William D. McCain Pamphlet Collection

William David McCain, fifth president of Mississippi Southern College (now The University of Southern Mississippi), was born on March 29, 1907, in Bellefontaine, Mississippi. He graduated from Sunflower Agricultural High School, received his bachelor’s degree from Delta State College, his master’s degree from The University of Mississippi, and his Ph.D. from Duke University. In 1967, the honorary degree of Doctor of Letters was conferred by Mississippi College.

Dr. McCain taught at East Central Junior College, Copiah-Lincoln Junior College, Millsaps College, The University of Mississippi, and Mississippi State College (now Mississippi State University). He served as Director of the Mississippi Department of Archives and History from 1938 to 1955. In addition, he worked as a historian at Morristown National Historical Park in Morristown, New Jersey (1935) and served as Assistant Archivist at the National Archives in Washington, D.C. (1935-1937).

In 1924, McCain enlisted as a private in the National Guard. He served with General Mark Clark in Italy during World War II, and also served during the Korean Conflict. Remaining in the National Guard, he rose to the rank of Major General.

McCain married the former Minnie Leicester Lenz on October 3, 1931, and they were parents of three children: William D., Jr., John W., and Patricia.

On May 19, 1955, he was elected president of Mississippi Southern College and assumed office on August 18, 1955. When he took office, Dr. McCain promised to “keep the campus dusty or muddy with construction,” and during his tenure, twenty-five new academic and housing complexes were constructed.

Under McCain’s leadership, the first complete reorganization of the academic programs into Schools and Colleges was accomplished. This action paved the way for Mississippi Southern College to become a university, and on February 27, 1962, the school was officially renamed The University of Southern Mississippi (USM). Another event of profound significance that occurred during Dr. McCain’s presidency was the admission of USM’s first African American Students, Gwendolyn Armstrong and Raylawni Branch, in September 1965. In the 20 years that McCain served as president, enrollment grew from 3000 in 1955 to more than 11,000 in 1975.

Dr. McCain retired on June 30, 1975. In his honor, the William D. McCain Chair of History was established in 1975, and in 1976, the William David McCain Library and Archives on the USM was opened and named in his honor.

Following his retirement from USM, he maintained an office in McCain Library, as President Emeritus, devoting much of his time to civic activities. He died on September 5, 1993, and is interred at Lakewood Memorial Park in Jackson, Mississippi.

Dr. McCain was a nationally recognized author, lecturer, historian, archivist and genealogist. He was a founding member of the Society of American Archivists and wrote several genealogical volumes, including histories of the McCain, Fox, Shaw, and Vance families. In addition, he wrote "The Story of Jackson: A History of the Capital of Mississippi 1821-1851" (1953) and "The United States and the Republic of Panama" (1937)