Booker T. Washington National Monument
Encyclopedia
The Booker T. Washington National Monument is a National Monument
near Hardy
, Franklin County, Virginia
. It preserves portions of the 207-acre (0.90 km²) tobacco
farm on which educator and leader Booker T. Washington
was born into slavery on April 5, 1856. It provides interpretation of Washington's life and achievements, as well as interpretation of 1850s slavery
and farming through the use of buildings, gardens, crafts and animals.
Congress authorized a commemorative coin to fund the purchase of the site. This commemorative half dollar was the first US coin to feature an African American, and was minted from 1946 to 1951 at three different mints. 18 varieties of the coin were produced, and more than 1.5 million were sold (primarily to collectors). Yet, after the coin's production was finished, the BTW Commission owed more money than it had assets, and the Commonwealth of Virginia had to step in to provide funds to purchase the site.
The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
in 1966 and designated a National Monument on April 2, 1956.
U.S. National Monument
A National Monument in the United States is a protected area that is similar to a National Park except that the President of the United States can quickly declare an area of the United States to be a National Monument without the approval of Congress. National monuments receive less funding and...
near Hardy
Hardy, Virginia
Hardy is an unincorporated community lying both in Bedford County and Franklin County, Virginia, United States, about twenty miles southeast of Roanoke. The Booker T. Washington National Monument commemorates where Booker T. Washington was born in 1856....
, Franklin County, Virginia
Franklin County, Virginia
As of the census of 2000, there were 47,286 people, 18,963 households, and 13,918 families residing in the county. The population density was 68 people per square mile . There were 22,717 housing units at an average density of 33 per square mile...
. It preserves portions of the 207-acre (0.90 km²) tobacco
Tobacco
Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...
farm on which educator and leader Booker T. Washington
Booker T. Washington
Booker Taliaferro Washington was an American educator, author, orator, and political leader. He was the dominant figure in the African-American community in the United States from 1890 to 1915...
was born into slavery on April 5, 1856. It provides interpretation of Washington's life and achievements, as well as interpretation of 1850s slavery
Slavery
Slavery is a system under which people are treated as property to be bought and sold, and are forced to work. Slaves can be held against their will from the time of their capture, purchase or birth, and deprived of the right to leave, to refuse to work, or to demand compensation...
and farming through the use of buildings, gardens, crafts and animals.
Congress authorized a commemorative coin to fund the purchase of the site. This commemorative half dollar was the first US coin to feature an African American, and was minted from 1946 to 1951 at three different mints. 18 varieties of the coin were produced, and more than 1.5 million were sold (primarily to collectors). Yet, after the coin's production was finished, the BTW Commission owed more money than it had assets, and the Commonwealth of Virginia had to step in to provide funds to purchase the site.
The site was listed on the National Register of Historic Places
National Register of Historic Places
The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...
in 1966 and designated a National Monument on April 2, 1956.