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Dr. George Washington Carver: An Innovative Leader in Horticulture and Agricultural Science (1864-1943)

Dr. George Washington Carver seated in the center on steps, in bottom row with faculty staff. (Tuskegee Institute)
Dr. George Washington Carver seated in the center on steps, in bottom row with faculty staff. (Tuskegee Institute). Photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston. From the Booker T. Washington Papers. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Library of Congress

“When you can do the common things of life in an uncommon way, you will command the attention of the world.”

-Dr. George Washington Carver



George Washington Carver was a former slave who became an internationally renowned inventor and leader in agricultural science. He specialized in plant biology research. He educated poor southern farmers on the various uses of crops and soil depletion. He also consulted for prominent political figures and business leaders, including President Theodore Roosevelt, Mahatma Ghandhi, and Henry Ford.


Carver made significant contributions to farming, agriculture, and humanitarianism. His work was prolific. It went far beyond simply “making peanuts.” Carver developed new uses for sweet potatoes, soybeans, pecans, and peanuts, which lead to the invention of hundreds of products, including (and not limited to) plastics, paints, dyes, synthetic rubber, medicinal oils, flour, coffee, tea, vinegar, cosmetics, postage stamp glue, and gasoline.


His Early Life


George W. Carver was born into slavery in 1864 in Diamond, Missouri during the Civil War. Like many slaves and their children, the exact year, month and day of his birth is unknown. Nevertheless, historians believe he was born in 1864 (biography.com). Carver was born to Mary and Giles, and enslaved couple who was owned by Moses and Susan Carver. Historians believe his father died around 1864 or 1865. Carver and his mother were kidnapped when he was an infant. Although his mother was never heard from again, Carver was returned to Moses and Susan Carver in a slave trade exchange, and was raised as a free child after the Civil War ended in 1865.


His Early Influencers


Growing up, Carver described himself as being a “sickly” child. Carver didn’t work the fields due to his weak physical condition. Instead, he helped his master’s wife, Susan Carver, with cooking and other domestic work around the house. Susan taught Carver how to read and write. It was also during his childhood years when he developed his faith in God and a love for plants.



"Look about you. Take hold of the things that are here. Let them talk to you. You learn to talk to them."

-Dr. George Washington Carver



Carver became interested in plant life during his early childhood years, living on the farm with Moses and Susan Carver. Collecting plants, rocks, and other specimen from the woods became his childhood hobby. Carver moved out when he was around 10 or 12 years old to attend a school for Black children in Neosho, Missouri. He stayed with a prominent Black couple named Mariah and Andrew Watkins while attending school in exchange for providing domestic help with household work.


Mariah was a nurse and midwife who introduced Carver to the church and encouraged him to learn as much as he could and teach it to others. She was highly influential in his life as a mentor and mother-figure. According to historians, Mariah taught Carver about the healing properties of some herbs and plants.

His Research Innovations, Teaching & Advocacy


In his 20s, Carver went on to attend Iowa State Agricultural College (now Iowa State University) after being rejected from Highland College, in Highland, Kansas because he was Black. He initially studied music and the arts at Simpson College in 1890, playing the piano and drawing pictures of plants and natural landscapes. A teacher suggested he enroll in the botany program because of his drawings. Carver then became the first Black man in the U.S. to be accepted into Iowa State Agricultural College and to graduate with a bachelor of science in 1894, and a master’s degree in 1896, trained in modern agricultural methods.


Carver held a prominent degree and received an elite education in agricultural science from Iowa State. In 1896, he was hired by Booker T. Washington to teach and run the agricultural department at Tuskegee University. Carver shaped the curriculum and the faculty, while also teaching and conducting research there for 47 years.


Black Farming for Freedom


Carver taught agricultural methods to poor southern Black farmers to help them improve their crops and economic situation. He believed this would be the key to freedom for many Blacks living in the Jim Crow south. He trained and encouraged them to use more sustainable methods in farming to become more self-sufficient. It was his holistic approach to agriculture and gardening that made his work so innovative and unique. Carver realized there’s a connection between the health of our environment, the natural resources we have access to, and the health and quality of our lives. He taught this concept to Black southern farmers who couldn’t afford to buy fertilizers and were struggling to buy soaps, paint and other necessities, including food.


Dr. George Washington Carver standing in a field holding soil, probably at Tuskegee.
Dr. George Washington Carver standing in a field holding soil, probably at Tuskegee. Photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston. From the Booker T. Washington Papers. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Library of Congress

Carver encouraged Black farmers to depend on the land for what they needed. For instance, instead of buying fertilizers, he encouraged them to compost. He also recommended farmers make their own paint by using clay, soybeans, berries, and other natural resources. Carver also taught them how to spend less money on food by growing and foraging their own proteins and vegetables.


Carver taught farmers how to improve the quality of their soil, which was damaged by cotton fields by growing other crops, like peanuts, soybeans and sweet potatoes. He taught how peanuts could be used to create protein-rich foods for a healthier diet, as well as other products, while restoring the soil. Carver taught “300 uses for peanuts” which led him to create peanut bread, peanut cookies, and peanut sausage, ice cream, coffee, and even a peanut-based face cream, shampoo, and paint, according to an article in Smithsonian magazine online.


Although cotton was financially lucrative for many southern farmers during the Post-Civil War era, it was also on the decline. Carver understood that cotton fields were more damaging to the earth’s soil and the overall environment. Carver trained farmers in crop rotation and encouraged them to grow alternative crops where cotton was heavily grown. He encouraged farmers to grow peanuts in their cotton fields because peanuts can produce its own nitrogen. This, in turn, supported plants that needed to be fertilized with nitrogen, while restoring nutrients to cotton depleted soil.


Creating a Legacy of Science


Carver became one of the most prominent scientists in the early 20th century. President Theodore Roosevelt consulted with him on agricultural issues. Carver also advised Indian leader Mahatma Gandhi on matters of agriculture and improving his nutrition and endurance through plant-based diets. According to the National Centers for Environmental Information, Carver also worked with the U.S. Weather Bureau in the Cooperative Observer Program (from 1899-1932) collecting weather data and observing its impact on the seasonal growth, production, and quality of various crops.


In 1934, Carver and Henry Ford became friends, and developed a special partnership. They shared a common interest in the uses of alternative crops, like peanuts and soybeans, and the regenerative properties of soil for producing industrial products like plastic, paint, and fuel.


Ford made generous donations and frequent visits to Tuskegee Institute in support of Carver’s research. In 1942, Carver set up a laboratory in Dearborn, Michigan. He experimented with different crops, including sweet potatoes and dandelions for making synthetic rubber during the wartime rubber shortage of World War II in partnership with Ford.


Portrait of Dr. George Washington Carver wearing a flower in his lapel. (Tuskegee Institute).
Portrait of Dr. George Washington Carver wearing a flower in his lapel. (Tuskegee Institute) Photograph by Frances Benjamin Johnston. Photo Credit: Courtesy of Library of Congress

Carver died on January 5, 1943, leaving behind a rich legacy of remarkable contributions in agricultural science and other industries in service to Black Americans, the U.S., and the world. 



References & Further Reading



The Jefferson Chalmers Farmers Market (JCFM) is dedicated to community building, economic development, and food security while promoting healthy lifestyles, art, and culture.

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