A Methodist girls' college in Virginia that educated young women from 1894 to 1950.
Blackstone Female Institute received its charter on February 15, 1892, and opened to students in September 1894 on six acres donated by the Blackstone Land Company. A college component was added in 1915–1916, and the school became known as Blackstone College for Girls by the early 1920s. The institution was recognized as a feeder school for Randolph-Macon Woman's College. Two major fires in 1920 and 1922 devastated the campus, but the school rebuilt and continued operations. During World War II (1943–1945), the buildings served as apartments for servicemen and their families. The college closed permanently in 1950 due to declining enrollment and the Korean War.
The curriculum was modeled on the Randolph-Macon System and offered three programs: basic high school education, preparation for university study, and teacher training. Students completed five years of study equivalent to eighth grade plus four years of high school. In addition to standard academic courses, the curriculum included three years of Bible studies. Spiritual formation was central to the educational mission, with morning chapel, Sunday sermons, and personal counseling integrated into the school week.
The college occupied six acres in Blackstone, Nottoway County, Virginia. At peak enrollment shortly before the 1920 fire, the student body numbered approximately 500 pupils. The campus included an administration building, a Carnegie building (built 1908–1909), and other facilities. By the 1920s, at least two sororities were established: Sigma Iota Chi and Kappa Delta Phi. After closure in 1950, the Virginia Methodist Conference purchased the facility and converted it into a retreat and conference center, which opened in 1955.