GEORGE WASHINGTON CARVER NATIONAL MONUMENT

Friday, July 31st --

We left early to avoid the heat of the sun, and drove south to George Washington Carver National Monument.  This is located on the 240 acre farm that had belonged to Moses and Susan Carver where George Washington Carver began his life with his slave mother, Elizabeth Williams.  When GWC was less than a year old, he and his mother and a sister were stolen from the farm by bushwhackers, probably to be sold as slaves again.  Moses offered a horse to a bounty hunter to go find the slave girl and the baby.  The baby was found and returned to the farm, but the mother and sister were never found.  GWC was returned sick and near death with whooping cough.  Susan nursed him through the whooping cough, but he was never healthy after that.  Because of his poor health Susan kept him at the house to help with chores, and he consequently learned many household chores and tasks that a girl would normally be taught, even needle work.  He also spent many hours working with the gardens and with flowers and trees on the farm.  He was fascinated with plants, making him yearn for knowledge, especially music, painting, flowers and the sciences.  

Since there were no schools for the colored, I was permitted to go 8 miles to a school in town.  After many hurdles being accepted in white schools, he finally finished high school with some Latin and Greek. He went on to Kansas City to a business college followed by an Art school and Simpson College.  This just deepened his thirst for knowledge and his applications for colleges were refused on account of his color. He later went to work at Tuskegee Institute in Georgia as Director of the Agricultural Experiment Station.  He was often called a Plant Doctor or just plain Doctor because of his ability to help local farmers with their problems with plants and trees.  He also received the prize offered for the best herbarium in Cryptogamy while at Ames. 

This is the location of their first log cabin home,
which was just 12 x 12. Through excavation they
have found the chimney, fireplace foundations of
two such homes in this location..

This was GWC's favorite hideaway where he
studied plant and animal life.

This day we saw this fellow in the creek nearby.

Front of the house built by the Carvers
later to replace the first cabin homes.

Back view of the same house.

Family cemetery on the farm.

A sister of GWC's who remained on the family farm.

The next pictures are from the museum, showing classrooms such as he had taught in.

A painting of his class students.

The day and tour were very, very interesting!  Our guide was very informative.

We left this museum and went again to Downstream Casino for lunch since we had free coupons to be used there.  Of course, we ate way too much -- just because it was free!!  And I had a winning streak on the machines, a change for me.  No big bucks though!!
Tomorrow is to be lunch with RVing friends who we met three years ago in Mesa AZ.
Stay tuned.