George Washington Carver
"The Plant Doctor"
researched and written by a Foley Middle School student

Born:
He was born to slaves during the Civil War era. As common in most slave records, his birth date is unknown. However, it is thought that he was born during the spring of 1865.

Died:
January 5,1943

Birth Place:
Newton County Missouri in a town now known as Diamond Grove.

Family:
George’s mother was Mary. She was a slave of Moses Carver. His birth father is unknown however, it is believed he was a slave of a nearby slave owner.

Because his mother was kidnapped when he was young, he and his brother, Jim were raised by his mother’s slave owners, Moses and Susan Carver.

George was married three times. His first two wives were Fanny Smith and Olivia Davidson. They both died of natural causes. At the age of 43, he married Margaret Murreg.

He had three kids: Portia, Booker J.R., and Ernest Davidson.

Occupation:
Carver was a farmer, agricultural chemist, and professor at the Tuskegee Institute.

Accomplishments:
George Washington Carver did many great things in his lifetime. He created 325 peanut products, over 100 products from sweet potatoes and hundreds other products from other plants such as soybeans and pecans. He also developed crop rotation methods that changed southern agriculture.


Internet Resources

The Legacy of George Washington Carver: http://www.lib.iastate.edu/spcl/gwc/bio.html
Who Invented Peanut Butter: http://inventors.miningco.com/education/sciphys/inventors/library/weekly/aa041897.htm
George Washington Carver: http://www.triadntr.net/~rdavis/carver.htm
George Washington Carver: http://www.cedarville.edu/dept/ed/story/aacarver.htm
George Washington Carver Cool People: http://www.coolpeople.com/legends/carver.asp
Tuskegee National Historic Sites: http://www.coax.net/people/LWF/tuskegee.htm
George Washington Carver - Chemurgist: http://www.lib.lsu.edu/lib/chem/display/carver.html
George Washington Carver: http://www.invent.org/book/book-text/23.html


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