Oseola McCarty House officially opens
Local community leaders, leadership from The University of Southern Mississippi (USM), family and friends of the McCarty family and community members gathered at McCarty’s former home on 6th Street on March 5 to celebrate the opening of the Oseola McCarty House Museum. The Hattiesburg Convention Commission, in partnership with USM, purchased, restored and recreated the home to preserve the legacy and work of a locally and nationally recognized philanthropist, Oseola McCarty.
The Oseola McCarty House is open to the public for tours Wednesday through Friday from 10 a.m. until 4 p.m. and on Saturdays from 12 p.m. until 4 p.m. Reservations are required and can be made by calling (601)450-1942 or by visiting the museum’s website at oseolamccartyhouse.com.
McCarty, born in 1908, was raised in Hattiesburg by her grandmother and aunt. She began working at the tender age of 8-years-old ironing laundry to help with her family’s workload. Even at such a young age, she began to save her earnings in a bank account. When her aunt became unable to work, McCarty dropped out of school in the sixth grade to take over her role as a washerwoman.
“Sometimes I worked straight through two or three days. I had goals I was working toward. That motivated me and I was able to push hard,” said McCarty in an interview with Philanthropy Roundtable. “Work is a blessing. As long as I am living, I want to be working at something. Just because I am old doesn’t mean I can’t work.”
As time marched on, McCarty continued to save as much of her money as possible. Even with the invention of the automatic washing machine and dryer, McCarty continued to wash the laundry with a rubboard and washpot over a fire before starching and hanging them on a line to dry. She said that the washing machine did not rinse enough and the dryer turned whites yellow, so she instead continued with her method of boiling clothes with four fresh-water rinses.
“I would go outside and start a fire under my wash pot,” said McCarty. “Then I would soak, wash, and boil a bundle of clothes. Then I would rub ’em, wrench ’em, rub ’em again, starch ’em, and hang ’em on the line. After I had all of the clean clothes on the line, I would start on the next batch. I’d wash all day, and in the evenin’ I’d iron until 11:00 [p.m.]. I loved the work- the bright fire, wrenching the wet, clean cloth, white shirts shinin’ on the line.”
McCarty carried on her work until her retirement at the age of 86-years-old, by which time she had managed to save $280,000. Instead of waiting until her passing to distribute her savings, she decided to immediately distribute her funds- including $150,000 to USM to fund scholarships for students who could not otherwise afford the education she never had the opportunity to get.
Paul Laughlin, retired senior vice president and trust officer of Trustmark National Bank, told the heart-warming story at the official opening of the museum of McCarty making her decisions regarding her contribution. Laughlin, who knew McCarty as a long-time customer of the bank, recalled sitting with the then 87-years-old McCarty to help her manage the contributions.
“She said she wanted to leave her money to her church, three favorite cousins and that college out there on Hardy Street [USM],” recalled Laughlin. “I gathered ten dimes and asked her to show me how she wanted to divide her savings, represented by one dollar. We spread out index cards with the names of her beneficiaries. Her hands, slowed by arthritis, placed the first dime onto the card marked, ‘Friendship Baptist Church,’ and then one on each cousin’s card.”
McCarty looked up at Laughlin and said, “My arthritis won’t let me lift the rest- you put them there [on the card marked USM].”
“I placed the remaining dimes on the university’s card- 60% of her life’s savings- so that her scholarships could give others the educational opportunities that she never had herself,” said Laughlin. “Out of that simple act- a handful of dimes- grew a legacy of hope!”
Upon hearing McCarty’s story, Hattiesburg residents followed suit and helped that investment grow to more than three times the initial amount. Today, the Oseola McCarty Scholarship Fund has benefited 142 students and has grown to $1 million corpus, allowing for 20 Oseola McCarty Scholars to receive $2,000 annually toward their education.
