George Washington Carver on Film
1937
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This silent film features amateur footage of George Washington Carver, the famed African-American botanist and inventor who taught for decades at Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) in Alabama. During his time at Tuskegee, Dr. Carver published 44 bulletins for farmers covering many agricultural topics, with the most popular being How to Grow the Peanut and 105 Ways of Preparing it for Human Consumption.
The film was shot by Dr. C. Allen Alexander, an African-American surgeon from Kalamazoo, Michigan. In 1981, Dr. Alexander offered the film to the George Washington Carver National Monument in Missouri, part of the National Park Service.
The film includes scenes of Dr. Carver in his apartment, office, and laboratory, as well as images of him tending his flowers and displaying several of his paintings. At one point Dr. Carver exits an elevator that was installed as a gift from his friend Henry Ford. Other notable people appearing in the film are Dr. John Chenault, the orthopedic surgeon and polio doctor who served as director of the Infantile Paralysis Unit at Tuskegee’s John A. Andrew Memorial Hospital, and Carver’s assistant Dr. Curtis.
Dr. Alexander turned his camera on the raw materials that Dr. Carver used in his work. The film shows "the red clay of Alabama, the bales of cotton, the saw mill with great piles of saw dust." Also included are shots of a Tuskegee Institute football game, along with a show put on by the school’s marching band and majorettes, sporting satin uniforms of crimson and gold.
The film was shot by Dr. C. Allen Alexander, an African-American surgeon from Kalamazoo, Michigan. In 1981, Dr. Alexander offered the film to the George Washington Carver National Monument in Missouri, part of the National Park Service.
The film includes scenes of Dr. Carver in his apartment, office, and laboratory, as well as images of him tending his flowers and displaying several of his paintings. At one point Dr. Carver exits an elevator that was installed as a gift from his friend Henry Ford. Other notable people appearing in the film are Dr. John Chenault, the orthopedic surgeon and polio doctor who served as director of the Infantile Paralysis Unit at Tuskegee’s John A. Andrew Memorial Hospital, and Carver’s assistant Dr. Curtis.
Dr. Alexander turned his camera on the raw materials that Dr. Carver used in his work. The film shows "the red clay of Alabama, the bales of cotton, the saw mill with great piles of saw dust." Also included are shots of a Tuskegee Institute football game, along with a show put on by the school’s marching band and majorettes, sporting satin uniforms of crimson and gold.
This primary source comes from the Records of the National Park Service.
National Archives Identifier: 74887660
Full Citation: Motion Picture 79-HFC-353; Moving Image Film Related to George Washington Carver; 1937; Moving Images Relating to National Parks, 1970 - 1990; Records of the National Park Service, Record Group 79; National Archives at College Park, College Park, MD. [Online Version, https://www.docsteach.org/documents/document/george-washington-carver, April 28, 2024]Rights: Copyright Not Evaluated Learn more on our privacy and legal page.