Kim Tried… Mansfield Female College Museum

I visited Mansfield, Louisiana this past week, for a work-related trip. My longtime friend, Melissa, decided to join me (yeah!). I have worked in Mansfield on and off for almost 5 years, so it’s a small town that I’m pretty familiar with. However, I have never looked up any of the historical sites there. Melissa suggested that we do so while we were there this time. This is a town that I visit about once a month, so we didn’t need to fit them all into one visit. We drove by the historical site of the Battle of Mansfield, through a historical cemetery, but decided ultimately to visit the Mansfield Female College Museum.

The Mansfield Female College Museum is located at 101 Monroe St., Mansfield, LA 71052.  There is no charge for admission, and donations are encouraged but not required. The museum is handicap-cap accessible, and open Wednesday-Friday, closed on all government holidays.  For more information, call 318-871-9978 or Fax: 318-871-9978. We did not make reservations, and visiting at 10:30 on a Friday, we were the only visitors at the time.

Our Arrival

Arriving at the location, we took note of an asphalt driveway to the left of the steps from the street. An archway graces the steps, noting Mansfield Female College, established 1855. I wondered aloud about the archway being over the steps and not the driveway, and then it hit me… the college opened in 1855, and the first automobile wasn’t made for another 30+ years. So the steps were the entrance to the college, and the driveway a later addition. I forgot most exterior photos, so I’ll have to grab some next time I’m in town and update this post then.

We drove around the small building and parked in back, near the auditorium.

Entrance

On the way in, we scanned a QR Code, which I believe provides a self-guided tour. I didn’t get to the first screen on mine, as the Director of the museum, Van Reech greeted us warmly as we walked in the door. We signed the guestbook, and listened to him tell us about the wealth of history we were about to see.

Variety Room

A variety of dresses of the era (in exquisite condition) tell a tale of years gone by.

Next, Mr. Reech demonstrated a Victrola phonograph. He wound it up and played a record for us, and it was amazing. Below is a short video I shot while he did this. For some reason, it won’t let me embed this video. If you click on the link, it’ll take you to my YouTube channel, and you can view the video. It’s only 13 seconds long.

https://youtube.com/shorts/xOxlFFg-Qm8

After that demonstration, he showed us the Edison machine.

https://youtube.com/shorts/A_YY0kW86AU

And again, I can’t seem to embed this video. It’s only 22 seconds long, so be sure to give it a look (and subscribe to my YouTube channel for more videos).

Memorabilia room (and our introduction to a ghost)

The next room housed many memorabilia items, from diplomas issued to students, to yearbooks and scrapbooks, to paintings and fine china hand-painted by students.

In one of the photos above, you’ll see that a couple of items in the first photo have been knocked over. The curator told us that’s the work of “Peg Leg Pete”, a late confederate soldier who is well-documented haunting the former college. More about him later.

Hallway

Even the hallways tell a story through photos of the graduates and athletic teams.

Hospital Room

The next room we entered documents when the college turned into a hospital during the Civil War. Mr. Reech told us that a soldier named Peter was treated at the hospital. He needed an amputation, but it was not enough to save his life. Sadly, he succumbed to his injuries. This is a room similar to the one he would have been treated in, and many of the items (wheelchairs, a cot, nurses uniforms, a military uniform, and both a revolver and a rifle) of the time period are displayed. Also on display is the story of “Peg Leg Pete”.

Dorm Room

Next, we entered a recreation of a typical dorm room, complete with trunk and dresses, a writing desk with typewriter, vanity, bed, and doll carriage and stroller.

I captioned the photo above, but wanted to go a little more in-depth with it here. During the filming of the movie, Her Calling – based on true events and filmed at The Mansfield Female College museum – the actors noticed the room was extremely cold and made mention of it. They didn’t notice anything other than the cold. But, in this still photo, a transparent figure clearly stands against the wall. He is not part of the cast, and was not visible to the actors, but only caught on film. They believe this was the ghost of “Peg Leg Pete” making his appearance known. Disclosure: The link above is an Amazon affiliate link. Using these links will never cost you more, and I pass on savings whenever possible. It allows me to earn a small amount to offset my costs of “trying things”, whether that’s travel, entrance fees, or making something new.

Our impressions

You may think after seeing all of these photos that you don’t need to visit the museum in person. Allow me to say you couldn’t be more wrong! I didn’t take photos through several areas of the tour, as I got caught up viewing it in person. The genealogy library appears to be amazing, and will require another longer visit. I saw a tombstone in the local cemetery (which will be another post on it’s own) which read Bell. I don’t have records of my family being in Mansfield, but the Bells were here for the civil war, so it is possible. That requires some research.

You can read the history of the college at the City of Mansfield’s website. If you don’t have a chance to visit the Mansfield Female College Museum in person, please consider donating! You can call them at the number above. I will also do that on Wednesday, when they re-open, and update this post. Let me know below what you think, and if you’ll visit the museum if you happen to be near/in the City of Mansfield!