One of His Boys: The Letters of Johnnie Pickle and His Mentor, George Washington Carver

George Washington Carver is today remembered in part for the many products he derived from the peanut, a crop he urged on Southern farmers to replace cotton and avoid soil exhaustion and the boll weevil. Less well known is the multitude of college students Carver took under his wing over the years in relationships that were cherished by and valuable to the scientist. One of His Boys is the story of the mentorship of Johnnie Pickle, one young man inspired to follow in Carver’s footsteps after witnessing firsthand the Wizard of Tuskegee’s wisdom. Drawing from dozens of letters exchanged between the men, the book reveals previously unseen dimensions of the life and legacy of one of our most important American figures.