We like to think we’re the masters of all things peanut related *cough*PBfit*cough*, but in reality, we’d be absolutely nothing without George Washington Carver, “The Peanut Man.” In honor of Black History Month, and because we owe a lot to Mr. Carver, we wanted to give his life proper respect.
Carver was born into slavery in 1864. He was owned by a white farmer, Moses Carver, who raised him and taught him to read and write. Carver was passionate about education and went on to receive his high school diploma and eventually attend Simpson College in Iowa.
Not only did Carver love to learn, but he also enjoyed studying art and music, particularly drawing. He developed these talents by sketching botanical samples, and after a little push from one of his teachers, Carver eventually enrolled in the botany program at the Iowa State Agriculture college and became the first black student to attend. His educators there convinced him to continue his education to receive a master of science degree. All of his hard work led him to become an incredibly talented botanist, agricultural chemist, agronomist, and experimenter.
Carver was then hired to run the agricultural department at the Tuskegee Institute where he developed a unique crop rotation which helped farmers produce higher amounts of cotton. This method also ended up creating an increase in peanuts. Our favorite!
Because of this incredible peanut surplus, Carver came up with unique and interesting ways to use these magical legumes. He even experimented with peanut-based cosmetics, milk, paper, and even medicines. (To be honest, we’d take peanut-flavored medicines any day!) It was this constant experimentation and innovation that gave him his famous nickname, “The Peanut Man.”
Carver’s perseverance and innovative spirit is truly the definition of the American dream, and we’d like to think he’d be proud of our own creative use of the peanut. And who knows? Our roasted peanut powder, PBfit, might not even be on the shelves without Carver leading the way before us, and we can’t thank him enough!
