The Story of George Washington Carver
By
John C Abercrombie
George Washington Carver is one of the most familiar names when it comes to people studied during Black History Month. He is known for his work with the peanut, however there is a lot more to George Washington Carver than most people have knowledge of. Carver is most noted for his work with the peanut. It would surprise most people to know that when asked if he did his best work with the peanut, Carver responded, NO!
We will explore this man and find out what he really did, and you will be amazed!
The man we know as George Washington Carver was born a slave. He never knew his parents since his father was killed on a neighboring farm in an industrial accident days before he was born. At an early age, he, his mother and sister were stolen from their owner, Moses Carver. At this time, the law considered Black people as property and not as citizens. They had the same status as a kitchen chair or a cow.
The owners Moses and Susan Carver offered a reward for the return of their property. George being sickly was abandoned to die along the road. He was returned to his owner in return for the reward that was offered. George’s mother and sister were never found. They were most likely sold to another slave owner.
Susan and Moses Carver were childless and raised George and his older brother, Jim, as their own children. Jim had been spared because they were able to hide him from the thieves. George was sickly and spent time in the home unlike his robust brother.
George spent much time studying the plants that grew near the home, noting the conditions under which they thrived. His knowledge was renown, and he was often consulted about various plants.
One day, George saw a painting in a neighbor’s home and was mesmerized. Being poor and without means, he was unable to purchase supplies, but George was determined to learn to paint. Me made brushes from various plants and made paints and pigments from plants and soils. Art made a deep impression on him and he painted all his life.
There was no school for Black students in Diamond, Missouri but there was one about 10 miles away. George begged to be allowed to go. George was allowed to go there and met Andrew and Mariah Watkins, a Black Childless couple who allowed George to stay with them while attending school.
The couple Andrew and Mariah Watkins took George in. He was able to pay for his keep in exchange for helping Mariah with laundry. Mariah was a mid-wife and had knowledge of plants as a cure for various illnesses. She was able to work with George to teach him what she knew. This added greatly to George’s appreciation of plants.
When asked his name, George replied “Carver’s George” implying ownership by the Carvers. It was Mariah who suggested that from that day forward he would be known as George Carver, implying status as his own person. When George had completed all the course work available at this school, he found a more advanced school to complete his High School education.
We will pick up where George Washington Carver moves away to go to College. He was accepted into Highland College on the merits of his high school work and the application he submitted. There are even some reports that he was given a scholarship based on his high school work.
Arriving at Highland College, with hopes high, his hopes were dashed when the school found that despite his merit, he had Black skin. He was denied admission.
What is a person to do when hopes are dashed? To most people, it is devastating, but Carver persisted and homesteaded, built a home and farmed 17 acres of land. With hopes of an education faded, Carver found some friends who encouraged him to try college again. They had heard about Simpson College that would admit Negroes. Simpson College had previously had a Black student and even had a couple of Asian students attending.
Despite the earlier setback, Carver was accepted at Simpson College and did quite well in his studies. Carver was incredibly talented and maintained a love of plants. As a child, he studied them and the environment where they thrived. People in the neighborhood would often consult with him about the health of plants.
His love of plants in college was in painting them and not growing them. His major was to pursue Art and minor in Piano. His love of plants could be seen in the paintings of flowers and other plants. One of his teachers, Etta Budd, was concerned about Carver and his ability as a Black man to support himself in Art and Piano. She encouraged him to look at Iowa State Agricultural College, where her husband worked and entertain the possibility of a career in botany.
Carver applied and was accepted into Iowa State University. Carver became the first Black student. Racism was prevalent in all parts of the country. As a Black student, he was not allowed to live in a dormitory, nor eat in the cafeteria. Housing was an old shed that had been abandoned long ago, filled with dust and cobwebs, he cleaned it and scrounged furnishings. Not allowed to eat in the cafeteria, he was allowed to eat in the kitchen with the service people.
Interesting note: Carver was writing the friends who had encouraged to return to college and while telling them of the living conditions, the wife decided to pay a visit to Carver. Arriving at the school, very well dressed, she announced that she was there to visit Carver and have lunch with him. Since she was White, administrators offered to make the cafeteria available for them, but she declined, saying that if the kitchen was good enough for Carver, it was good enough for her. He never had to eat in the kitchen again.
There are times when all it takes is one person standing up for another to launch change for the better.
Carver was a great student and studied soils. Upon graduation, he was able to teach and work on his master’s degree. Things were going well, and Booker T Washington offered Carver a job at Tuskegee Institute, now Tuskegee University. Although at lower salary than at Iowa State, Carver took the job, so he could help poor Black and White farmers.
Tuskegee was an all-Black college located in Alabama.
Arriving at Tuskegee, he found that there was no laboratory, but undaunted, he began to scour the neighborhood for all manner of items from which to build a laboratory. Pots, pans, glass ware and a great assortment of gadgets and implements formed the basics of a laboratory.
Carver even made a Jessup Wagon, a mobile laboratory and library, named after a benefactor to the University. The wagon allowed Carver to travel to the farmers, study the soil and give advice and increase the profitability of the poor farmers, both Black and White. His services were in great demand.
Carver, a soil scientist, was aware that the land was depleted by growing cotton every year and advocated crop rotation. He encouraged the production of food that in addition to enriching the soil, could be eaten, reasoning that during a downturn, at least the farmers had something to eat.
At the same time, there was an infestation of boll weevils that were destroying the cotton crop in Texas. These pests would borrow into the boll (that part of the plant that produces cotton) lay their eggs which would eat and destroy the cotton. The devastation could be seen encroaching into new areas. It was possible to see the progress each year. It was not a matter of if, it was only a question of when the infestation would reach Alabama.
Some of the farmers began to do crop rotation, only problem is that there were not a lot of uses of the peanut as up to that time, most of the peanut crop went to livestock feed rather than human consumption or other products. Farmers began to question what could be done with the crop.
Carver to the rescue, he began to research ways to use the peanut. Many people think Carver invented Peanut Butter, but there is ample evidence to show this false. Peanuts contain many compounds which can be used to create other products and the list that Carver created is indeed impressive. There are over 300 products on the list.
With so many farmers clamoring for uses of the peanut, Carver was invited to speak to the national conference of Peanut Growers Association in 1920. He was allowed 10 to 15 minutes. Carver had difficulty attending the meeting because it was being held in a hotel and they refused to let a Black man, Carver, in until someone recognized him, and he was allowed to enter, by a back door.
The quality of the material Carver had to offer did not make any difference in the beginning as no White man felt there was anything a Black man could tell him, but Carver began to talk, and the 10 minutes turned into almost 2 hours. The farmers were so impressed with Carver that they realized he needed to speak to Congress in 1921 to support passage of a tariff on imported peanuts.
He was scheduled to testify on the tariff before the Ways and Means Committee of the US House of Representatives. Because of the racial climate, few if any Blacks had ever testified before Congress. Many of the Southern congressmen openly mocked Carver. However, as he spoke about the importance of the peanut and its role in American agriculture the committee repeatedly extended him time. Congress was impressed and passed the Fordney-McCumber tariff of 1922 that imposed a tariff on Chinese imports, thus saving the American peanut industry.
This contributed widely to his fame and association with the peanut.
Carver had fame outside of Tuskegee and the state of Alabama. President Theodore Roosevelt admired his work. A former professor from Iowa State, James Wilson, served as United States Secretary of Agriculture from 1897 to 1913. Another Henry Cantwell Wallace served from 1921 to 1924. Henry A Wallace, son of Henry C served from 1933 to 1940. He was also the Vice President of the United States serving under Franklin D Roosevelt from 1941 to 1945.
During his career Carver met with 3 presidents 1. Theodore Roosevelt, 2. Calvin Coolidge and 3. Franklin Roosevelt. The Crown Prince of Sweden even studied with him for 3 weeks. Carver also toured White Southern colleges for the Commission on Interracial Cooperation.
In 1937, Carver was invited by Henry Ford to speak at a conference on developing new products from crops. They developed a lasting friendship. Ford had many interests in common with Carver and in 1942, during WWII when metal was in short supply, they worked on finding a solution. Carver developed plastics from soybeans. They produced plastic car parts which were strong, dent resistant and 30% lighter than metal. There are photos of Ford hitting a fender made from plastics with a sledgehammer and leaving no visible damage. That experimental car was equipped to run on ethanol rather than gasoline as they envisioned it the fuel of the future.
Carver promoted the idea that plants could be turned into plastics, paint, fuel and other products.
Ford and Carver began corresponding by letter in 1934. Ford referred to Carver as “My beloved friend” and “The greatest of all my inspiring friends.”
Their friendship deepened after Carver visited Michigan in 1937. Ford donated generously to Tuskegee financing many of Carver’s projects and in return Carver oversaw some of the crop projects at Fords plantation in Ways, GA.
During WWII Ford made many trips to Tuskegee to convince Carver to set up a laboratory in Dearborn, Michigan. Although he declined the offer, Carver developed a way to make a substitute for rubber which was in short supply because of the war. This rubber substitute was made from goldenrod, a weed.
Most of the clothing in the country was dyed using aniline compounds. Most aniline came from Germany and was unavailable during the war. Carver invented over 500 shades of textile dyes replacing the ones that were now unavailable. This demonstrates the versatility of Carver’s work.
Many of the dyes used today are based on this work, the colors of our printed materials today are based on this work and focus on soy-based inks.
Carver’s research gained him worldwide accolades, and his advice was sought by people across the globe; then President Franklin D. Roosevelt, Henry Ford and Thomas Edison were admirers, and he even gave nutritional and agricultural advice to Mohandas Gandhi.
As Carver’s health declined, Ford had an elevator installed in Carver’s dormitory, so he would not have to climb stairs to his laboratory. Interestingly racism may have contributed to Carver’s declining health. As he spoke and traveled, he was not able to utilize a sleeper car on the train because of his race, forcing him to have to sit up even when fatigued by his robust schedule.
Upon his death, January 5, 1943, Carver was described by Roosevelt: “All mankind are the beneficiaries of his discoveries in the field of agricultural chemistry. The things which he achieved in the face of early handicaps will for all time afford an inspiring example to youth everywhere.”
Roosevelt dedicated $30,000 to the George Washington Carver National Monument in Missouri, making Carver the first Black American to have a national park named after him.
While we are aware that Carver worked with many plants besides the peanut, the following is a list of some products that came from Carvers work.
List of products
For a partial list of products that Carver produced from the peanut, click here.
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Now for some amazing videos of this great scientist
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Science and Math
We have seen in George Washington Carver what is possible given the opportunity. He contributed not only to agriculture but to many industries in America and the world. Open the world of possibility using the Amazon affiliate link below.
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Fantastic Kids: George Washington Carver (Exploring Reading)
George Washington Carver was born into slavery. No one thought much of him because he was sick and weak. He would spend his life proving them wrong. Learn more about the “Plant Doctor” turned “Peanut Man” and how he helped people across the United States. This full-color biography includes important text features such as a glossary and a table of contents to engage students in reading as they develop their comprehension and literacy skills. This book aligns with national and state standards and features exciting TIME For Kids content to keep grade 2 students engaged in learning.
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Biographies and Memoirs
Just as you have learned much about the life of George Washington Carver, his struggles and triumphs. There is a world of others that can inspire and motivate. Start your search using our Amazon affiliate link below
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In the Garden with Dr. Carver | Black History for Kids |
George Washington Carver for Kids Kids’ Books: In the Garden with Dr. Carver read aloud for children is a True Story of a man ahead of his time! SO ahead we can still learn from George Washington Carver about how to take care of the Earth so it can take care of us! Kid Time Story Time gets to see how the famous plant scientist used a
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Computers – Tablets and Components
George Washington Carver did not keep his knowledge secret. He developed his Jessup wagon so he could get the knowledge out to the people who needed it. You can get your message out using the Amazon affiliate link below. In addition, you have a world of knowledge at your beck and call.
ABH – Computers Tablets and Components
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George Washington Carver: From Slave to Scientist (Heroes of History)
George’s mother panicked when she heard the thunder of horses and the whooping of men. Bushwhackers! She pulled her baby close to her chest and stood rooted to the dirt floor in fear. A man stumbled through her doorway. “We got us one, boys!” he yelled, waving his rifle in the air and dragging his captives into the cold night. Once a kidnapped slave baby, George Washington Carver found freedom in learning everything he could about the world around him. Overcoming poverty and racism, George became a brilliant scientist and a gifted professor who dedicated his expertise to helping black farmers escape the devastating grip of poverty. George’s scientific creativity knew no limits. His ingenious experimentation with peanuts and other plants helped rescue the failing Southern economy. Still remembered for his far-reaching and diverse achievements, Dr. Carver generously shared his talent simply for the reward of helping others
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Computer Components
Today we have so many advantages in advancing research it would have amazed the scientist we are studying today. Use these advances to achieve heights unknown and impossible in earlier days using our Amazon affiliate link below
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following video goes into the life of George Washington Carver.
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We see in the work of George Washington Carver that plants need the proper nutrition in order to thrive. We are no different and you can use the Amazon affiliate link below to search for your needs.
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Who Was George Washington Carver?
Born in 1860s in Missouri, nobody expected George Washington Carver to succeed. Slaves were not allowed to be educated. After the Civil War, Carver enrolled in classes and proved to be a star student. He became the first black student at Iowa State Agricultural College and later its first black professor. He went on to the Tuskegee Institute where he specialized in botany (the study of plants) and developed techniques to grow crops better. His work with vegetables, especially peanuts, made him famous and changed agriculture forever. He went on to develop nearly 100 household products and over 100 recipes using peanuts.
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The following is a short video on the early life of George Washington Carver.
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George Washington Carver: Man’s Slave Becomes God’s Scientist (Sower Series)
Overcoming prejudice, he became an outstanding scientist for God and country
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Grocery and Gourmet Food
George Washington Carver knew the value of food for the nourishment of our bodies and worked towards those ends. It is essential that we have access to nourishing food. Many live in food deserts. It is possible to shop in the safety of our homes using the link below
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George Washington Carver “The Plant Doctor” Revolutionized Farming Industry |
Biography George Washington Carver was born into slavery but went on to become a botanist and one of the most prominent scientists and inventors of his time. Find out more about his life in this short biography. #Biography #GeorgeWashingtonCarver #PlantDoctor Subscribe for more Biography: http://aetv.us/2AsWMPH Delve deeper into Biography on our site: http://www.biography.com Follow Biography for more surprising stories from fascinating lives: Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/Biography Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/biography Twitter – https://twitter.com/biography Biography.com captures the most gripping, surprising, and fascinating stories about famous people: The biggest break. The defining opportunity. The most shattering failure. The unexpected connection. The decision that changed everything. With over 7,000 biographies and daily features that highlight newsworthy and compelling points-of-view, we are the digital source for true stories about people that matter. Rating
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George Washington Carver is the person most often mentioned when the subject of Black History comes up, but we do not even touch the surface of what he has done. It is by reading and researching that we get a better glimpse of this remarkable scientist. We see an example of a man who refused to settle. He persiviered even when others would have given up. This should be a role model for you. Believe in yourself and don’t settle for mediocracy.