It’s not Black History Month yet so I hope you don’t mind me sharing with you the story of Marshall W. “Major” Taylor. If you know me at all you picked up on the sarcasm regarding Black History Month. It’s a shame that most schools and some institutions of higher learning had so badly neglected the accomplishments and feats of African Americans that we had to give the whole month of February a label so that these great men and women would no longer be ignored.
Well it’s only September but I’ll trust that you’ll give me a chance to share a remarkable part of American history with you. I had read several books written about Major Taylor and was also able to find a rare copy of his autobiography on eBay. I have a poster of him hanging in the Bike Shed that was part of a fundraising drive for the statue. So I was looking forward to someday visiting it.
The ten year-old and I were making our way back home from a trip to New Hampshire last month. I had learned about Major Taylor several years earlier when I found a website dedicated to building a statue of him in Worcester, MA. The statue was completed earlier this year and is located in front of the Worcester Library.
Below are some pictures that we took as well as the link to the Major Taylor website. When February rolls along and it’s time for your kids to do a report on an important African American, have them choose Major Taylor and I can guarantee even the teacher will learn a thing or two.
LEARN ABOUT MAJOR TAYLOR AT:
http://www.majortaylorassociation.org/who.htm
Conversation Life 
