Black On Campus
Higher Education and the African American Experience

The Death of Booker T. Washington: 100 Years Ago Today

November 14th, 2015 by Ajuan Mance

Announcement of the death of Booker T. Washington, from the front page of the November 20, 1915 issue of the Kansas City Sun newspaper.

 

Today marks the 100th anniversary of the death of noted African American educator Booker T. Washington. The founder of Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University), he was born into slavery in 1856 and spent his child on a Virginia plantation. Dubbed the “Wizard of Tuskegee,” in recognition of his bold success in establishing an African American college in a small town of the deep South, Washington was easily the best known and most highly respected Black person of his time.

Portrait of African American educator Booker T. Washington, founder of Tuskegee institute.

 

In the days following Washington’s death, newspapers across the U.S. posted announcements and editorials in his memory. African American newspapers dedicated entire pages to remembrances and tributes to the educator and his work. The following appeared in the November 18, 2015 issue of the New York Age newspaper, edited by prominent African American writer and edited Timothy Thomas Fortune:

For a detailed biography of Washington, follow this link to  Blackpast.org: Washington, Booker T.

Posted by Ajuan Mance

Posted in African Americans, Black Colleges, Black History, Higher Education, race, Uncategorized


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