Carter G. Woodson - Suitland, MD - Grave of a Famous Person on Waymarking.com

“Those who have no record of what their forebears have accomplished lose the inspiration which comes from the teaching of biography and history.”
- Carter G. Woodson

Carter Godwin Woodson was born in 1875 in the small town of New Canton in central Virginia, the son of former slaves. Early efforts at obtaining an education were often thwarted by economic concerns requiring the young Woodson to work on the family farm or in the coal mines of West Virginia. Eventually he acquired a high school diploma and went on to graduate from Berea College in Kentucky. Further pursuing educational goals, he earned a master’s degree from the University of Chicago and a Ph.D. from Harvard.

Having an interest in history, Carter Woodson found little opportunity as a black historian, so he created his own. In 1915, he helped found the Association for the Study of Negro Life and History. Also, finding little interest in publishing books on black history, he created his own publishing company: the Associated Publishers Press. In addition, Woodson established the periodical called the Negro History Bulletin, all this while holding various positions in academia including becoming a dean at Howard University in Washington DC.

Today, Carter Woodson is mostly known for his books on black history and critiques of the education system and for establishing ‘Black History Month.’ Well, it started as ‘Black History Week’ in February 1926. February was chosen because it contained the birthdays of both Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass. February has been designated ‘Black History Month’ by every U.S. President since 1976.

Carter Woodson died in 1950 and was buried in Lincoln Memorial Cemetery just outside Washington DC.
(Sources: wikipedia.com, biography.com.)

Description: See Long Description above. Date of birth: 12/19/1875 Date of death: 04/03/1950 Area of notoriety: Education Marker Type: Headstone Setting: Outdoor Visiting Hours/Restrictions: 9:00am - 5:00pm Fee required?: No Web site: [Web Link]

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