George Washington Carver Creativity By Mrs. White

Who was George Washington Carver? Born: January 1864 in Diamond Grove, Missouri Died: January 5, 1943 in Tuskegee, Alabama Born a slave and became free as a child when slavery was abolished. His slave owners raised him as their own child, teaching him to read and write.

His Education & Career George W. Carver working in his lab. The 1st African American student at Iowa State College After graduating with a master’s degree in agriculture and science, he became the first African American professor at Iowa State College. He was invited to teach at an all-black college in Tuskegee, Alabama, where he taught agriculture and science for the rest of his life.

Crop Rotation One of the main crops in the south. Problem: Growing cotton year after year can remove nutrients from the soil and eventually, the cotton crop would grow weak. Solution: Mr. Carver taught his students crop rotation. One year they would grow cotton, followed by other crops such as sweet potatoes. By rotating the crops the soil stayed enriched.

Boll Weevil Insect Problem #2: Eats cotton which destroyed the crops Solution: Carver discovered the insect hates peanuts. Problem #3: Farmers weren’t sure they could make money from peanuts. Solution: Carver invented products from peanuts.

Peanuts, Sweet Potatoes, and Pecans More than 300 Products made from Peanuts More than 115 from Sweet Potatoes and 75 from Pecans Cooking oil Dyes for clothing Plastics Fuel for cars Peanut butter Cheese Milk Facial Cream Ink Shampoo Soap Flour Starch Bleach Buttermilk Instant Coffee Mayonnaise Paper Chili Sauce Shaving Cream Shoe Polish Sugar