[2] Edwin Sidney Werts and James White Sheffey Rhea founded MUS as a college-preparatory school for boys in the fall of 1893.

[3] Their purpose was threefold: to prepare boys for competitive colleges, to provide them with a liberal arts education, and to help them develop into cultured Christian gentlemen.

Patterned largely after Werts's alma mater, the University of Virginia, MUS embraced high academic standards, strong moral development, and an emphasis on athletics.

The school adopted red and blue as its official colors to represent the academics standards of two universities, Harvard and Yale.

Within three years, it outgrew its temporary quarters in the old Bethel Building in Downtown Memphis and occupied the Clara Conway Institute at 297 Poplar Avenue.

The economic boom of the 1950s revitalized MUS, and classes began again in 1955 under the leadership of Col. Ross M. Lynn and a dedicated Board of Trustees chaired by Alexander Wellford.

Seniors acquired off-campus lunch privileges; Hutchison School moved in next door; the Hyde Chapel was built; and sophisticated language labs were added.

Leigh MacQueen became academic dean, Bill Hatchett guided annual student tours to Europe, and MUS worked at living up to its namesake.

This included a master plan for expanding and updating the physical plant and a massive capital campaign (more than $21 million total) to fund improvements.