About Mayfield Event Center
Will Mayfield College began as Mayfield-Smith Academy in Sedgewickville, MO in 1878. It was founded by William Henderson Mayfield with support from Dr. H. J. Smith. Mayfield believed that the school was an answer to “the low grade of educational interests in Southeast Missouri and the great lack of moral and religious culture.” The new school received the support of the St. Francois Baptist Association. In 1880 the school moved to Marble Hill. The first main building—Academic Hall—was completed in 1885. In 1903 the name of the school was changed to Will Mayfield College to honor the son of the founder.
The 1927 Ozark Glory showed an enrollment of around 113. The list of faculty shows that the curriculum was traditional—English, mathematics, physics, zoology, languages and history. It offered a glee club and both public speaking and debating opportunities. Students participated in academic organizations and two different organizations for religious activity.
Southeast Missouri State’s “Almost Yesterday” series notes, “Graduates of Will Mayfield College generally became teachers and administrators, and the college consistently claimed that there were more teachers in Missouri with Will Mayfield diplomas than from any other state college.”
In 1926 a fire destroyed the women’s dormitory, and the Great Depression both cut into Will Mayfield’s funds and enrollment. After a temporary closure in 1930, the college closed for good in May 1934.
When the college closed, some campus buildings were sold as residences or removed to other locations. Two buildings remained—Academic Hall and the Arts and Science Building. These sat empty until 1941 when they were sold to a woman who wanted to create a hospital. The hospital plan failed, and Academic Hall was sold to El Nathan to house a retirement home.
Today the Arts and Science Building is now home to the Bollinger County Library. Academic Hall is our building the Mayfield Event Center.
