at Amherst University in Massachusetts, and conducted various other shows and lectures.Entry by Brittany Ellis

The Center for the Study of Southern Culture, located at Barnard Observatory on the University of Mississippi campus, was the host of a full-circle moment in M.B. Mayfield’s art career. Nearly forty years after secretly “attending” classes in Peabody Hall, he had his very own public art exhibition on campus in the summer of 1986.

Barnard Observatory

The University of Mississippi Archives are an integral part of the M.B. Mayfield walking tour because they provide a historical lens as to what the university was like when Mayfield lived and worked on campus. Those interested in Mayfield’s life and legacy can look through the John Elon Phay collection in the archives or online. Dr. John Elon Phay, a professor of educational administration and the university’s Director of Education Research, took photographs of the campus beginning in 1949, the same year that Mayfield landed his job working out of Peabody Hall as a janitor. The 727 campus photographs offer a detailed glimpse at campus life in the early 50s, exactly as Mayfield would have seen it. Not only does the collection include pictures of Peabody, where Mayfield lived and worked, it also demonstrates campus segregation. Higher education at that time was socially and financially accessible only to a few, and these photographs give us a deeper perspective into what that looked like. Among these, there are also photographs featuring art works that were on display at the time.In addition to the Phay Collection, the archives includes a copy of Mayfield’s autobiography, as well as an essay Mayfield wrote that is now part of the Memories of Mississippi Essay Collection. This essay details Mayfield’s childhood memories in relation to the Great Depression. It also discusses his home life and the ways his family sought to provide for themselves during difficult times. Many of Mayfield’s paintings feature scenes from his early childhood. All of these materials give us a unique perspective on Mayfield’s life and experiences and further let us appreciate his journey. Disclaimer: Dr. Phay’s complete collection includes thousands of photographs that were taken all over Mississippi. The photos depict segregation in public schools in multiple other counties. The pictures taken at this time portray a society that was plagued with prejudice and racism, of which the university and the History on Location class wholeheartedly condemn. Some may be sensitive to or offended by some of the material represented in this collection. These photographs are included as a historical resource to aid us in broadening our perspectives of Mississippi’s history, but they do not align with the values we wish to promote. A more detailed explanation of Dr. Phay and the photographs is available on the eGrove website. Entry by Katie Kerrigan

The University Archives, located in the J.D Williams Library on the University of Mississippi campus, houses thousands of historical documents that represent Mississippi's past and present. The Archives allow us to understand Mayfield's story in relation to his time at the University of Mississippi and his life as a Mississippi resident. In the Archives we can find many materials that paint a broader picture of campus life, life in Oxford, and life in the south as a whole.

University of Mississippi Archives (J.D Williams Library) 

After Mayfield’s time working as a janitor for the University and listening in on art lectures, he participated in exhibitions at the University as well as the Brooks Museum of Art in Memphis, Tennessee in the nineteen-eighties. It was through the support of Stuart Purser, students, and even William Faulkner that Mayfield was able to grow in his career of painting that allowed him to participate in these exhibitions. The paintings housed at the Museum encompass some of Mayfield’s later works, allowing viewer’s the ability to see how his style and technique have changed over his career as a painter. Mayfield painted scenes from his own life, especially memories of his childhood, as well as portraits of people who were famous during his lifetime.One of the first paintings, “Now I Lay Me Down,” depicts three boys kneeling beside a bed, while the mother depicted in the portrait holds a quilt after warming it by a fire. According to Mayfield, it is one of his favorite paintings as it depicts himself, his twin, and younger brother along with their mother, recapturing a memory of nightly prayers before bed. Another painting titled “Aunt Ella Quilting” is set in the same room as the previous, this time showing Black woman working on a multi-colored quilt in a cabin, possibly another memory from Mayfield’s childhood. He also depicts various moments of tragedies in his life through his paintings, including “One Gray December Day”, which depicts his father’s funeral procession, and “Tragic Sunday- Summer of 1932”, which shows the death of his cousin, Nelly Johnson, who was struck by lightning. The last two paintings are portraits, one being of Martin Luther King and the other of Michael Jackson, two famous figures who undoubtedly had an impact on Mayfield’s life as he felt the need to paint them. Although not currently on display at the Museum, Mayfield’s paintings are a vital contribution to local folk art collection and highlight his connection with the University of Mississippi and Oxford.Entry by Sara Grevy and Josh Cielencki

Housed on the edge of the University of Mississippi’s campus, the UM Museum houses a wide variety of collections including Scientific Instruments, Greek and Roman Antiquities, American Art, and Folk Art. Within these collections are six M.B. Mayfield paintings made in the 1980s, showcasing works from the later years of his life.

M.B. Mayfield Heritage Trail

Pontotoc County Library

Introduction

Images

Backstory and Context

Sources