George Washington Carver Facts
George Washington Carver, the man who is known as the father of
chemurgy (a branch of chemistry), is one of the most famous scientists in history. What
makes him so interesting is a long list of accomplishments
during his life which includes numerous inventions, research
projects, and peanut innovations. During a time in history when many African Americans did not attend college, he received both his bachelors and masters degree. Find
out more facts and information about
this accomplished scientist below, including why his mother made him empty his pockets as a young kid, and where the George
Washington Carver National Monument stands.
George Washington Carver General Facts
- The museum that was named after George Washington Carver in 1943 is called the George Washington Carver National Monument and it is
located just outside of Diamond Missouri.
- This amazing scientist was born in 1864 in Missouri at a time
when slavery was still permitted in that state. His parents were slaves of Susan and Moses Carver.
- He was known to bring home all sorts of
plants, reptiles and insects that he found. His mother would make him show her his empty pockets before entering the house.
- Carver and his brother were expelled from public school. The
citizens did not want African Americans attending the school, so he was sent away to a school for African Americans in another
part of the state.
- George Washington Caver changed his name to George W. Carver
because someone in his class had the exact same name.
- In 1984, after earning his Bachelor of Science degree at Iowa
State College, he was offered a position teaching horticulture
and became the first African American to teach at that school.
- George Washington Carver eventually took a job teaching at the
Tuskegee Institute, a school his friend, Booker T. Washington,
founded for African American students.
- He died at the age of 79 after taking a
fall down a flight of stairs. He is buried at the Tuskegee
Institute near his friend Booker T. Washington.
George Washington Carver Achievement Facts
- One of the inventions Carver became known for is a hybrid
species of cotton which he invented in 1910. It was the best of
both short and long-stalked cotton and allowed for faster cotton production.
- In 1983, George Washington Carver's work was featured at the
World's Fair. Not only was he an accomplished scientist, but a
talented painted as well.
- George Washington Carver is know as the "Peanut Man" because he
developed over 300 ways to use and grow it. In one of his
research papers he suggests that peanuts could be used in things like paint, soap, shampoo, and food items like coffee and
mayonnaise.
- Farmers benefitted from Carver's expertise by helping them to
save and make money. He taught them that some of their farm
animals could eat free acorns instead of pricey corn meal. He
also taught them how to grow large crops on a small amount of
land and then turn it into staple foods like flour and sugar.
- He found that crop rotation replenished
the nutrients in soil. He taught farmers to switch from one
crop, such as black-eyed peas, to cotton and back again to
restore the soils nutrients.