By Jack Houvouras
HQ 112 | WINTER 2021
In this edition of the magazine are two articles about individuals who are true American trailblazers. One is about Gen. Chuck Yeager, the test pilot from nearby Hamlin, West Virginia, who broke the sound barrier. The other is about Dr. Carter G. Woodson, the scholar universally acknowledged as the Father of Black History. While Yeager is a household name across the country, Woodson is not. And that is truly a shame, considering the former Douglass School principal has deep ties to Huntington.
We first profiled Carter G. Woodson in our Winter 1993 edition. Back then, instead of putting Woodson on the cover we opted to use a scenic photo of the 31st Street Bridge. I have always regretted that decision, and with this edition I am finally making amends.
Woodson’s life story is one of the most impressive I have ever heard. Born to parents who were former slaves, he rose from poverty and (according to legend) taught himself to read using the family Bible. He worked for several years in the coal mines of West Virginia before moving to Huntington to attend the all-Black Douglass School. He went on to earn two degrees from the University of Chicago. Woodson then enrolled at Harvard University and earned a doctorate in history, becoming only the second Black man in the school’s history to receive such an honor.
From there Woodson went on to author more than 12 books on Black history, founded magazines and journals and challenged the Washington, D.C., establishment to teach Black history in schools across America. What he founded as “Negro History Week” nearly 100 years ago is celebrated today as Black History Month. For all these efforts and more, he is credited with being the founder of the Black history movement. As Mayor Steve Williams says in our article, “Carter G. Woodson changed the world.”
I became a fan of Chuck Yeager after reading his enthralling autobiography in college. Over the years I had the opportunity to write several magazine articles about the aviation icon and was honored to meet him in person. The time I spent with him and the resulting stories that were published are among the proudest achievements of my career.
When Yeager passed away in December, we decided to republish the cover story that ran in our Winter 1998 edition. The piece is long, but it’s a thorough retelling of his incredible life. From his humble upbringing in Hamlin, he joined the U.S. Army in the midst of World War II. With only a high school diploma, he rose from a lowly buck private to the rank of brigadier general. Along the way he became a WWII flying ace with 12 kills and a test pilot who broke numerous world speed and altitude records; he also served as commandant of the Aeronautical Research Pilot School — the precursor to NASA. As such, Yeager was an integral part of the team that ushered in the space age. There can be no denying that he changed the world.
It can easily be argued that Carter G. Woodson and Chuck Yeager are two of the most accomplished individuals in the history of West Virginia. Their stories should be known by every citizen of the Mountain State and proudly shared with the rest of the world.
