Mary McLeod Bethune Exhibit August 3, 2010

Mary McLeod Bethune was born on July 10, 1875, in Mayesville, South Carolina, one of 17 children born to former slaves. She went to school with the help of scholarships to attend Scotia College in North Carolina and later graduate from Moody Bible College in Chicago, IL (1895-97). In 1898, she married Albert Bethune. She had originally intended to become a missionary in Africa, but decided to come to Florida as a teacher in 1902. In 1904, she developed and founded the Daytona Normal and Industrial School for Girls. She started with $1.50 in cash, a few packing cases and a rented cottage. That was the humble beginning of what would become Bethune-Cookman College in 1923 then merged with the Cookman Institute of Jacksonville. Dr. Bethune was president of Bethune-Cookman College until 1942, building it into a nationally known and accredited school. As she liked to say, she built it "brick upon brick" into a multi-million dollar institution. In addition to her educational life, she was an active businesswoman. She was president and director of a life insurance company for African-Americans and purchased and developed the Bethune Beach for Negroes south of New Smyrna Beach. She received many awards and honors in her lifetime including honorary degrees from 14 colleges and universities and was friend and advisor to Franklin D. Roosevelt and Eleanor Roosevelt throughout their lifetimes. Dr. Bethune was a member of the Hoover Committee for Child Welfare, director of the National Business League, the National Urban League, and the Commission on Interracial Cooperation. She was the first black woman to head a federal office, and as such she created the informal "Black Cabinet" of the New Deal. A national memorial in Washington, D.C. was erected in her honor in July of 1974. Dr Bethune died on May 18, 1955 at age 79, and is remembered today as a great visionary and beloved figure in Daytona Beach history.