The daily telegram. [volume] (Clarksburg, W. Va.) 1901-1926, 1907-03-14
AT
EXPOSITION
Corner Store OF Mammoth Exhibit
Building for the coIored Race
is Laid At jamestown.
(By MARK Q. WATERS

y
after the founding of the first settle
ment at that place, therefore the
colored race is to have an important
part in the international celebration
in commemoration of that event, a
celebration known as the James
town Ter-centennial Exposition
which opens on Hampton Roads,
near Norfolk, Va, April 26. To
this end the jamestown Exposition
company set aside choice tract in
the exposition park for negro build.
ing purposes, and the general goy-
Nernment appropriated the sum of
500, 900 for the erection of negro
building and the expense of collect
ing, maintaining and returning ex-
hibits. To further the work aa.i
control the building, concessions and
exhibits, the Negro Development and
Exposition company was organized
under the laws of the State of vir-
ginia, and this company has been
hard at work for months past, Great
ing an interest in the matter, all over
the Unoin. Several states have made
appropriations and negro exhibits
from nearly all the states will be
displayed in the negro building.
February IA. the anniversary of
1 the birth of Frederick Douglass. was
selected as the proper time for the
ceremony of laying the corner stone
of the mammoth structure. and on
this date large number of repre-
sentative men and women of the
colored race assembled with the ex-
position officials at the Ter-Centen-
NAL grounds to witness the ceremony.
The master of ceremonies was Sec
rotary Shepherd of the jamestown
exposition. Barton Myers, governor
of ways and means of the exposition
formally rendered the site to the
Negro Development and Exposition
Company and in conclusion said It
was his hope and belief that the ex-
hibits displayed in the building
would show to the world better
classification of the negro race. so
that the entire body of eolored peo-
pie may not be called upon in future,
as they have in the past, to bear
the blame whic public opinion at
taches to them on account of the
actions of degraded element of the
race.
After an invitation by Rev. A.
Binga, Jr., D. D., of Richmond, the
officers of the Masonic Grand Lodge
of Virginia then placed the stone
in position with the usual ceremo-
MES of the order. The stone bears
the inscription Negro Building.
16O7-19o7." Following the Mason
ic service and music by the band
from the Hampton Industrial Insti-
tute for colored youth. several adj
dresses were made. The first was
by w. Isaac Johnson, president of
the Negro Exposition Company.
1 Other addresses were made by Giles
Jackson, director general of the
company on the subject History
of the Negro Exhibit" Mrs. A. NJ.
Curtis, fiscal agent, on the subject,
Negro Woman's PART" R. T. Hill,
Treasurer. ON Financing the Exhib-
it," R. Keller, field agent and gem
eral, secretary on Together we
Stand" and Thomas ]. Galloway. the
chairman of the executive commit
tee on What the Negro win Show. =
The negro building, which was de-
signed by w. Sidney Pittman, a
young colored. architect of Washing
ton, D. c., is 1875 by $50 feet. two
stories in height and of colonial de-
sign and will cost about fifty thou
sand dollars. It is to be complete
ed in sixty days and ready for the
installation Of exhibits which are to
be arranged by states. Collections
are being made mainly along the
lines of agriculture, horticulture,
mechanical, liberal and fine arts, do
nestle science, education, inventions.
professions and literature. The ex-
hibit viii be a surprise to many
visitors who have become possessed
with the idea that the colored race
is altogether servfle and without
capability OF high intellectual at
tainments. The worst side OF
negro life and character has. been
promulgated and paraded and his
faults laid bare, and it is fortunate
that the jamestown exposition offers
an opportunity for the race TO ,re-
sent tangible and irrefutable evil
dence In contradiction to the mis-