McCarty, military vehicle museums to open in Hattiesburg Sixth Street District

HATTIESBURG, Miss. (WDAM) - A museum dedicated to the life of the late Hattiesburg washer-woman and philanthropist, Oseola McCarty, is set to open later this year.

A new back porch, with ADA accessibility, is being added to the Oseola McCarty House one of the museums in the Sixth Street Museum District.

McCarty gained international acclaim in the mid-1990s, after donating much of her life savings for college scholarships.

“We’ve got to provide ADA access, so we’ve got to address that, that’s what we’re doing,” said Rick Taylor, executive director of the Hattiesburg Convention Commission.

“(McCarty) did have a porch on the back of the house, so we’re putting that back and then, our goal is to have in the back yard kind of a hands-on interactive aspect, that young folks can come on a field trip and learn about Ms. Oseola’s story.”

Taylor says a new vehicle park, across from the African-American Military History Museum, is also scheduled to open in 2023.

The Moeller Military Vehicle Museum will house more than a dozen vehicles on permanent loan from Georgia physician Don Moeller.

Taylor says the Hattiesburg Convention Commission is now in the process of getting bids on building materials for that museum.

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