Tuskegee: Booker T. Washington's contribution to the education of Black architects.

Abstract

This study investigates the pioneering contributions of Booker T. Washington and Tuskegee Institute to architectural education, particularly in the context of developing the first viable model for the training of Black architects and builders of his time. The study also examines Washington's influence on the design and development of the Tuskegee campus and significant buildings and communities beyond the campus. Chapter one develops the historical and social context in which Washington began his work at Tuskegee. It examines the relevant trends in Black Education including several American Missionary Association colleges. Also considered is the rise of the Black artisan before the Civil War and his rapid decline after the war as the hitherto overlooked basis for Washington's early efforts. Chapter two examines the relationship of Booker T. Washington's educational philosophy to Tuskegee's developing architecture program. Washington's concept of racial uplift through self-help and race pride is investigated, as is its application in his building to learn to build architecture program. The backgrounds of key faculty are explored, with emphasis on the contributions of Robert R. Taylor, an M.I.T. graduate; William S. Pittman; and Wallace A. Rayfield. Success of the Tuskegee program is measured by the achievements of its graduates. Chapter three explores Washington's approach toward creating the Tuskegee physical environment. It is a record of what was built, how, where and by whom. Chapter four examines Booker T. Washington as a social visionary and his involvement and contributions to architecture and building beyond the campus. Illustrated are the extension of the school's services beyond the campus through its extension programs. Also considered is Washington's influence beyond the South through such programs as the Carnegie libraries, Rosenwald school program, and the Black Y.M.C.A. Chapter five concludes that important foundations for professional education in America for Black architects were laid at Tuskegee. Washington with his emphases on practical and applied education, contributed in a major and pioneering way to the concepts of community involvement and social concerns in architecture.