Margaret Murray Washington American activist Date of Birth: 09.03.1865 Country: USA

Biography of Margaret Murray Washington

Margaret Murray Washington was an American activist and the third wife of Booker T. Washington. She was born in Macon, Mississippi, into a family of sharecroppers. Her father was of Irish descent and her mother was African American. At the age of seven, Margaret lost her father and was eventually placed under the care of Quakers. Even as a child, Margaret was an avid reader and excelled in school. By the age of 14, she displayed such intellect that the school even offered her a teaching position. Margaret enjoyed teaching and was determined to pursue a career in education. She enrolled at Fisk University and completed the preparatory courses in five years and the college's core curriculum in four. It was at Fisk University where Murray met Booker Washington. Washington quickly recognized her as an exemplary student and eventually offered her the position of director of Tuskegee University, which had previously belonged to his late second wife. Margaret, however, was attracted to Booker not only as an educator. In her letters to Washington in 1890, she described the intense emotions she felt for him. A year later, Booker proposed to Margaret, and after some hesitation, she accepted. They were married in 1893. The couple lived in a house with a large number of Washington's relatives, including his children from previous marriages. It was not until 1901 that Margaret and Booker were able to move into their specially built estate, "The Oaks." Describing their relationship accurately was quite difficult, as Washington rarely expressed his feelings formally towards his third wife, and he never fully recovered from the loss of his first two wives. However, Margaret was an exemplary hostess, and overall, the couple lived a fairly happy life. During her tenure as director of Tuskegee University, she founded the Tuskegee Woman's Club, which played a significant role in advancing women's rights and the rights of African American women in particular. In 1896, Margaret became one of the founding members of the National Association of Colored Women. She created rural schools, taught women how to properly manage their homes, worked to improve conditions for prisoners, and actively cared for the poor and orphaned. In 1912, Washington became the fifth president of the National Association of Colored Women. Margaret continued her activism even after her husband's death in 1915. She passed away in "The Oaks" in 1925 and was buried next to her husband in the university cemetery.