1839
A college building and land are purchased from the Presbyterians to create a female institution run by the Memphis Conference of the United Methodist Church. The original MCFI building could be found at E. Chester St. in Jackson, TN, where Jackson Fire Department Station 1 is currently located.
December 2, 1843
The Memphis Conference Female Institute (MCFI) is chartered by the Tennessee General Assembly with Reverend Lorenzo Lea as the MCFI first president.
1861-1865
Civil War - faculty and staff enlist in the Confederate Army.
Fall 1862/Spring 1863
The Union Army occupies Jackson, TN, and turns the MCFI building into a field hospital – classes are held at the MCFI President Amos W. Jones’s private residence.
