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{{about||the American musician|James Canty}} |
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{{short description|American educator, school administrator, and businessperson}} |
{{short description|American educator, school administrator, and businessperson}} |
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{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}} |
{{Use mdy dates|date=September 2020}} |
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{{Infobox officeholder |
{{Infobox officeholder |
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|honorific-prefix = |
| honorific-prefix = |
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|name = James |
| name = James M. Canty |
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|honorific-suffix = |
| honorific-suffix = |
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|image = James M. Canty 1906.jpg |
| image = James M. Canty 1906.jpg |
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|caption = Photographic portrait of Canty, published in 1906 |
| caption = Photographic portrait of Canty, published in 1906 |
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|alt = |
| alt = |
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|order1 = |
| order1 = |
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|title1 = Acting President of<br />[[West Virginia State University]] |
| title1 = Acting President of<br />[[West Virginia State University]] |
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|term1 = 1898 |
| term1 = 1898 |
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|predecessor1 = [[John H. Hill]] |
| predecessor1 = [[John H. Hill]] |
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|successor1 = [[James McHenry Jones]] |
| successor1 = [[James McHenry Jones]] |
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|title2 = Superintendent of Mechanical Industries at West Virginia State University |
| title2 = Superintendent of Mechanical Industries at West Virginia State University |
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|term_start2 = 1893 |
| term_start2 = 1893 |
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|term_end2 = 1914 |
| term_end2 = 1914 |
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|predecessor2 = Position established |
| predecessor2 = Position established |
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|successor2 = Albert C. Spurlock |
| successor2 = Albert C. Spurlock |
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|birth_date= {{Birth date|1865|12|23}} |
| birth_date = {{Birth date|1865|12|23}} |
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|birth_place= [[Marietta, Georgia]], U.S. |
| birth_place = [[Marietta, Georgia]], U.S. |
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|death_date= {{Death date and age|1964|02|16|1865|12|23}} |
| death_date = {{Death date and age|1964|02|16|1865|12|23}} |
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|death_place= [[Institute, West Virginia]], U.S. |
| death_place = [[Institute, West Virginia]], U.S. |
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|resting_place= Institute Cemetery |
| resting_place = Institute Cemetery |
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|alma_mater= [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] |
| alma_mater = [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] |
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|profession= Educator, school administrator, and businessperson |
| profession = Educator, school administrator, and businessperson |
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|spouse=Sarah J. Harris Canty<br />Florence Lovett Canty |
| spouse = Sarah J. Harris Canty<br />Florence Lovett Canty |
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|children= 8 |
| children = 8 |
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|relations= |
| relations = |
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|residence = [[Canty House]] |
| residence = [[Canty House]] |
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}} |
}} |
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'''James Munroe Canty'''{{efn|name=fn1|Canty's 1964 death certificate and obituaries in the ''[[Charleston Daily Mail]]'' and ''[[Charleston Gazette-Mail|The Charleston Gazette]]'' list the spelling of his middle name as "Munroe,"<ref name="WVAH 2">{{cite web |url= http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=5594495&Type=Death |title= Death Record Detail: James Munroe Canty |year= 2019 |publisher= West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History |access-date= August 2, 2020 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20200802163938/http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=5594495&Type=Death |archive-date= August 2, 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1">{{cite |
'''James Munroe Canty'''{{efn|name=fn1|Canty's 1964 death certificate and obituaries in the ''[[Charleston Daily Mail]]'' and ''[[Charleston Gazette-Mail|The Charleston Gazette]]'' list the spelling of his middle name as "Munroe,"<ref name="WVAH 2">{{cite web |url= http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=5594495&Type=Death |title= Death Record Detail: James Munroe Canty |year= 2019 |publisher= West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History |access-date= August 2, 2020 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20200802163938/http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=5594495&Type=Death |archive-date= August 2, 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1">{{cite news | title = Pioneer W.Va. Educator Dies | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = February 17, 1964 | page = 5 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56283898/pioneer-wva-educator-dies/ | access-date = July 28, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200729020313/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56283898/pioneer-wva-educator-dies/ | archive-date = July 29, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3">{{cite news | title = Pioneer State Negro Educator, 98, Dies | newspaper = [[Charleston Gazette-Mail|The Charleston Gazette]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = February 17, 1964 | page = 9 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/obituary-clipping-feb-17-1964-2027883/ | access-date = October 23, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-date = October 27, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201027164453/https://newspaperarchive.com/obituary-clipping-feb-17-1964-2027883/ | url-status = live }}</ref> however, his name was sometimes spelled as "Monroe."<ref name="WVAH 3">{{cite web |url= http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=10723855&Type=Marriage |title= Marriage Record Detail: James Monroe Canty and Florence Lovett |year= 2019 |publisher= West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History |access-date= August 2, 2020 |archive-url= https://archive.today/20200802210356/http://www.wvculture.org/vrr/va_view.aspx?Id=10723855&Type=Marriage |archive-date= August 2, 2020 |url-status= live }}</ref>}} (December 23, 1865{{spnd}}February 16, 1964) was an American educator, school administrator, and businessperson. Canty was an acting principal of the [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] (present-day West Virginia State University) in 1898 and is considered by West Virginia State as an acting president.{{efn|name=fn2|West Virginia State University was founded as the West Virginia Colored Institute in 1891, and was later known as West Virginia Collegiate Institute (1915), West Virginia State College (1929), and finally West Virginia State University (2004). Canty was titled acting principal during his tenure; however, West Virginia State University considers previous principals as its presidents.<ref name="WVSU 1">{{cite web |url= https://www.wvstateu.edu/about/administration/office-of-the-prsident.aspx |title= Office of the President: Past Presidents |year= 2020 |publisher= [[West Virginia State University]] |access-date= May 25, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200525151623/https://www.wvstateu.edu/about/administration/office-of-the-prsident.aspx |archive-date= May 25, 2020}}</ref><ref name="WVSU 2009 17">{{Harvnb|West Virginia State University|2009|p=17.}}</ref>}} Canty also served as the superintendent of Mechanical Industries for West Virginia Colored Institute from 1893 through 1914. |
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Canty was born in 1865{{efn|name=fn3|In his 1905 autobiographical sketch in ''Tuskegee and Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements'', Canty lists his birthdate as December 23, 1863;<ref name="Canty 1905 299">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=299.}}</ref> however, his gravestone at Institute Cemetery and his death certificate list his birthdate as December 23, 1865.<ref name="WVAH 2"/> The 1865 birthdate aligns with Canty's obituary in the ''Charleston Daily Mail'' which listed his age at death as 98.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/>}} in [[Marietta, Georgia]], to former slaves. He attended [[State school|public school]] from an early age, and worked numerous trades with his father, including as a [[carpentry|carpenter]], [[butcher]], [[ironworker]], and farmer. Following a friend's recommendation, Canty began attending [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] in 1886 and graduated from the institute in 1890. After graduation, Canty served as the institute's commandant and head of its night school. When he returned to Marietta, he applied his trade in machinery at a carriage shop. After a year in Marietta, Canty received a letter from [[Booker T. Washington]] requesting he write to [[James Edwin Campbell (poet)|James Edwin Campbell]], principal of the [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] in [[Institute, West Virginia|Farm, West Virginia]] (present-day Institute, West Virginia). He was hired as the superintendent of mechanics and began his tenure there in 1893. Canty established a [[drill team]] and a military training corps for students, which evolved to become the institute's [[Reserve Officers' Training Corps]] (ROTC) unit. In the summer of 1898, Canty served as the institute's acting principal. |
Canty was born in 1865{{efn|name=fn3|In his 1905 autobiographical sketch in ''Tuskegee and Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements'', Canty lists his birthdate as December 23, 1863;<ref name="Canty 1905 299">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=299.}}</ref> however, his gravestone at Institute Cemetery and his death certificate list his birthdate as December 23, 1865.<ref name="WVAH 2"/> The 1865 birthdate aligns with Canty's obituary in the ''Charleston Daily Mail'' which listed his age at death as 98.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/>}} in [[Marietta, Georgia]], to former slaves. He attended [[State school|public school]] from an early age, and worked numerous trades with his father, including as a [[carpentry|carpenter]], [[butcher]], [[ironworker]], and farmer. Following a friend's recommendation, Canty began attending [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] in 1886 and graduated from the institute in 1890. After graduation, Canty served as the institute's commandant and head of its night school. When he returned to Marietta, he applied his trade in machinery at a carriage shop. After a year in Marietta, Canty received a letter from [[Booker T. Washington]] requesting he write to [[James Edwin Campbell (poet)|James Edwin Campbell]], principal of the [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] in [[Institute, West Virginia|Farm, West Virginia]] (present-day Institute, West Virginia). He was hired as the superintendent of mechanics and began his tenure there in 1893. Canty established a [[drill team]] and a military training corps for students, which evolved to become the institute's [[Reserve Officers' Training Corps]] (ROTC) unit. In the summer of 1898, Canty served as the institute's acting principal. |
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Later in life, Canty served as first vice president and as a director of the Mutual Savings and Loan Company in [[Charleston, West Virginia]], which was the city's African-American bank. As an officer and director of the bank, Canty co-founded two companies to develop trading routes and relationships with Haiti, Africa, and [[British Guiana]] in 1922: the Overseas Navigation Corporation and the Overseas Trading Company. In 1950, West Virginia State College's ROTC unit honored Canty for his involvement in the college's military training corps program. Following an extended illness, Canty died at his residence in Institute in 1964 at the age of 98. His residence, [[Canty House]], is on West Virginia State University's campus |
Later in life, Canty served as first vice president and as a director of the Mutual Savings and Loan Company in [[Charleston, West Virginia]], which was the city's African-American bank. As an officer and director of the bank, Canty co-founded two companies to develop trading routes and relationships with Haiti, Africa, and [[British Guiana]] in 1922: the Overseas Navigation Corporation and the Overseas Trading Company. In 1950, West Virginia State College's ROTC unit honored Canty for his involvement in the college's military training corps program. Following an extended illness, Canty died at his residence in Institute in 1964 at the age of 98. His residence, [[Canty House]], is on West Virginia State University's campus, houses the university's Athletic Hall of Fame, and is listed on the [[National Register of Historic Places]]. |
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== Early life and education == |
== Early life and education == |
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James Munroe Canty{{efn|name=fn1}} was born on December 23, 1865,{{efn|name=fn3}} in [[Marietta, Georgia]].<ref name="WVAH 2"/><ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> His parents, James Munroe Canty Sr. and Adella Canty, were former slaves;<ref name="WVAH 2"/><ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> Canty was the eldest child of two sons and three daughters.<ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> He attended [[State school|public school]] from an early age and worked with his father, who was a [[Carpentry|carpenter]], [[butcher]], and [[ironworker]].<ref name="Canty 1905 299"/><ref name="The New York Age 1">{{cite |
James Munroe Canty{{efn|name=fn1}} was born on December 23, 1865,{{efn|name=fn3}} in [[Marietta, Georgia]].<ref name="WVAH 2"/><ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> His parents, James Munroe Canty Sr. and Adella Canty, were former slaves;<ref name="WVAH 2"/><ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> Canty was the eldest child of two sons and three daughters.<ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> He attended [[State school|public school]] from an early age and worked with his father, who was a [[Carpentry|carpenter]], [[butcher]], and [[ironworker]].<ref name="Canty 1905 299"/><ref name="The New York Age 1">{{cite news | title = Living Examples of Tuskegee's Influence | newspaper = [[New York Age|The New York Age]] | location = New York | date = February 9, 1905 | page = 2 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56527126/living-examples-of-tuskegees-influence/ | access-date = August 1, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200802010243/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56527126/living-examples-of-tuskegees-influence/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> Canty's father also ran for election for a seat in the [[Georgia General Assembly]] but lost by a few votes.<ref name="Canty 1905 301">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=301.}}</ref> From the age of 16, Canty worked as the principal butcher at his father's [[meat market]].<ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> After his father had become the custodian of streets in Marietta, Canty worked as a street laborer.<ref name="Canty 1905 299"/> When his father took up farming, Canty again followed suit and assisted him on the farm.<ref name="Canty 1905 299–300">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=299–300.}}</ref> |
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After continuing to follow his father into one trade after another, Canty joined other young men in attending [[night school]] for his self-improvement.<ref name="Canty 1905 300">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=300.}}</ref> He began working in a [[carriage]] factory. There, a female student at the [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] gave him a newspaper containing an article about the institute's campus, faculty, and students.<ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 300"/> She contacted [[Booker T. Washington]] on Canty's behalf and subsequently informed him that if he relocated to the institute in [[Tuskegee, Alabama]], Washington would enable him to attend the institute.<ref name="Canty 1905 300"/> Canty's father was opposed to his attending Tuskegee and advised him to remain in night school in Marietta.<ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 300"/> Despite his father's opposition, Canty relocated to Tuskegee to attend the institute in March 1886.<ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 301–302">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=301–302.}}</ref> |
After continuing to follow his father into one trade after another, Canty joined other young men in attending [[night school]] for his self-improvement.<ref name="Canty 1905 300">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=300.}}</ref> He began working in a [[carriage]] factory. There, a female student at the [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] gave him a newspaper containing an article about the institute's campus, faculty, and students.<ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 300"/> She contacted [[Booker T. Washington]] on Canty's behalf and subsequently informed him that if he relocated to the institute in [[Tuskegee, Alabama]], Washington would enable him to attend the institute.<ref name="Canty 1905 300"/> Canty's father was opposed to his attending Tuskegee and advised him to remain in night school in Marietta.<ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 300"/> Despite his father's opposition, Canty relocated to Tuskegee to attend the institute in March 1886.<ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 301–302">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=301–302.}}</ref> |
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== Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute == |
== Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute == |
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[[File:Booker T Washington retouched flattened-crop.jpg|thumb|180px|right|[[Booker T. Washington]]]] |
[[File:Booker T Washington retouched flattened-crop.jpg|thumb|180px|right|[[Booker T. Washington]]]] |
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Canty [[Matriculation|matriculated]] into Tuskegee's night school to earn his tuition and expenses for day school and was assigned to the institute's [[blacksmith]] shop.<ref name="Canty 1905 303–304">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=303–304.}}</ref> While attending Tuskegee, [[Margaret Murray Washington]]'s positive engagement with its students,<ref name="Canty 1905 308">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=308.}}</ref> and the encouragement he received from the school's superintendent of industries, John H. Washington, influenced Canty.<ref name="Canty 1905 309">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=309.}}</ref> Before he graduated from Tuskegee, Booker T. Washington hired him as an instructor for the institute's night school and blacksmithing shop.<ref name="Canty 1905 311">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=311.}}</ref> He graduated from the institute on May 29, 1890,<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Montgomery Advertiser 1">{{cite |
Canty [[Matriculation|matriculated]] into Tuskegee's night school to earn his tuition and expenses for day school and was assigned to the institute's [[blacksmith]] shop.<ref name="Canty 1905 303–304">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=303–304.}}</ref> While attending Tuskegee, [[Margaret Murray Washington]]'s positive engagement with its students,<ref name="Canty 1905 308">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=308.}}</ref> and the encouragement he received from the school's superintendent of industries, John H. Washington, influenced Canty.<ref name="Canty 1905 309">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=309.}}</ref> Before he graduated from Tuskegee, Booker T. Washington hired him as an instructor for the institute's night school and blacksmithing shop.<ref name="Canty 1905 311">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=311.}}</ref> He graduated from the institute on May 29, 1890,<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The New York Age 1"/><ref name="Montgomery Advertiser 1">{{cite news | title = Tuskegee Normal School for Colored Teachers Closes with Commencement Exercises | newspaper = [[Montgomery Advertiser]] | location = [[Montgomery, Alabama]] | date = May 30, 1890 | page = 6 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56516844/tuskegee-normal-school-for-colored/ | access-date = August 1, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200801222714/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56516844/tuskegee-normal-school-for-colored/ | archive-date = August 1, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> and delivered a speech entitled, "The True Leader" at his commencement ceremony.<ref name="Montgomery Advertiser 1"/> In its coverage of the commencement, the ''[[Montgomery Advertiser]]'' described Canty as "a first class blacksmith".<ref name="Montgomery Advertiser 1"/> |
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Following graduation, Canty was also hired as the institute's commandant and head of its night school for a year.<ref name="Canty 1905 312">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=312.}}</ref> As the institute's commandant, Canty received the title of "Colonel" as head of its military corps of students.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/> He resigned his positions at Tuskegee to pursue a more lucrative position in the mercantile business.<ref name="Canty 1905 312–313">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=312–313.}}</ref> |
Following graduation, Canty was also hired as the institute's commandant and head of its night school for a year.<ref name="Canty 1905 312">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=312.}}</ref> As the institute's commandant, Canty received the title of "Colonel" as head of its military corps of students.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/> He resigned his positions at Tuskegee to pursue a more lucrative position in the mercantile business.<ref name="Canty 1905 312–313">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=312–313.}}</ref> |
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After a year in Marietta, Canty received a letter from Booker T. Washington requesting that he write to [[James Edwin Campbell (poet)|James Edwin Campbell]], principal of the [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] in [[Institute, West Virginia|Farm, West Virginia]] (present-day Institute, West Virginia).<ref name="Canty 1905 314"/> Campbell had written Washington seeking a Tuskegee graduate to serve as superintendent of mechanics at the institute,<ref name="Canty 1905 314"/> and Washington recommended Canty for the position.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1">{{cite |
After a year in Marietta, Canty received a letter from Booker T. Washington requesting that he write to [[James Edwin Campbell (poet)|James Edwin Campbell]], principal of the [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] in [[Institute, West Virginia|Farm, West Virginia]] (present-day Institute, West Virginia).<ref name="Canty 1905 314"/> Campbell had written Washington seeking a Tuskegee graduate to serve as superintendent of mechanics at the institute,<ref name="Canty 1905 314"/> and Washington recommended Canty for the position.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1">{{cite news | title = ROTC Honors James Canty At Institute | newspaper = [[Charleston Gazette-Mail|The Charleston Gazette]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = September 17, 1950 | page = 13 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/military-clipping-sep-17-1950-1893300/ | access-date = August 2, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200802215904/https://newspaperarchive.com/military-clipping-sep-17-1950-1893300/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> Canty accepted and began his duties as the superintendent of mechanics at the institute on January 3, 1893.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="Canty 1905 314"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> He was the third teacher to join the institute's faculty.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> West Virginia Colored Institute had been founded in 1891 under the [[Morrill Land-Grant Acts|Morrill Act of 1890]], to provide West Virginia's [[African Americans]] with education in agricultural and mechanical studies.<ref name="WVSU History 1">{{cite web |url= https://www.wvstateu.edu/about/history-and-traditions.aspx |title= Our History Runs Deep |year= 2020 |publisher= [[West Virginia State University]] |access-date= February 29, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200229200110/https://www.wvstateu.edu/about/history-and-traditions.aspx |archive-date= February 29, 2020}}</ref><ref name="Jones 1904 285">{{Harvnb|Jones|1904|p=285.}}</ref> |
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From his arrival in 1893 until the fall of 1898, Canty carried out the school's industrial work and education without assistance.<ref name="Canty 1905 315">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=315.}}</ref> As superintendent of mechanical industries, he taught blacksmithing, [[carpentry]], and [[Mechanical systems drawing|mechanical drawing]].<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> In addition to teaching, Canty was in charge of campus maintenance and installed the institute's [[sewerage]] system and [[heating system]]s in its buildings.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> In his first year, Canty established a [[drill team]] at the institute because "he felt that the boys needed discipline".<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> Canty only had one rifle for the drill team, so he made the students carve their own wooden rifles.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> In 1894, Canty also taught in the institute's literary department.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> |
From his arrival in 1893 until the fall of 1898, Canty carried out the school's industrial work and education without assistance.<ref name="Canty 1905 315">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|p=315.}}</ref> As superintendent of mechanical industries, he taught blacksmithing, [[carpentry]], and [[Mechanical systems drawing|mechanical drawing]].<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> In addition to teaching, Canty was in charge of campus maintenance and installed the institute's [[sewerage]] system and [[heating system]]s in its buildings.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> In his first year, Canty established a [[drill team]] at the institute because "he felt that the boys needed discipline".<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> Canty only had one rifle for the drill team, so he made the students carve their own wooden rifles.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> In 1894, Canty also taught in the institute's literary department.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> |
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By 1905, Canty's work at the institute consisted of superintending the school's mechanical industries and teaching mechanical drawing.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> Canty was one of three instructors when he arrived at the institute in 1893 and the school had 30 students,<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> and by 1905, the institute had grown to 18 teachers and 187 students.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> In that time, Canty's department had grown to include instruction in: blacksmithing, carpentry, [[masonry]], mechanical drawing, [[Plasterwork|plastering]], [[printing]], and [[wheelwright]]ing.<ref name="Canty 1905 315–316">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=315–316.}}</ref> Canty was the only instructor in the mechanical industries department when he arrived in 1893; by 1906, his department had ten employees, seven of whom were under his supervision.<ref name="Alexander 1906 98"/><ref name="Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute 1906 33">{{Harvnb|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute|1906|p=33.}}</ref> Canty was credited with building up the institute's mechanical industries program.<ref name="Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute 1906 33"/> |
By 1905, Canty's work at the institute consisted of superintending the school's mechanical industries and teaching mechanical drawing.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> Canty was one of three instructors when he arrived at the institute in 1893 and the school had 30 students,<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> and by 1905, the institute had grown to 18 teachers and 187 students.<ref name="Canty 1905 315"/> In that time, Canty's department had grown to include instruction in: blacksmithing, carpentry, [[masonry]], mechanical drawing, [[Plasterwork|plastering]], [[printing]], and [[wheelwright]]ing.<ref name="Canty 1905 315–316">{{Harvnb|Canty|1905|pp=315–316.}}</ref> Canty was the only instructor in the mechanical industries department when he arrived in 1893; by 1906, his department had ten employees, seven of whom were under his supervision.<ref name="Alexander 1906 98"/><ref name="Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute 1906 33">{{Harvnb|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute|1906|p=33.}}</ref> Canty was credited with building up the institute's mechanical industries program.<ref name="Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute 1906 33"/> |
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In 1907, Canty organized and helped set up the West Virginia Colored Institute's industrial and student display and the West Virginia exhibit at the [[Jamestown Exposition]] in [[Norfolk, Virginia]].<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/> Canty resigned as superintendent of mechanical industries at West Virginia Colored Institute in 1914. Albert C. Spurlock succeeded him in this position.<ref name="Prillerman 1914 6">{{Harvnb|Prillerman|1914|p=6.}}</ref><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 5">{{cite |
In 1907, Canty organized and helped set up the West Virginia Colored Institute's industrial and student display and the West Virginia exhibit at the [[Jamestown Exposition]] in [[Norfolk, Virginia]].<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/> Canty resigned as superintendent of mechanical industries at West Virginia Colored Institute in 1914. Albert C. Spurlock succeeded him in this position.<ref name="Prillerman 1914 6">{{Harvnb|Prillerman|1914|p=6.}}</ref><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 5">{{cite news | title = Retired Profs To Be Honored | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = May 3, 1950 | page = 20 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-may-03-1950-1893403/ | access-date = August 2, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200802225110/https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-may-03-1950-1893403/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> Canty continued to serve on the institute's faculty until his retirement in 1948.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> That year, Canty arranged for the construction of West Virginia State College's military training corps [[Shooting range|rifle range]].<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> |
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== Business pursuits == |
== Business pursuits == |
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Canty served as the first vice president and a director of the Mutual Savings and Loan Company in [[Charleston, West Virginia|Charleston]]—the city's African-American bank established on July 10, 1918.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 2">{{cite |
Canty served as the first vice president and a director of the Mutual Savings and Loan Company in [[Charleston, West Virginia|Charleston]]—the city's African-American bank established on July 10, 1918.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 2">{{cite news | title = Officers Are Elected. | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = January 7, 1919 | page = 10 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jan-07-1919-1892797/ | access-date = July 28, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200802170430/https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jan-07-1919-1892797/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 3">{{cite news | title = Mutual Savings and Loan Company Advertisement | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = June 4, 1939 | page = 11 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/advertisement-clipping-jun-04-1939-1892755/ | access-date = July 28, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200802164728/https://newspaperarchive.com/advertisement-clipping-jun-04-1939-1892755/?__cf_chl_jschl_tk__=306ba1112e96613d77439972573d86abe6d02878-1596386869-0-AR6DrnnxzgWWtyST3awHQJs9lJ0h5tgB323LqG2v8wgvaXngTELXN8wlIqrtKIyytBFOn_lx1HES8p1gk_6fbpqWainFf3leoarURpe1nbIWBEavbOIdNbB__pdAX7Vzf1E_vTNKW0RJGHJHsp28yRw7xG1awLIaKhvjnWWZrKhYnnoZSVdu4OUKJjEqRHnWzu3VMeo2vb9cQrbHPVuklBkZRtMNuZ-Feehbkw5RyEE_coLfJd3ZpE2ONtXsSG_kixMvWnNEz2P9gE78spM2-YEshskZ9eGF7QIc_e4nEkKW7GSBoHq8SbKobWkBLYdk_PUJcbwcoXzhzyWiSnjEvEM | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 4">{{cite news | title = Mutual Has Fine Record | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = June 4, 1939 | page = 10 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jun-04-1939-1892864/ | access-date = August 2, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200802174128/https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-jun-04-1939-1892864/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> Canty and his fellow co-founders had organized Mutual Savings and Loan to serve the banking needs and provide home loans for Charleston's African-American community.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 4"/> At the company's first annual [[Shareholder|stockholders]]' meeting in January 1919, Canty was elected first vice president.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 2"/> |
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As an officer and director of Mutual Savings and Loan, Canty co-founded two companies to develop trading routes and relationships with Haiti, Africa, and [[British Guiana]] in 1922: the Overseas Navigation Corporation and the Overseas Trading Company.<ref name="The New York Times 1">{{cite |
As an officer and director of Mutual Savings and Loan, Canty co-founded two companies to develop trading routes and relationships with Haiti, Africa, and [[British Guiana]] in 1922: the Overseas Navigation Corporation and the Overseas Trading Company.<ref name="The New York Times 1">{{cite news | title = Negro Bankers Organize. | newspaper = [[The New York Times]] | location = New York | date = September 19, 1922 | page = 27 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532812/negro-bankers-organize/ | access-date = August 1, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200802022534/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532812/negro-bankers-organize/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="The Dallas Express 1">{{cite news | author = [[Associated Negro Press]] | title = New Trading Company Formed in New York. | newspaper = [[Dallas Express|The Dallas Express]] | location = [[Dallas, Texas]] | date = September 16, 1922 | page = 8 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532046/new-trading-company-formed-in-new-york/ | access-date = August 1, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200802021217/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532046/new-trading-company-formed-in-new-york/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref name="The Brooklyn Standard Union 1">{{cite news | title = Negro Expedition Ready to Sail for Diamond Field | newspaper = [[Brooklyn Times-Union|The Brooklyn Standard Union]] | location = [[Brooklyn]] | date = August 20, 1922 | page = 15 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56527902/negro-expedition-ready-to-sail-for/ | access-date = August 1, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200802010743/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56527902/negro-expedition-ready-to-sail-for/ | archive-date = August 2, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> Canty served as the treasurer for both companies.<ref name="The New York Times 1"/> The headquarters of both companies were located at 80 Wall Street in New York's [[Financial District, Manhattan|Financial District]].<ref name="The New York Times 1"/><ref name="The Dallas Express 1"/><ref name="The Brooklyn Standard Union 1"/> Canty was joined in these ventures by Charles E. Mitchell (president of Mutual Savings and Loan), Anthony Crawford, and Beresford Gale, among others.<ref name="The New York Times 1"/><ref name="The Dallas Express 1"/><ref name="The Brooklyn Standard Union 1"/> The Overseas Trading Company purchased its first ship from the [[United States Shipping Board]] and renamed it ''Anna May''.<ref name="The Dallas Express 1"/> The business for both companies was transacted through and underwritten by African-American banks.<ref name="The New York Times 1"/> |
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== Personal life == |
== Personal life == |
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=== Personal interests === |
=== Personal interests === |
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Canty was a [[Congregationalism in the United States|Congregationalist]] as a Sunday school superintendent and teacher at his church.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/> He was also active in civic affairs, and served as an officer in the Institute Community Club and was a member and officer of El Cubo Club, a community civic organization in Institute.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 7">{{cite |
Canty was a [[Congregationalism in the United States|Congregationalist]] as a Sunday school superintendent and teacher at his church.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/> He was also active in civic affairs, and served as an officer in the Institute Community Club and was a member and officer of El Cubo Club, a community civic organization in Institute.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 7">{{cite news | title = Bond Issue Flayed as Unfair to City | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = May 10, 1936 | page = 18 | url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61663339/bond-issue-flayed-as-unfair-to-city/ | access-date = October 23, 2020 | via = [[Newspapers.com]] | archive-date = October 27, 2020 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20201027164453/https://www.newspapers.com/clip/61663339/bond-issue-flayed-as-unfair-to-city/ | url-status = live }}</ref> |
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== Later life and death == |
== Later life and death == |
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In 1945, Canty participated as a fundraising captain in Institute in a fundraising initiative to raise $30,000 for the construction of a permanent [[YMCA]] in Charleston.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 2">{{cite |
In 1945, Canty participated as a fundraising captain in Institute in a fundraising initiative to raise $30,000 for the construction of a permanent [[YMCA]] in Charleston.<ref name="The Charleston Gazette 2">{{cite news | title = $30,000 Solicited For YMCA Branch | newspaper = [[Charleston Gazette-Mail|The Charleston Gazette]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = March 11, 1945 | page = 15 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-mar-11-1945-1893640/ | access-date = August 2, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200803010936/https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-mar-11-1945-1893640/ | archive-date = August 3, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> In May 1950, Canty's former department, then known as the Trade and Technical Division of West Virginia State College, held a banquet in honor of Canty and other [[emeritus]] instructors of mechanical industries.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 5"/> In September 1950, West Virginia State's ROTC unit honored Canty in a special ceremony for his involvement with the college's military training corps program.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 1"/> He had [[cataract surgery]] at Shepherd Hospital in Charleston in August 1961.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 6">{{cite news | title = Of All Things | newspaper = [[Charleston Daily Mail]] | location = [[Charleston, West Virginia]] | date = August 26, 1961 | page = 8 | url = https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-aug-26-1961-1893677/ | access-date = August 2, 2020 | via = [[NewspaperArchive.com]] | archive-url = https://archive.today/20200803012420/https://newspaperarchive.com/other-articles-clipping-aug-26-1961-1893677/ | archive-date = August 3, 2020 | url-status = live }}</ref> Following an extended illness, Canty died at his residence in Institute on February 16, 1964,<ref name="WVAH 2"/><ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/> of [[lobar pneumonia]] after developing [[prostate cancer]].<ref name="WVAH 2"/> He was survived by three of his daughters: Portia C. Dansby, Marcia C. Hammonds, and Grace C. Mitchell—and six grandchildren.<ref name="Charleston Daily Mail 1"/><ref name="The Charleston Gazette 3"/> |
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== References == |
== References == |
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== Bibliography == |
== Bibliography == |
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{{Refbegin|30em}} |
{{Refbegin|30em}} |
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* {{cite journal |last= Alexander |first= Charles |date= May 1906 |title= Tuskegee Graduates and Their Achievements |url= https://hdl.handle.net/2027/inu.30000117863757 |journal= Alexander's Magazine |pages= 94–103 |access-date= August 4, 2020 |via= [[HathiTrust]] |publisher= Charles Alexander |location= Boston |
* {{cite journal |last= Alexander |first= Charles |date= May 1906 |title= Tuskegee Graduates and Their Achievements |url= https://hdl.handle.net/2027/inu.30000117863757 |journal= Alexander's Magazine |pages= 94–103 |access-date= August 4, 2020 |via= [[HathiTrust]] |publisher= Charles Alexander |location= Boston |volume= 2 |issue= 1 |hdl= 2027/inu.30000117863757 |archive-date= September 18, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200918173619/https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=inu.30000117863757 |url-status= live }} |
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* {{cite book |last = Bickley |first = Ancella Radford |date = May 1988 |author-link = Ancella Radford Bickley |title = National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Canty House |publisher = [[United States Department of the Interior]], [[National Park Service]] |url = http://www.wvculture.org/shpo/nr/pdf/kanawha/88001587.pdf |access-date = July 28, 2020 |via = West Virginia Archives and History |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303213047/http://www.wvculture.org/shpo/nr/pdf/kanawha/88001587.pdf |archive-date = March 3, 2016 |url-status = live }} |
* {{cite book |last = Bickley |first = Ancella Radford |date = May 1988 |author-link = Ancella Radford Bickley |title = National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Canty House |publisher = [[United States Department of the Interior]], [[National Park Service]] |url = http://www.wvculture.org/shpo/nr/pdf/kanawha/88001587.pdf |access-date = July 28, 2020 |via = West Virginia Archives and History |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20160303213047/http://www.wvculture.org/shpo/nr/pdf/kanawha/88001587.pdf |archive-date = March 3, 2016 |url-status = live }} |
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* {{cite journal |last= Canty |first= James M. |year= 1905 |title= The Story of a Supervisor of Mechanical Industries |url= https://archive.org/details/tuskegeeitspeopl00washuoft/ |journal= Tuskegee and Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements |pages= 299–316 |access-date= May 25, 2020 |via= [[Internet Archive]] |publisher= [[D. Appleton & Company]] |location= New York |oclc= 776626949 }} |
* {{cite journal |last= Canty |first= James M. |year= 1905 |title= The Story of a Supervisor of Mechanical Industries |url= https://archive.org/details/tuskegeeitspeopl00washuoft/ |journal= Tuskegee and Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements |pages= 299–316 |access-date= May 25, 2020 |via= [[Internet Archive]] |publisher= [[D. Appleton & Company]] |location= New York |oclc= 776626949 }} |
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* {{cite journal |last= Jones |first= James McHenry |author-link= James McHenry Jones |year= 1904 |title= The West Virginia Colored Institute |url= https://archive.org/details/cu31924009348313/ |journal= History of Education in West Virginia |pages= 285–290 |access-date= May 24, 2020 |via= [[Internet Archive]] |publisher= The Tribune Printing Company |location= Charleston, West Virginia |lccn= 05015334 |oclc= 578625700 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161111091839/https://archive.org/details/cu31924009348313 |archive-date= November 11, 2016 |url-status= live }} |
* {{cite journal |last= Jones |first= James McHenry |author-link= James McHenry Jones |year= 1904 |title= The West Virginia Colored Institute |url= https://archive.org/details/cu31924009348313/ |journal= History of Education in West Virginia |pages= 285–290 |access-date= May 24, 2020 |via= [[Internet Archive]] |publisher= The Tribune Printing Company |location= Charleston, West Virginia |lccn= 05015334 |oclc= 578625700 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20161111091839/https://archive.org/details/cu31924009348313 |archive-date= November 11, 2016 |url-status= live }} |
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* {{cite journal |editor-last= Prillerman |editor-first= Byrd |date= October 1914 |title= Our New Teachers. |url= http://library.wvstateu.edu/archives/college_publications/Institute-Monthly/1914-10.pdf |journal= The Institute Monthly |page= 6 |access-date= August 2, 2020 |via= Drain-Jordan Library, West Virginia State University |publisher= [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] |location= Institute, West Virginia |archive-url= https://archive.today/20200802200743/http://library.wvstateu.edu/archives/college_publications/Institute-Monthly/1914-10.pdf |archive-date= August 2, 2020 |volume= VII |issue= I |url-status= live }} |
* {{cite journal|editor1-link=Byrd Prillerman |editor-last= Prillerman |editor-first= Byrd |date= October 1914 |title= Our New Teachers. |url= http://library.wvstateu.edu/archives/college_publications/Institute-Monthly/1914-10.pdf |journal= The Institute Monthly |page= 6 |access-date= August 2, 2020 |via= Drain-Jordan Library, West Virginia State University |publisher= [[West Virginia State University|West Virginia Colored Institute]] |location= Institute, West Virginia |archive-url= https://archive.today/20200802200743/http://library.wvstateu.edu/archives/college_publications/Institute-Monthly/1914-10.pdf |archive-date= August 2, 2020 |volume= VII |issue= I |url-status= live }} |
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* {{cite journal |author= Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute |author-link= Tuskegee University |date= April 28, 1906 |title= The Exhibits: Historical, Sociological and Educational |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=CLk-AAAAYAAJ |journal= The Tuskegee Student |pages= 32–33 |access-date= July 28, 2020 |via= [[Google Books]] |publisher= [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] |location= Tuskegee, Alabama |oclc= 990372355 |volume= XVIII |issue= 15 |archive-date= September 18, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200918173617/https://books.google.com/books?id=CLk-AAAAYAAJ |url-status= live }} |
* {{cite journal |author= Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute |author-link= Tuskegee University |date= April 28, 1906 |title= The Exhibits: Historical, Sociological and Educational |url= https://books.google.com/books?id=CLk-AAAAYAAJ |journal= The Tuskegee Student |pages= 32–33 |access-date= July 28, 2020 |via= [[Google Books]] |publisher= [[Tuskegee University|Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute]] |location= Tuskegee, Alabama |oclc= 990372355 |volume= XVIII |issue= 15 |archive-date= September 18, 2020 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20200918173617/https://books.google.com/books?id=CLk-AAAAYAAJ |url-status= live }} |
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* {{cite book | author = [[West Virginia State University]] |title = West Virginia State University 2009–2010 Fact Book |publisher = WVSU Academic Affairs, Dr. R. Charles Byers, Vice President |url = http://library.wvstateu.edu/archives/facultysenate/acadyear2010-2011/WVSU-FactBook-2009-2010-Part1.pdf | location = [[Institute, West Virginia]] | date = 2009 |access-date = October 23, 2020 |via = Drain-Jordan Library, West Virginia State University }} |
* {{cite book | author = [[West Virginia State University]] |title = West Virginia State University 2009–2010 Fact Book |publisher = WVSU Academic Affairs, Dr. R. Charles Byers, Vice President |url = http://library.wvstateu.edu/archives/facultysenate/acadyear2010-2011/WVSU-FactBook-2009-2010-Part1.pdf | location = [[Institute, West Virginia]] | date = 2009 |access-date = October 23, 2020 |via = Drain-Jordan Library, West Virginia State University }} |
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==External links== |
==External links== |
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* {{commons category-inline|James M. Canty}} |
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{{Authority control}} |
{{Authority control}} |
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{{West Virginia State University presidents|state=collapsed}} |
{{West Virginia State University presidents|state=collapsed}} |
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{{Portal bar|Biography|Alabama|Education|Georgia (U.S. state)|West Virginia}} |
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[[Category:American Congregationalists]] |
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Latest revision as of 11:33, 26 December 2023
James M. Canty | |
---|---|
Acting President of West Virginia State University | |
In office 1898 | |
Preceded by | John H. Hill |
Succeeded by | James McHenry Jones |
Superintendent of Mechanical Industries at West Virginia State University | |
In office 1893–1914 | |
Preceded by | Position established |
Succeeded by | Albert C. Spurlock |
Personal details | |
Born | Marietta, Georgia, U.S. | December 23, 1865
Died | February 16, 1964 Institute, West Virginia, U.S. | (aged 98)
Resting place | Institute Cemetery |
Spouse(s) | Sarah J. Harris Canty Florence Lovett Canty |
Children | 8 |
Residence | Canty House |
Alma mater | Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute |
Profession | Educator, school administrator, and businessperson |
James Munroe Canty[a] (December 23, 1865 – February 16, 1964) was an American educator, school administrator, and businessperson. Canty was an acting principal of the West Virginia Colored Institute (present-day West Virginia State University) in 1898 and is considered by West Virginia State as an acting president.[b] Canty also served as the superintendent of Mechanical Industries for West Virginia Colored Institute from 1893 through 1914.
Canty was born in 1865[c] in Marietta, Georgia, to former slaves. He attended public school from an early age, and worked numerous trades with his father, including as a carpenter, butcher, ironworker, and farmer. Following a friend's recommendation, Canty began attending Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute in 1886 and graduated from the institute in 1890. After graduation, Canty served as the institute's commandant and head of its night school. When he returned to Marietta, he applied his trade in machinery at a carriage shop. After a year in Marietta, Canty received a letter from Booker T. Washington requesting he write to James Edwin Campbell, principal of the West Virginia Colored Institute in Farm, West Virginia (present-day Institute, West Virginia). He was hired as the superintendent of mechanics and began his tenure there in 1893. Canty established a drill team and a military training corps for students, which evolved to become the institute's Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) unit. In the summer of 1898, Canty served as the institute's acting principal.
Later in life, Canty served as first vice president and as a director of the Mutual Savings and Loan Company in Charleston, West Virginia, which was the city's African-American bank. As an officer and director of the bank, Canty co-founded two companies to develop trading routes and relationships with Haiti, Africa, and British Guiana in 1922: the Overseas Navigation Corporation and the Overseas Trading Company. In 1950, West Virginia State College's ROTC unit honored Canty for his involvement in the college's military training corps program. Following an extended illness, Canty died at his residence in Institute in 1964 at the age of 98. His residence, Canty House, is on West Virginia State University's campus, houses the university's Athletic Hall of Fame, and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Early life and education
James Munroe Canty[a] was born on December 23, 1865,[c] in Marietta, Georgia.[1][7] His parents, James Munroe Canty Sr. and Adella Canty, were former slaves;[1][7] Canty was the eldest child of two sons and three daughters.[7] He attended public school from an early age and worked with his father, who was a carpenter, butcher, and ironworker.[7][8] Canty's father also ran for election for a seat in the Georgia General Assembly but lost by a few votes.[9] From the age of 16, Canty worked as the principal butcher at his father's meat market.[7] After his father had become the custodian of streets in Marietta, Canty worked as a street laborer.[7] When his father took up farming, Canty again followed suit and assisted him on the farm.[10]
After continuing to follow his father into one trade after another, Canty joined other young men in attending night school for his self-improvement.[11] He began working in a carriage factory. There, a female student at the Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute gave him a newspaper containing an article about the institute's campus, faculty, and students.[8][11] She contacted Booker T. Washington on Canty's behalf and subsequently informed him that if he relocated to the institute in Tuskegee, Alabama, Washington would enable him to attend the institute.[11] Canty's father was opposed to his attending Tuskegee and advised him to remain in night school in Marietta.[8][11] Despite his father's opposition, Canty relocated to Tuskegee to attend the institute in March 1886.[8][12]
Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute
Canty matriculated into Tuskegee's night school to earn his tuition and expenses for day school and was assigned to the institute's blacksmith shop.[13] While attending Tuskegee, Margaret Murray Washington's positive engagement with its students,[14] and the encouragement he received from the school's superintendent of industries, John H. Washington, influenced Canty.[15] Before he graduated from Tuskegee, Booker T. Washington hired him as an instructor for the institute's night school and blacksmithing shop.[16] He graduated from the institute on May 29, 1890,[2][8][17] and delivered a speech entitled, "The True Leader" at his commencement ceremony.[17] In its coverage of the commencement, the Montgomery Advertiser described Canty as "a first class blacksmith".[17]
Following graduation, Canty was also hired as the institute's commandant and head of its night school for a year.[18] As the institute's commandant, Canty received the title of "Colonel" as head of its military corps of students.[2] He resigned his positions at Tuskegee to pursue a more lucrative position in the mercantile business.[19]
Machinery career
Canty returned to Marietta and plied his trade at a carriage shop where machine work was done for two furniture factories and a planing mill.[20] He repaired the shop's machinery and produced custom machine components for factories.[20] While he was in Marietta, Canty served as the superintendent of Sunday school at a local church on his father's farm.[20] He also co-founded a literary society and served as its president.[21]
West Virginia Colored Institute
After a year in Marietta, Canty received a letter from Booker T. Washington requesting that he write to James Edwin Campbell, principal of the West Virginia Colored Institute in Farm, West Virginia (present-day Institute, West Virginia).[21] Campbell had written Washington seeking a Tuskegee graduate to serve as superintendent of mechanics at the institute,[21] and Washington recommended Canty for the position.[2][3][22] Canty accepted and began his duties as the superintendent of mechanics at the institute on January 3, 1893.[2][21][22] He was the third teacher to join the institute's faculty.[2][22] West Virginia Colored Institute had been founded in 1891 under the Morrill Act of 1890, to provide West Virginia's African Americans with education in agricultural and mechanical studies.[23][24]
From his arrival in 1893 until the fall of 1898, Canty carried out the school's industrial work and education without assistance.[25] As superintendent of mechanical industries, he taught blacksmithing, carpentry, and mechanical drawing.[25] In addition to teaching, Canty was in charge of campus maintenance and installed the institute's sewerage system and heating systems in its buildings.[25] In his first year, Canty established a drill team at the institute because "he felt that the boys needed discipline".[22] Canty only had one rifle for the drill team, so he made the students carve their own wooden rifles.[22] In 1894, Canty also taught in the institute's literary department.[25]
In the early summer of 1898, the institute's principal John H. Hill resigned to accept a commission as a first lieutenant in the United States Volunteers.[25] Following Hill's resignation, the institute's Board of Regents named Canty as the acting principal.[b][2][3][25] While acting principal, Canty established the institute's first military training corps for students, which emphasized physical fitness and sports as major parts of its program.[2][3] Following the onset of the Spanish–American War, the state appropriated funds for uniforms and Krag–Jørgensen rifles for the training corps.[22] The training corps later became the school's Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC) unit.[22] Canty served as acting principal until the board's selection of James McHenry Jones as principal on September 21, 1898.[2][25]
Canty's department of mechanical industries was located in the institute's Machinery Hall. It was expanded in 1903 and rededicated in 1904 as the A. B. White Trades Building, named for West Virginia Governor Albert B. White.[26][27] The trades building expansion cost $35,000 to complete.[26][28] Canty planned and supervised the building's construction.[29]
By 1905, Canty's work at the institute consisted of superintending the school's mechanical industries and teaching mechanical drawing.[25] Canty was one of three instructors when he arrived at the institute in 1893 and the school had 30 students,[3][25] and by 1905, the institute had grown to 18 teachers and 187 students.[25] In that time, Canty's department had grown to include instruction in: blacksmithing, carpentry, masonry, mechanical drawing, plastering, printing, and wheelwrighting.[30] Canty was the only instructor in the mechanical industries department when he arrived in 1893; by 1906, his department had ten employees, seven of whom were under his supervision.[29][31] Canty was credited with building up the institute's mechanical industries program.[31]
In 1907, Canty organized and helped set up the West Virginia Colored Institute's industrial and student display and the West Virginia exhibit at the Jamestown Exposition in Norfolk, Virginia.[2][3] Canty resigned as superintendent of mechanical industries at West Virginia Colored Institute in 1914. Albert C. Spurlock succeeded him in this position.[32][33] Canty continued to serve on the institute's faculty until his retirement in 1948.[22] That year, Canty arranged for the construction of West Virginia State College's military training corps rifle range.[22]
Business pursuits
Canty served as the first vice president and a director of the Mutual Savings and Loan Company in Charleston—the city's African-American bank established on July 10, 1918.[3][34][35][36] Canty and his fellow co-founders had organized Mutual Savings and Loan to serve the banking needs and provide home loans for Charleston's African-American community.[36] At the company's first annual stockholders' meeting in January 1919, Canty was elected first vice president.[34]
As an officer and director of Mutual Savings and Loan, Canty co-founded two companies to develop trading routes and relationships with Haiti, Africa, and British Guiana in 1922: the Overseas Navigation Corporation and the Overseas Trading Company.[37][38][39] Canty served as the treasurer for both companies.[37] The headquarters of both companies were located at 80 Wall Street in New York's Financial District.[37][38][39] Canty was joined in these ventures by Charles E. Mitchell (president of Mutual Savings and Loan), Anthony Crawford, and Beresford Gale, among others.[37][38][39] The Overseas Trading Company purchased its first ship from the United States Shipping Board and renamed it Anna May.[38] The business for both companies was transacted through and underwritten by African-American banks.[37]
Personal life
Marriage and family
Canty married his first wife and former Tuskegee classmate and graduate, Sarah J. Harris, in 1891.[18] She died at the Institute on August 20, 1894, at the age of 26.[18][40] Canty credited her with his conversion to Christianity while a student at Tuskegee.[18] Canty and Harris had three children together, including their daughter Portia.[20] Canty's father died in the autumn of 1895, after which, Canty continued to care for his mother who remained in Marietta.[7]
On March 3, 1897, in Harpers Ferry, West Virginia, Canty married Florence Lovett.[4][20] She was born on April 11, 1866, in Winchester, Virginia, and was a graduate of Storer College in Harpers Ferry.[4][20][41] Canty and Lovett had five children together.[20] Lovett died on October 20, 1963, at St. Francis Hospital in Charleston, four months before Canty's death in 1964.[2][41]
Residences
By 1905, Canty owned a farm consisting of 100 acres (40 ha) nearly adjacent to the institute's campus.[26] His home in Institute, known variously as the Canty House or "The Magnolia", was built originally around 1900 and renovated in 1923 by Canty and his wife Florence into the current neoclassical structure.[42][43] Following Canty's death in 1964, the house was purchased by West Virginia State College and became the only example of Neoclassical architecture on its campus.[42][44] The house has been relocated three times and served as an office building and the campus health clinic before becoming the site of the West Virginia State University Athletic Hall of Fame.[42][45] The Canty House was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on September 23, 1988.[42]
Personal interests
Canty was a Congregationalist as a Sunday school superintendent and teacher at his church.[2][3] He was also active in civic affairs, and served as an officer in the Institute Community Club and was a member and officer of El Cubo Club, a community civic organization in Institute.[2][3][46]
Later life and death
In 1945, Canty participated as a fundraising captain in Institute in a fundraising initiative to raise $30,000 for the construction of a permanent YMCA in Charleston.[47] In May 1950, Canty's former department, then known as the Trade and Technical Division of West Virginia State College, held a banquet in honor of Canty and other emeritus instructors of mechanical industries.[33] In September 1950, West Virginia State's ROTC unit honored Canty in a special ceremony for his involvement with the college's military training corps program.[2][22] He had cataract surgery at Shepherd Hospital in Charleston in August 1961.[48] Following an extended illness, Canty died at his residence in Institute on February 16, 1964,[1][2] of lobar pneumonia after developing prostate cancer.[1] He was survived by three of his daughters: Portia C. Dansby, Marcia C. Hammonds, and Grace C. Mitchell—and six grandchildren.[2][3]
References
Explanatory notes
- ^ a b Canty's 1964 death certificate and obituaries in the Charleston Daily Mail and The Charleston Gazette list the spelling of his middle name as "Munroe,"[1][2][3] however, his name was sometimes spelled as "Monroe."[4]
- ^ a b West Virginia State University was founded as the West Virginia Colored Institute in 1891, and was later known as West Virginia Collegiate Institute (1915), West Virginia State College (1929), and finally West Virginia State University (2004). Canty was titled acting principal during his tenure; however, West Virginia State University considers previous principals as its presidents.[5][6]
- ^ a b In his 1905 autobiographical sketch in Tuskegee and Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements, Canty lists his birthdate as December 23, 1863;[7] however, his gravestone at Institute Cemetery and his death certificate list his birthdate as December 23, 1865.[1] The 1865 birthdate aligns with Canty's obituary in the Charleston Daily Mail which listed his age at death as 98.[2]
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f "Death Record Detail: James Munroe Canty". West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. 2019. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q "Pioneer W.Va. Educator Dies". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. February 17, 1964. p. 5. Archived from the original on July 29, 2020. Retrieved July 28, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "Pioneer State Negro Educator, 98, Dies". The Charleston Gazette. Charleston, West Virginia. February 17, 1964. p. 9. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ a b c "Marriage Record Detail: James Monroe Canty and Florence Lovett". West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. 2019. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ "Office of the President: Past Presidents". West Virginia State University. 2020. Archived from the original on May 25, 2020. Retrieved May 25, 2020.
- ^ West Virginia State University 2009, p. 17.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Canty 1905, p. 299.
- ^ a b c d e "Living Examples of Tuskegee's Influence". The New York Age. New York. February 9, 1905. p. 2. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ Canty 1905, p. 301.
- ^ Canty 1905, pp. 299–300.
- ^ a b c d Canty 1905, p. 300.
- ^ Canty 1905, pp. 301–302.
- ^ Canty 1905, pp. 303–304.
- ^ Canty 1905, p. 308.
- ^ Canty 1905, p. 309.
- ^ Canty 1905, p. 311.
- ^ a b c "Tuskegee Normal School for Colored Teachers Closes with Commencement Exercises". Montgomery Advertiser. Montgomery, Alabama. May 30, 1890. p. 6. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d Canty 1905, p. 312.
- ^ Canty 1905, pp. 312–313.
- ^ a b c d e f g Canty 1905, p. 313.
- ^ a b c d Canty 1905, p. 314.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j "ROTC Honors James Canty At Institute". The Charleston Gazette. Charleston, West Virginia. September 17, 1950. p. 13. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ "Our History Runs Deep". West Virginia State University. 2020. Archived from the original on February 29, 2020. Retrieved February 29, 2020.
- ^ Jones 1904, p. 285.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Canty 1905, p. 315.
- ^ a b c Canty 1905, p. 316.
- ^ "White Trades Building - Campus Buildings and Artifacts, WVSU Archives & Special Collections". West Virginia State University. 2020. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
- ^ Jones 1904, p. 286.
- ^ a b Alexander 1906, p. 98.
- ^ Canty 1905, pp. 315–316.
- ^ a b Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute 1906, p. 33.
- ^ Prillerman 1914, p. 6.
- ^ a b "Retired Profs To Be Honored". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. May 3, 1950. p. 20. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ a b "Officers Are Elected". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. January 7, 1919. p. 10. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved July 28, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ "Mutual Savings and Loan Company Advertisement". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. June 4, 1939. p. 11. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved July 28, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ a b "Mutual Has Fine Record". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. June 4, 1939. p. 10. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ a b c d e "Negro Bankers Organize". The New York Times. New York. September 19, 1922. p. 27. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c d Associated Negro Press (September 16, 1922). "New Trading Company Formed in New York". The Dallas Express. Dallas, Texas. p. 8. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ a b c "Negro Expedition Ready to Sail for Diamond Field". The Brooklyn Standard Union. Brooklyn. August 20, 1922. p. 15. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Death Record Detail: Sarah E. Canty". West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. 2019. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ a b "Death Record Detail: Florence Lovette Canty". West Virginia Archives and History, West Virginia Department of Arts, Culture and History. 2019. Archived from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020.
- ^ a b c d "Canty House - Campus Building and Artifacts, & WVSU Archives & Special Collections". West Virginia State University. 2020. Archived from the original on August 1, 2020. Retrieved August 1, 2020.
- ^ Bickley 1988, pp. 1–2 of the PDF.
- ^ Bickley 1988, p. 2 of the PDF.
- ^ Bickley 1988, pp. 2–3 of the PDF.
- ^ "Bond Issue Flayed as Unfair to City". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. May 10, 1936. p. 18. Archived from the original on October 27, 2020. Retrieved October 23, 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "$30,000 Solicited For YMCA Branch". The Charleston Gazette. Charleston, West Virginia. March 11, 1945. p. 15. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
- ^ "Of All Things". Charleston Daily Mail. Charleston, West Virginia. August 26, 1961. p. 8. Archived from the original on August 3, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020 – via NewspaperArchive.com.
Bibliography
- Alexander, Charles (May 1906). "Tuskegee Graduates and Their Achievements". Alexander's Magazine. 2 (1). Boston: Charles Alexander: 94–103. hdl:2027/inu.30000117863757. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved August 4, 2020 – via HathiTrust.
- Bickley, Ancella Radford (May 1988). National Register of Historic Places Inventory – Nomination Form: Canty House (PDF). United States Department of the Interior, National Park Service. Archived (PDF) from the original on March 3, 2016. Retrieved July 28, 2020 – via West Virginia Archives and History.
- Canty, James M. (1905). "The Story of a Supervisor of Mechanical Industries". Tuskegee and Its People: Their Ideals and Achievements. New York: D. Appleton & Company: 299–316. OCLC 776626949. Retrieved May 25, 2020 – via Internet Archive.
- Jones, James McHenry (1904). "The West Virginia Colored Institute". History of Education in West Virginia. Charleston, West Virginia: The Tribune Printing Company: 285–290. LCCN 05015334. OCLC 578625700. Archived from the original on November 11, 2016. Retrieved May 24, 2020 – via Internet Archive.
- Prillerman, Byrd, ed. (October 1914). "Our New Teachers" (PDF). The Institute Monthly. VII (I). Institute, West Virginia: West Virginia Colored Institute: 6. Archived (PDF) from the original on August 2, 2020. Retrieved August 2, 2020 – via Drain-Jordan Library, West Virginia State University.
- Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute (April 28, 1906). "The Exhibits: Historical, Sociological and Educational". The Tuskegee Student. XVIII (15). Tuskegee, Alabama: Tuskegee Normal and Industrial Institute: 32–33. OCLC 990372355. Archived from the original on September 18, 2020. Retrieved July 28, 2020 – via Google Books.
- West Virginia State University (2009). West Virginia State University 2009–2010 Fact Book (PDF). Institute, West Virginia: WVSU Academic Affairs, Dr. R. Charles Byers, Vice President. Retrieved October 23, 2020 – via Drain-Jordan Library, West Virginia State University.
External links
- Media related to James M. Canty at Wikimedia Commons