Migration from the rural South to the urban North. He is known as one of the.
best civil rights leaders for the African American people in the late 1800's and.
early 1900's. .
Booker began his life as a slave for the Burroughs family. He was born in.
Franklin Co., Virginia around the year 1858 or 1859, he was not sure exactly.
when he was born because there was never any paper work kept on slaves. His.
mother was a slave and his father was a white man that he never knew. .
After the emancipation Booker's family decided to move to Malden, West.
Virginia. The trip from Franklin county to Malden, West Virginia was the first he.
had ever taken. The trip took Booker's family many days because all of them.
had to walk to whole way. They settled in a very small house with many other.
black and very poor white neighbors. His step-father soon found work for Booker.
and his brother John. They worked in the salt furnaces and coal mines. .
Booker did not want to work he wanted to go to school to learn. A school.
teacher, Mr. William Davis, came into his community. Booker was eager to.
attend the school but his step-father was not able to spare me from work, so.
could not attend it when it was first opened. Booker would go to work during the.
day and be taught by a teacher at night. This seemed to be a problem because.
the teacher his mother hired didn"t know much more then he. .
After working in the coal mine for some time, his mother found a position.
for him as a house boy for the Ruffner Family. He went to live with Ruffner's with.
many fears and doubts. Mrs. Viola Ruffner had the reputation of being very strict.
and hard to please. While staying at the Ruffner household Booker learned the.
exact way to have things; clean, neat, and orderly. Mrs. Ruffner taught him for a.
few hours in the afternoon. She was his first real teacher that gave him a great.
part of his education. .
After being at the Ruffner house for about four years Booker made the.
decision to attend Hampton Institute, in Virginia.