George Washington Carver - An american hero
George Washington Carver was born into slavery in Newton County, near Diamond Grove (now known as Diamond), Missouri. His exact date of birth is not known due to haphazard record keeping by slave owners; however it is likely that he was born in the spring of 1864. When he was only an infant, he, his mother and a sister were kidnapped by Confederate raiders and sold in Arkansas. Only George Washington Carver was found, and it is believed that his mother and sister had died. He almost died of whooping cough, which left him with a permanent respiratory disease which prevented him from working as a field hand. He spent most of his time wandering through the fields investigating varieties of wild plants. He became so knowledgeable in plants that he was known by the neighbors as the “Plant Doctor.” He decided early on that he wanted to become a botanist and an artist.
After slavery was abolished, the owner of George Washington Carver raised him and his brother Jim as his own. They encouraged him to continue his educational pursuits. He was taught how to read and write. They found out about a school for blacks about ten miles south of Neosho and decided to send him there. At the age of thirteen, George Washington Carver relocated to the home of a foster family in Kansas where he continued his education.
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After high school, George Washington Carver started a laundry business. Over the next few years, he sent letters to several colleges and was finally accepted at Highland College. However, when it was discovered he was black he was rejected. In 1887, he was accepted to Simpson College in Indianola, Iowa as its first African-American student. In 1891, he transferred to Iowa State University (then known as Iowa State Agricultural College) where he was the first black student, and later the first black faculty member.
While in college at Simpson, George Washington Carver showed a strong aptitude for singing and art; however, he also continued his work in the field of pathology and mycology and gained respect as a botanist. In 1896, he was recruited to Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute. He remained there for 47 years until his death in 1943.
George Washington Carver strove to help the poor Southern farmers. He advocated ways of improving the nitrogen cycle in soil by alternating crops, such as peanut crops, sweet potatoes, and cotton. He also developed an agricultural extension system in Alabama to train farmers in raising crops.
It is believed that in his lifetime, George Washington Carver discovered three hundred uses for peanuts and hundreds more uses for soybeans, pecans and sweet potatoes. Among the items and products that he suggested to southern farmers to help them economically were recipes and improvements for adhesives, axle grease, bleach, buttermilk, chili sauce, charcoal, ink, instant coffee, linoleum, mayonnaise, meat tenderizer, metal polish, paper, plastic, pavement, shaving cream, shoe polish, synthetic rubber, talcum powder and wood stain. Three patents were issued to George Washington Carver in the years 1925 to 1927.
George Washington Carver died on January 5, 1943 at the age of 79 from complications resulting from a bad fall down a flight of stairs in his home. For more information about George Washington Carver and what he contributed to our culture as we know it today, research online or at your local library.