The Education of the Negro Prior to 1861: A History of the Education of the Colored People of the United States from the Beginning of Slavery to the Civil War
New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, the Knickerbocker Press, 1915. Very Good. Item #49377
New York: G.P. Putnam's Sons, the Knickerbocker Press, 1915. First Edition. Octavo; navy cloth boards stamped in gilt; dark topstain; 454pp. Very light edgewear; corners bumped with a couple stray scuffs; binding sound; occasional pencil markings and long closed tear to pp. 5-6, else unmarked and a Very Good copy.
First published book from the "Father of Black History," exploring the history of Black education in the United States, dividing it into two periods, "from the time of introduction of slavery to the climax of the insurrectionary movement about 1835," when white power structures largely decided "it was prudent to educate their slaves" (from the Introduction).
Historian and scholar Michael R. Winston praises and places Woodson thus, "By disciplined application of an iron will he forged a career that was an amalgam of austere scholarship and energetic advocacy. He founded in 1915 a national movement for the study, preservation, interpretation and dissemination of black history that surpassed all earlier efforts." Winston continues, "His burning determination was the inspiration of a whole generation of historians, teachers, and a black community eager for a knowledge of its past hungry for pride, and for simple dignity in the face of doubt and denial." A landmark work and remarkably scarce in retail.
Michael R. Winston, "Carter Godwin Woodson: Prophet of a Black Tradition," The Journal of Negro History, Vol. 60, No. 4 (Oct., 1975), pp. 459-463.
Price: $2,000.00