Spotlight Upon Unsung Heroes:

Carter Godwin Woodson: Distinguished Black Author,

Editor, Publisher, and Historian, Contributor to Society

By Wilbur Thirkield Titus

 
The hero upon which our spotlight is placed this week is a man who has made 
signicant contributions to American research and history. His work has
provided an understanding of the contributions that African Americans have
made to life in America, and has given hope to many of its people. The hero 
is Carter Godwin Woodson.

Carter G. Woodso, 12/1875 - April 1950, "Father of Black History" "holds an 
outstanding position in early 20th century American history. Woodson authored 
numerous scholarly books on the positive contributions of Blacks to the 
development of America. He also published many magazine articles analyzing 
the contributions and role of Black Americans. He reached out to schools and 
the general public through the establishment of several key organizations and
founded Negro History Week (precursor to Black History Month). His message 
was that Blacks should be proud of their heritage and that other Americans 
should also understand it."

Dr. Woodsonr was born in New Canton, Birmingham County, Virginia to James 
Henry and Anne Eliza Riddle Woodson and grew up as a member of a large and 
poor farm family.

Even though be was brought up without the ordinary comforts of life and could
not regularly attend the five months local school, he was able to master the
fundamentals of common school subjects by the time that he was sevnteen, 
largely by self-instruction.

Determined to continue his education, he and his brother Robert Henry moved 
to Huntington, West Virginie where he worked in the mine fields and attended
Douglass High School. He received his diploma in less than two years.

"From 1897 to 1900, Carter G. Woodson began teaching in Winona, Fayette 
County. In 1900, he returned to Huntington to become the principal of 
Douglass H.S.; he finally received his Bachelor of Literature degree from 
Berea College, Kentucky. From 1903 to 1907, he was a school supervisor in the
Philippines. Later he traveled throughout Europe and Asia and studied at the
Sorbonne University in Paris. In 1908, he received his M.A. from the 
University of Chicago, and in 1912, he received his Ph.D. in history from
Harvard University."

Dr. Woodson believed that history is not the mere collection of facts, and 
that it is more than political and military records. He contended that the
object of historical study is to arrive at a reasonable interpretation of 
the facts, and that it must include a description of the social conditions 
of the period being studied,

"Carter G. Woodson believed that Blacks should know their past in order to
participate intelligently in the affairs in our country. He strongly believed
that Black history ... is a firm foundation for young Black Americans to 
build on in order to become productive citizens of our society."

Woodson's work endures in the institutions and activities he founded and 
promoted. In 1915, he and several friends in Chicago established the
Association for the Study of Negro Life and History. The following year, the
Journal of Negro History appeared, one of the oldest learned journals in the
United States. In 1926, he developed Negro History Week and in 1937 published
the first issue of the Negro History Bulletin. Dr. Woodson’s work has brought
dignity and hope to all African Americans and is an important part of
American History.