The George Washington Carver National Monument encompasses 210 acres of the original 24O-acre Moses Carver farm [has now increased to 240 acres]. A rather level site, the farm is bisected from east to west by a small spring-fed stream known as the Carver Branch.
The land was originally settled by Moses Carver in 1838. He built a log cabin near a spring on the branch. At some later date he built a second cabin southeast of the first cabin, which in turn was used as the slave cabin.
Records indicate that there were only 100 acres of improved land on the farm. The major crops were maize, wheat, oats, Irish potatoes, hay, flax, and rye, much of which would have been fed to his livestock during the winter, and the rest sold or used by the Carver family and work hands. The other 140 acres were woodland and prairies filled with wild fruits, grasses, and game. Wild nuts and fruits were abundant: strawberries, sarvis berries, dew berries, raspberries, blackberries, huckleberries, grapes, pawpaws, persimmons, hickory nuts, walnuts, chinquapins, hazelnuts, and wild grapes grew in the fields and woods. There was plenty of wild grass for cattle to graze on; large flocks of quail, prairie chickens, geese, wild turkeys, and ducks nested in the area; and herds of deer grazed in the woodlands.
Walnut trees were native to the area, and also were planted for fence rows and lumber. Also present were native hickory and hazelnut trees, and elms which surrounded Carver's farmhouse.
Moses Carver had also planted an extensive orchard which had at least 520 trees by 1860. None of this, remains.
Cattle, horses, sheep, and pigs were raised on the Carver farm; Moses Carver was known for raising fine race horses.
Since very few historic structures have remained, large importance has been placed on recreating, and preserving, the historic setting. Thus, a portion of the park land is leased for farming, and along the Carver Branch much of the original vegetation has been encouraged to return so that it appears much as it did in the 1860s. The predominant land-use pattern in the Diamond area is still farming and stockraising...
The George Washington Carver National Monument derives its significance primarily from its association with George Washington Carver's boyhood The Park was both the nation's first memorial to the achievements of a black man, and the first such honor to an individual other than a president. It preserves, with a high degree of integrity, a place most influential in shaping the personality of a man who played an important role in the' social and agricultural history of 20th century America.
The monument was established to preserve the birthplace and commemorate the rise from slavery of Carver, whose life demonstrates the opportunities afforded in the United States to men of ability and energy, regard less of their origins, and whose accomplishments are today a living part of America's heritage.
The interpretive efforts of the Park aim at recreating and preserving the natural and agricultural environment of Carver's boyhood. To these ends, the native flora, and some fauna, that he studied and nurtured as a boy, have been allowed to return to the area. Likewise, the historical agricultural appearance of the area has been enhanced by allowing cultivation of parts of the Park land. Thus, the monument captures the atmosphere in which Carver began his earliest scientific observations.
The George Washington Carver National Monument is maintained by the National Park Service. There is a trail leading throughout the site with interpretive signs along the way. The site is open daily from 9 to 5 year-round.