Tuskegee Institute

National Historic Site Alabama Tuskegee Institute National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior W i In Industry the Foundation Must Be Laid" In his famous Atlanta Address of 1895, Booker T. Washington set forth the motivating spirit behind Tuskegee Institute. In a postReconstruction era marked by growing segregation and disfranchisement of blacks, this spirit was based on what realistically might be achieved in that time and place. "The opportunity to earn a dollar in a factory just now," he observed, "is worth infinitely more than the opportunity to spend a dollar in an opera house." Because of Washington's extraordinary ability to work within the system and to maximize the possible, Tuskegee flourished to an extent only dreamed about when he met his first students on July 4, 1881. The school's beginnings were indeed inauspicious. At the urging of Lewis Adams, a former slave, and George W. Campbell, a former slave owner, the State of Alabama had provided $2,000 for teachers' salaries but nothing for land, buildings, or equipment. Classes began in a dilapidated church and shanty. Although the 30 students in the first class may not have known what to expect from the new school, Principal Washington knew exactly what he intended to do. Guided by the model of Hampton Institute, Washington set three objectives for Tuskegee. Students in the first class already had some education and showed potential as teachers. Throughout the school's history, many graduates became educators. Washington urged these teachers "to return to the plantation districts and show the people there how to put new energy and new ideas into farming as well as into the intellectual and moral and religious life of the people." A rural extension program took progressive ideas and training to many who could not attend classes on the campus. Smaller schools and colleges founded and taught by Tuskegee alumni sprang up throughout the South, and teacher training remained a primary objective of their alma mater. take place in the dining hall and dormitories. Washington insisted on high moral character and absolute cleanliness for both students and faculty. Dormitory rooms and table manners were critically scrutinized. Washington himself kept close watch over the appearance of Tuskegee's buildings, grounds, students, and faculty. "I never see a filthy yard that I do not want to clean it...or a button off one's clothes, or a grease-spot on them or on a floor, that I do not want to call attention to it," confessed Washington. To enable the Institute to undertake such a program of total instruction, the school moved, in 1882, to 100 acres of abandoned farm land, purchased with a $200 personal loan from the treasurer of Hampton. A second and perhaps more famous objective was to develop craft and occupational skills to equip students for jobs in the trades and agriculture. The needs of the school provided a ready laboratory for instruction. Buildings were needed, so the students made and laid bricks. Hungry students ate the products of the school's farm, acquiring in the process a knowledge of Tuskegee prospered as it did in part because Washington won progressive agricultural methods. Thus they learned by doing widespread support in both the North and South. He traveled while earning compensation toward tuition. Even in traditional extensively and spoke convincingly, making the Institute known academic courses, practical problems were interwoven at every and respected among people of wealth and influence. The first opportunity. "In industry the foundation must be laid," Washing- building erected on the campus, Porter Hall, was named for the ton explained. Industrial education was to be the basis on which Brooklyn donor of $500. Andrew Carnegie, Collis P. Huntington, "habits of thrift, a love of work, ownership of property, [and] and John D. Rockefeller were among the benefactors whose names appeared on major campus buildings. By the time of bank accounts," would grow. Washington's death in 1915, Tuskegee had become an internaAs a third objective, Washington hoped to make Tuskegee what tionally famous institution. The main campus has since grown to he called a "civilizing agent." Education was to be total; certainly include 161 buildings on 268 acres and an academic community it would occur in the classroom and workshop, but also it would of nearly 5,000 students, faculty, and staff. Booker T. Washington The success of Tuskegee has not always been greeted with acclaim. Many felt that vocational training for blacks would tend to keep them in a subordinate role. Instead, greater emphasis on traditional higher education was advocated, notably by W.E.B. DuBois. While each side in this debate recognized the need for both kinds of education, the concern was with the disproportionate emphasis on vocational training that Washington's approach and Tuskegee's popular success were fostering. Growing racial discrimination heightened the urgency of the debate. Although Washington combated racial injustice behind the scenes, his critics knew little or nothing of his activity and criticized what they saw as inaction. In the decades after Washington's death, Tuskegee moved into a new era. The controversy over educational philosophy diminished as a more balanced approach arose. Washington's successor, Robert Russa Moton, led Tuskegee into a college degreegranting program with the establishment of the College Department in 1927. The struggles and triumphs of those early years, the support and attention that was garnered for Tuskegee, its survival and growth, combine into a fascinating, spirited saga. History will always grant a special significance to the name Tuskegee Institute. George Washington Carver Washington with his wife Margaret and his children Ernest Davidson, Booker T., Jr., and Portia M. Carver with students in his laboratory-classroom, about 1903. Left: The Oaks, studentbuilt home of the Booker T.Washington family. < Left: The George Washington Carver Museum. 5 m i Booker T. Washington with Theodore Roosevelt during his visit to Tuskegee Institute in 1905. m George Washington Carver with Franklin D. Roosevelt. Brown Brothers Sterling PA When the Civil War broke out in April 1861, a 6 year old child who would later call himself Booker Taliaferro Washington was a slave valued at $400.00 on the small tobacco farm of James Burroughs in Virginia. Freed at the close of the war, Booker and his family migrated to Maiden, West Virginia, where the child went to work in the mines. His spare moments were spent learning to read. While serving as a houseboy, he received strict indoctrination in the virtues of hard work and cleanliness from Viola Ruffner, wife of a mine owner. At 16, Booker entered Hampton Institute, worked his way through as a janitor, and graduated in 1875 with honors and a definite perspective on life. After periods of teaching at Maiden and further study at Wayland Seminary in Washington, D.C, he returned to Hampton in 1879 to teach Native American students. Washington's great life work really began in 1881 when he went to Tuskegee, Alabama, to create the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute. Pragmatic, optimistic, and energetic, Washington was a man eminently in tune with his time, and he guided the development of Tuskegee with considerable success. By the time he made his Atlanta Exposition speech in 1895, spelling out his pragmatic philosophy of race relations in the United States, Tuskegee already held a place of pre-eminence in the field of education for blacks. The founder himself was about to become a leader of his race and advisor to presidents. Washington's first two wives died young. Fanny N. Smith was the mother of Portia, and Olivia A. Davidson, Washington's assistant and a tireless fund-raiser, was the mother of sons Booker T. and Ernest Davidson. Margaret James Murray, his third wife, served effectively for many years as Tuskegee's Director of Industries for Girls. The family home, "The Oaks," played an important role in Washington's life. There guests were frequently entertained, and there he returned eagerly from his extensive travels to the welcome of his beloved family. Washington died at The Oaks in 1915, as did his wife 10 years later. "My very soul thirsted for an education. I literally lived in the woods. I wanted to know every strange stone, flower, insect, bird, or beast." to develop numerous uses for Southern agricultural products. His work brought fame and honor to Tuskegee Institute, and won him a reputation as an outstanding American scientist. Born a slave of Moses and Susan Carver, probably during the Civil War, George Washington Carver had a burning desire for education that was fed by a strong natural curiosity. In childhood his health was poor, and he was orphaned at an early age. Yet he worked his way through school and earned a master's degree in agriculture from Iowa Agricultural College, later Iowa State. Upon graduation, he joined the faculty at Iowa where he supervised research in botany and bacteriology. He was well on the way to a promising scientific career. In 1938, the Institute honored Carver by establishing the George Washington Carver Museum on the campus. Here Carver, who was also talented in the arts, found a home for his paintings and needlework, his vegetable specimens, and his samples of products derived from peanuts, sweet potatoes, sand, and feathers, to name a few. The museum was dedicated on March 11, 1941, at a ceremony attended by Henry Ford, who came to pay tribute to the aging professor-scientist. Carver lived at Tuskegee until his death on January 5, 1943. His legacy lives on in the museum and in the Carver Research Foundation, which was begun with a bequest from Carver himself. In 1896, however, Carver chose a much less certain future by accepting Booker T. Washington's invitation to come to Tuskegee Institute as head of the new Department of Agriculture. Here, for 47 years, Carver taught, wrote, and worked in his laboratory. His scientific ability, reinforced by his love of nature and God, his basic curiosity, and his desire to help his fellow man, led him Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site Alabama National Park Service U.S. Department of the Interior A Tour of the Historic Campus District Many of the Institute buildings constructed while Booker T. Washington was alive still exist. Most are built of brick made on the campus by students. Architect R. R. Taylor, the first black graduate (1892) of MIT, and a Tuskegee faculty member, designed most of the historic buildings and supervised construction by students. The Institute has been involved in architectural training since 1893. As you tour the campus, either by car or on foot, use this list to see Tuskegee s oldest buildings. The current name of each is given first, then the historic name, if different, is in parentheses, followed by an approximate date of completion. 1. Park Headquarters 2. The Oaks, 1899 3. Carver Museum (Laundry), 1915. Visitor Orientation Center 4. Dorothy Hall/Kellog Conference Center (G i rls' Industrial Building), 1901 5. Margaret Murray Washington Hall (Slater-Armstrong Memorial Agricultural Building), 1897 6. Booker T. Washington Monument, 1922 7. Chapel and Graves 8. Tantum Hall, 1907 9. Little theater (Creamery), 1899 10. Carnegie Hall (Carnegie Library), 1901 11. White Hall, 1910 12. Douglass Hall, 1904 13. Huntington Hall, 1900 14. Tompkins Hall, 1910 15. Administration Building (Office Building), 1902 16. Collis P. Huntington Academic Building, 1905 17. Rockefeller Hall, 1903 18. Phelps Hall (Bible Training School), 1892 19. ROTC Armory (Boys' Bath House), 1904 20. Thrasher Hall (Science Hall), 1893 21. Band Cottage (Foundry and Blacksmith Shop), 1889 22. Power Plant, 1915 23. Early Hospital Buildings, 1912-1916 24. Emery Dormitories, 1903-1909 25. Milbank Agriculture Hall, 1909 26. Carver Research Foundation, 1940 For Your Safety Natural and historical features sometimes present unexpected conditions. Be especially careful on old walkways and steps. Our natural areas have steep slopes, poisonous or spiny vegetation, and animal life that stings or bites. Remember that pedestrians have the right-ofway on campus roads. Visitor Information Tuskegee Institute National Historic Site is located on Old Montgomery Road and is adjacent to the city of Tuskegee, Alabama. When approaching via Interstate 85, exit onto State Route 81 South. Turn right at the intersection of 81 and Old Montgomery Road. Proceed to the second stoplight and turn right, then follow signs. We suggest that you begin your tour at the visitor orientation center located in the George Washington Carver Museum. Audiovisual programs and items for sale are located there. Guided tours of the Booker T. Washington home, The Oaks, are available. You may take a walking tour of the campus historic district by following the map included in the folder. While we encourage you to take a close look at the Institute's daily activities, we ask you not to interfere with the students' academic pursuits or privacy. Check at the Carver Museum for suggestions on what to see during your visit. Tuskegee Album Left, above: Students in the Creamery Division learn to process butter, cream, and cheese from the large dairy herd owned by the Institute. 1913-1914. Left, below: White Hall, a girls' dormitory, built by student masons and carpenters in 1910. Right: Principal Booker T. Washington, mounted on his horse, Dexter, frequently made inspection tours of the Institute's grounds. Left: Students in George Washington Carvers class study the interrelationship between the soil, plants, animals, and people. Below: Students learn the best agricultural methods of the day while growing food for the school on the Institute's farms. Right: Some students learn the art of basketweaving. Below, right: Thrasher Hall, built in 1893 was the science building at the original institute. Far left: Students make bricks for campus buildings in 1902. Left: Other students learn to lay bricks, further applying Booker T. Washington's philosophy of practical education. Right: Campus Avenue in 1906. The Administration Building (built in 1902) is in the foreground. To the extreme right is Carnegie Hall, funded as a library by Andrew Carnegie and built in 1901. Most of the historic buildings were built by students. > GPO:1993-342-398/80OO9 Reprint 1993 Administration The Oaks and the George Washington Carver Museum are administered by the National Park Service, U.S. Department of the Interior. The historic district is jointly administered by Tuskegee Institute and the National Park Service. The Superintendent's address is:Tuskegee Institute National HistoricSite, P.O. Drawer 10, Tuskegee Institute, AL 36087.