Booker T. Washington National Monument

About Booker T. Washington National Monument

The Booker T. Washington National Monument is a National Monument near the community of Hardy, Virginia, and is located entirely in rural 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 chattel slavery and farming through the use of buildings, gardens, crafts and animals.

Congress authorized the Booker T. Washington Memorial half dollar 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.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Founded
1956
Annual visitors
22.5K
in 2020

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Photos of Booker T. Washington National Monument

  1. Booker T. Washington National Monument, Franklin County01Franklin CountyNational Park Service Digital Image Archives · Public domain
  2. Booker T. Washington National Monument BOWA02BOWANational Park Service Digital Image Archives · Public domain
  3. Booker T. Washington National Monument03Booker T. Washington National MonumentNatalieMaynor from Jackson, Mississippi, USA · CC BY 2.0
  4. Burroughs Family Cemetery on former Burroughs Plantation now Booker T. Washington National Monument04Burroughs Family Cemetery on former Burroughs Plantation now Booker T. Washington National MonumentNatalieMaynor from Jackson, Mississippi, USA · CC BY 2.0
  5. Replica of the potato cellar in Booker T. Washington's childhood - Booker T. Washington National Monument05Replica of the potato cellar in Booker T. Washington's childhood - Booker T. Washington National MonumentNatalieMaynor from Jackson, Mississippi, USA · CC BY 2.0
  6. A pig and a butterfly at the Booker T. Washington National Monument06A pig and a butterfly at the Booker T. Washington National MonumentDonnie Nunley · CC BY 3.0

Shared by photographers under free licenses on Wikimedia Commons. Tap a photo to see it full size there.

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Nearby museums

Make a day of it. 4 more museums are within 14 miles of Booker T. Washington National Monument; the closest, Explore Park Visitor Center, is about 9.3 miles away.