Many moons ago, I posted about a few items of ephemera associated with the Booker T Washington (BTW) half dollars (see link below). I've decided to return to the topic and post a few additional items - this time out, one of two small, educational pamphlets distributed by the Booker T. Washington Birthplace Memorial. Presented here is the "Atlanta Exposition Address" flyer.
Booker T. Washington
(Image Credit: Image courtesy of Library of Congress, Prints and Photographs Division. Public Domain.)The Cotton States and International Exposition opened in Atlanta, Georgia on September 18, 1895. The objectives of the Exposition were to promote the products, resources and potential of the revitalized and growing states of the Southern US, to foster more trade between the countries of South America and the Cotton States and to showcase Atlanta's rebirth after the devastation it suffered during the US Civil War. The US Mint contributed to the Exposition via the striking of a gold-plated bronze commemorative souvenir medal.
US Mint-struck Commemorative Medal for Exposition
Booker T. Washington gave a speech on the Exposition's Opening Day in the Exposition auditorium. The speech, to a segregated, mostly white, audience struck a "separate but equal" tone (a defining phrase that was soon to be legally defined by the US Supreme Court via the landmark Plessy v. Ferguson case of 1896). The speech came to be known as the "Atlanta Compromise Address." It was generally well-received, but the more aggressive civil rights advocates of the day quickly denounced the speech and BTW himself, believing he fell short by not pushing harder for social and political equality for blacks - Booker T put his immediate focus on economic equality. In any case, the address is regarded as one of the most influential speeches in American history and an important moment in US civil rights history.
The Booker T. Washington Birthplace Memorial printed a transcript of the speech in a small six-panel flyer and used it as a component of its sales effort while promoting the BTW half dollar. Shown below is the full pamphlet - I encourage you to spend a few minutes reading it to gain a better understanding BTW's message. (If you are viewing this post on a screen that is too small to read the text off the pamphlet image, you can read a transcript of the speech at the National Park Service web site for the Booker T Washington National Monument:
https://www.nps.gov/bowa/learn/hist...nta1-1.htm.)"Atlanta Exposition Address" Pamphlet
1946 Booker T. Washington Birthplace Memorial Half Dollar
To learn more about the BTW coin and related ephemera, check out:
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1946 Booker T. Washington Birthplace Memorial-
1946 Booker T. Washington Birthplace Memorial - Ephemera-
Booker T. at Mardi Gras-
Booker T. Washington Birthplace Memorial - Coins Depicting Places Thread
Posted 08/11/2021 4:43 pm
