Did You Know?

Montreat’s “Mish Kids”

This is the second article on the place of mission at Montreat. CLICK HERE for the first story on mission at Montreat.

Young children accompanied their parents to the mission fields and were able to attend primary and secondary schools near their homes. For college-age students, the question of what to do during school vacations was a pressing concern. Traveling back and forth from college to their mission home was quite expensive. In the summer of 1933, the Montreat Woman’s Club addressed this issue by renting a nine-room cottage with Sallie Liddell of Jackson, Mississippi, as hostess. The first meal was served on June 15 to Franklin and William Talmage, whose parents were in Korea. By the end of the summer, 24 young people were in residence, earning some money working at Montreat boarding houses and the hotels. They each paid $3.00 weekly for board, room, and laundry.

 In 1934, Hickory Lodge, one of Montreat’s earliest boarding houses, came up for sale. The Women’s Club created the Collegiate Home Corporation and purchased the property just in time, since the number of applicants far exceeded the capacity of the rented house. With a very successful fundraising effort, the corporation retired the debt in four years. Then in 1941, the Women’s Auxiliary donated its Birthday Offering of $10,000 to create an endowment for ongoing maintenance.  Demand for space remained so high that in the early 1940s another dormitory was added.

Mrs. A. D. Mizell of Tarboro, NC, served as hostess; Mrs. Milton Vaughan of Leland, NC, was the dietician. One of the young men who stayed there, G. Thompson Brown, had stories to tell. Evidently a Christmas party ended with a bone-chilling evening swim in Lake Susan. Romance was in the air as well. Brown had met fellow “mish kid” Mardia Hopper earlier, but during their time at Collegiate Home their friendship blossomed. He proposed, she accepted, and the reception was held in Collegiate Home lounge.

Gradually furloughs became more frequent and the young people could find better-paying jobs elsewhere. The number of those coming to Collegiate Home declined during the 1950s until it was no longer feasible to operate the facility. After 25 years of serving a vital purpose, Collegiate Home closed and the facilities were sold.

Thanks to the Presbyterian Heritage Center, especially Nancy Midgette, for this glimpse from the past. Stop by the PHC for additional Montreat missionary history and so much more. Have an idea for a future “Did You Know?”? Let Nancy know at midgette@elon.edu.