George+Washington+Carver+09

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George Washington Carver  ​ Above: George Washington Carver around age 65.

George Washington Carver was a very skilled innovator of the twentieth century who brought us many of the products that we have today.​ George Washington Carver was born on a farm near Diamond Grove, Missouri. Above is a picture of Diamond Grove and the surrounding area. //__**What George Washington Carver Looked Like**__//

This is a picture of George Washington Carver conducting an experiment in a classroom at the Tuskegee Institute, Alabama.

//__**Date of Birth and Death **__//

George Washington Carver was born circa late 1860 to 1865 presumably on July 12. He died in Tuskegee, Alabama on January 5, 1943 of natural causes. His birthplace was dedicated as a national monument ten years after his death.

//**__Education and Academic Achievement __ **//

George Washington Carver started his college education at thirty years old at Simpson college, studying biology, mathematics, chemistry, music and art. His art teacher recognized his yearning to learn and recommended that he go to the Iowa State Agricultural College(now Iowa State University) where they had stronger courses in botany and agricultural chemistry. Carver graduated from Iowa State with a master's degree in mycology, the study of biology dealing with fungi, in 1890. He was the first African American ever to graduate from that school with some of the best grades in his class. 
 * //__Career Highlights__//**

Carver began to experiment with the problem of the amount of nutrients in the soil not being replenished after the crops were harvested. He taught farmers how to plant peas,beans or peanuts one year and then plant the usual crop for two years. Under this method the farmers were increasing the amount of nutrients in the soil as well as the amount of crops each plant could produce. Soon after he succeeded in spreading the new method around the state, cotton boll weevils started to migrate to Alabama from Mexico. These weevils rapidly destroyed the crops forcing farmers to plant peanuts all year round. Soon there were more peanuts than needed and the cost of peanuts went down. Carver was worried that the drop in peanut prices may cause the farmers to go back to planting the harmful plants. Instead of declining peanuts as a source of plentiful income, Carver managed to invent over three hundred products made of peanuts. Those include the ever popular peanut butter, vinegar, soap, cheese, milk, instant coffee and face powder. He also invented over 100 products from sweet potatoes and many other products from pecans, clay, plant wastes and various plants.


 * //__His Awards and Honors__//**

In 1916 he was elected to the Royal Society of Arts, Manufacturers and Commerce in Great Britain. In 1923 the NAACP (the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People) awarded him the Spingarn Medal for outstanding achievement by an African America. In 1935 he was appointed to help with the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture for research on plant fungus. A couple of years afterward, he was awarded the Franklin Roosevelt Medal for “Distinguished Research in Agricultural Chemistry.” Once again in 1940 the International Federation of Architects, Engineers, Chemists and Technicians chose Carver as their Man of the Year for his excellent work in science and “distinguished service to humanity.” Some Interesting Facts That You Probably Didn't Know __//**
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Moses Carver sent his slaves to a friend’s farm in Arkansas to keep his property safe from attack during the war. When Moses returned to retrieve his slaves they were all gone except for George who had the whooping cough.The site of Carver's birthplace became a national monument in 1953, ten years after his death.  

<span style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 8pt;"> <span style="color: black; font-family: 'Arial','sans-serif'; font-size: 10pt; line-height: 115%;">“Carver, George Washington.” __Compton’s by Britannica__. 2009. Encyclopedia Britannica Online School Edition. 22 Sept. 2009. Kessler, James H., Kidd, J.S., Kidd, Renée, Morin, Katherine A. //__Distinguished African American Scientists of the 20th Century.__// Phoenix, Arizona: The Oryx Press, 1996. Print.
 * //__References__//** <span style="color: #666666; font-family: 'Tahoma','sans-serif'; font-size: 8pt; line-height: 115%;">

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