Name: Mary McLeod Bethune
Birth date: 1875
Birth place and where they grew up: Was born July 10, 1875, in Mayesville, S.C. Grew up in South Carolina and moved to Daytona after graduating from college (Scotia Seminary). Died May 18, 1955, in Daytona Beach, Fla.
Information about his/her life: She was an educator, political advisor, and civil rights leader.After graduation from the Scotia Seminary in 1895, she taught at the Haines Institute in Augusta, Georgia, then at Kendall Institute in Sumter, South Carolina, where she met and later married Albertus Bethune.
Contribution to American culture: In October 1904, Bethune founded the Daytona Normal and Industrial Institute for Negro Girls in a small rented cabin, and continued to develop the school over the next two decades. Bethune founded the National Council of Negro Women and served as president until 1949.
Other interesting facts: When white hospitals denied service to black patients and training for black residents and nurses, Bethune founded McLeod Hospital to serve the community and to provide training for black physicians and nurses. She founded the Circle of Negro War Relief in New York City during World War I, was vice president of the Commission on Interracial Cooperation, and served as president for two terms in the National Association of Colored Women, advising the Coolidge and Hoover administrations on African American issues.
© 2005 by Dana Armel.
References: http://search.eb.com/Blackhistory/article.do?nKeyValue=78978
http://www.uga.edu/~iaas/History.html