The Nature Conservancy. Protecting nature. Preserving life.™

Did you know that George Washington Carver's famous work with the peanut has roots in conservation? Or that African American soldiers were some of the first defenders of our national parks?

Find out more about African Americans who pioneered conservation in America when you take the quiz below. Then see how today’s youth are following in their footsteps as part of The Nature Conservancy's Leaders in Environmental Action for the Future (LEAF) program. Meet Diamond Coles, an Atlanta teen who spent the summer working at our Disney Wilderness Preserve, and Ishmael Akahoho, recipient of the prestigious Gates Scholarship, who is studying environmental sustainability. 

1. Buffalo Soldiers in the U.S. Army were among the first park rangers in the American West. They are noted for:

   Protecting national parks including Yosemite and nearby Sequoia.

   Protecting national parks including Yosemite and nearby Sequoia. | Incorrect

   Helping to suppress forest fires, evict timber thieves and crack down on poachers.

   Helping to suppress forest fires, evict timber thieves and crack down on poachers. | Incorrect

   Completing the first usable road into Giant Forest, the heart of Sequoia National Park, and forging a trail to the top of Mt. Whitney.

   Completing the first usable road into Giant Forest, the heart of Sequoia National Park, and forging a trail to the top of Mt. Whitney. | Incorrect

   All of the Above

   All of the Above | Correct

   Buffalo Soldiers from the 24th Infantry and 9th Cavalry, many of whom were war veterans, protected both Yosemite and Sequoia national parks in 1899, 1903 and 1904. Their legacy lives on through current Yosemite ranger Shelton Johnson, who created a website to tell their story and regularly shares their story with park visitors. Shelton also works to increase African American interest and attendance in national parks.

2. True or False: One of the most notable Buffalo Soldiers was Capt. Charles Young, the third African American to graduate from West Point and the first African-American superintendent of a national park.

   True

   True | Correct

   Since most regiments were led by white officers, Young's presence was controversial, but his achievements were many. Under his watch, the Buffalo Soldiers finished a road to the Giant Forest in Sequoia National Park, allowing visitors access to some of the oldest trees in the world. By the end of his career, Young achieved the rank of Colonel, the highest rank at that time of an African American officer.

   False

   False | Incorrect

   | Incorrect

   | Incorrect

3. True or False: African American soldiers served as the first guardians of Glacier National Park, before the National Park Service was even founded.

   True

   True | Correct

   Unfortunately, this part of our history has nearly been forgotten. Segregated troops known as Buffalo Soldiers were active for more than two decades in the Montana region known as Glacier Park, where they built roads and facilities and protected wildlife. During the Great Fire of 1910, African American soldiers were called in to help put out the blaze.

   False

   False | Incorrect

   | Incorrect

   | Incorrect

4. Invented by George Washington Carver in the early 1900s, the innovative Jesup Wagon was:

   A mobile classroom designed to spread knowledge of science and sustainable agriculture.

   A mobile classroom designed to spread knowledge of science and sustainable agriculture. | Correct

   The Jesup Wagon was a mobile classroom which Carver used as a laboratory to teach farmers about conservation, science and sustainability. He urged struggling farmers to move away from cotton, which damaged the soil, to more sustainable crops like the peanut.

   A method of transporting loads of crops such as peanuts and soybeans.

   A method of transporting loads of crops such as peanuts and soybeans. | Incorrect

   An early mobile home.

   An early mobile home. | Incorrect

   A mobile storefront that offered food and other necessities to rural communities.

   A mobile storefront that offered food and other necessities to rural communities. | Incorrect

5. True or False: George Washington Carver, famous for inventing hundreds of new uses for the peanut, was a fan of composting.

   True

   True | Correct

   The famed chemist, inventor and humanitarian advised students and farmers about composting, crop rotation and nutrition.

   It was his passion for sustainability – and desire to help others – that led to his innovative work with the peanut. He developed more than 100 uses for the product – in food, around the house, and more – in order to encourage farmers to incorporate it into their crops.

   False

   False | Incorrect

   | Incorrect

   | Incorrect

6. African Americans were some of the millions of young men who went to work in the Civilian Conservation Corps. Created by President Roosevelt, this organization was known for:

   Planting an estimated 3 billion trees in North America

   Planting an estimated 3 billion trees in North America | Incorrect

   Helping fight fire, build fire towers and forge fire roads in forested land.

   Helping fight fire, build fire towers and forge fire roads in forested land. | Incorrect

   Saving lives and property during floods in the Ohio River and Mississippi River valleys.

   Saving lives and property during floods in the Ohio River and Mississippi River valleys. | Incorrect

   All of the Above

   All of the Above | Correct

   Hundreds of thousands of African Americans served in segregated CCC camp. Despite the hardship of discrimination, they helped achieve many conservation milestones.