Born into slavery, young Booker T. Washington heard about Hampton Institute in Virginia and decided he would get there somehow, even though it was about 500 miles away. In 1872 he set out with almost nothing, walking and begging rides. When he reached Richmond he was out of money and slept under a sidewalk. He finally showed up at Hampton dirty and hungry, and the head teacher wasn’t sure about him. After a while she told him the recitation room needed sweeping. He swept it three times and dusted every bench, table, and desk four times. She inspected it, couldn’t find a speck of dust, and said, “I guess you will do to enter this institution.” He called that sweeping his college examination.
