George Eastman He was a high school dropout, judged "not especially gifted" when measured against the academic standards of the day. He was poor, but even as a young man, he took it upon himself to support his widowed mother and two sisters, one of whom was severely handicapped. He began his business career as a 14-year old office boy in an insurance company and followed that with work as a clerk in a local bank.He was George Eastman, and his ability to overcome financial adversity, his gift for organization and management, and his lively and inventive mind made him a successful entrepreneur by his mid-twenties, and enabled him to direct his Eastman Kodak Company to the forefront of American industry. |
George Eastman. | But building a multinational corporation and emerging as one of the nation's most important industrialists required dedication and sacrifice. It did not come easily. | To learn more about Eastman and how he helped bring photography and images into our daily lives, read on and also watch this brief history of his life and Kodak's early years. |
BoyhoodThe youngest of three children, George Eastman was born to Maria Kilbourn and George Washington Eastman on July 12, 1854 in the village of Waterville, some 20 miles southwest of Utica, in upstate New York. The house on the old Eastman homestead, where his father was born and where George spent his early years, has since been moved to the Genesee Country Museum in Mumford, N.Y., outside of Rochester.When George was five years old, his father moved the family to Rochester. There the elder Eastman devoted his energy to establishing Eastman Commercial College. Then tragedy struck. George's father died, the college failed and the family became financially distressed.George continued school until he was 14. Then, forced by family circumstances, he had to find employment. His first job, as a messenger boy with an insurance firm, paid $3 a week. A year later, he became office boy for another insurance firm. Through his own initiative, he soon took charge of policy filing and even wrote policies. His pay increased to $5 per week.But, even with that increase, his income was not enough to meet family expenses. He studied accounting at home evenings to get a better paying job.In 1874, after five years in the insurance business, he was hired as a junior clerk at the Rochester Savings Bank. His salary tripled -- to more than $15 a week.Trials of an Amateur When Eastman was 24, he made plans for a vacation to Santo Domingo. When a co-worker suggested he make a record of the trip, Eastman bought a photographic outfit with all the paraphernalia of the wet plate days.The camera was as big as a microwave oven and needed a heavy tripod. And he carried a tent so that he could spread photographic emulsion on glass plates before exposing them, and develop the exposed plates before they dried out. There were chemicals, glass tanks, a heavy plate holder, and a jug of water. The complete outfit "was a pack-horse load," as he described it. Learning how to use it to take pictures cost $5.Eastman did not make the Santo Domingo trip. But he did become completely absorbed in photography and sought to simplify the complicated process. |
A self-portrait on experimental film. |
He read in British magazines that photographers were making their own gelatin emulsions. Plates coated with this emulsion remained sensitive after they were dry and could be exposed at leisure. Using a formula taken from one of these British journals, Eastman began making gelatin emulsions.He worked at the bank during the day and experimented at home in his mother's kitchen at night. His mother said that some nights Eastman was so tired he couldn't undress, but slept on a blanket on the floor beside the kitchen stove.After three years of photographic experiments, Eastman had a formula that worked. By 1880, he had not only invented a dry plate formula, but had patented a machine for preparing large numbers of the plates. He quickly recognized the possibilities of making dry plates for sale to other photographers.Birth of a Company In April 1880, Eastman leased the third floor of a building on State Street in Rochester, and began to manufacture dry plates for sale. One of his first purchases was a second-hand engine priced at $125."I really needed only a one horse-power," he later recalled. "This was a two horse-power, but I thought perhaps business would grow up to it. It was worth a chance, so I took it."As his young company grew, it faced total collapse at least once when dry plates in the hands of dealers went bad. Eastman recalled them and replaced them with a good product. "Making good on those plates took our last dollar," he said. "But what we had left was more important -- reputation." |
Eastman's first office was on the third floor of this building on State Street, in Rochester. |
"The idea gradually dawned on me," he later said, "that what we were doing was not merely making dry plates, but that we were starting out to make photography an everyday affair." Or as he described it more succinctly "to make the camera as convenient as the pencil." Eastman's experiments were directed to the use of a lighter and more flexible support than glass. His first approach was to coat the photographic emulsion on paper and then load the paper in a roll holder. The holder was used in view cameras in place of the holders for glass plates.The first film advertisements in 1885 stated that "shortly there will be introduced a new sensitive film which it is believed will prove an economical and convenient substitute for glass dry plates both for outdoor and studio work."This system of photography using roll holders was immediately successful. However, paper was not entirely satisfactory as a carrier for the emulsion because the grain of the paper was likely to be reproduced in the photo.Eastman's solution was to coat the paper with a layer of plain, soluble gelatin, and then with a layer of insoluble light-sensitive gelatin. After exposure and development, the gelatin bearing the image was stripped from the paper, transferred to a sheet of clear gelatin, and varnished with collodion -- a cellulose solution that forms a tough, flexible film.As he perfected transparent roll film and the roll holder, Eastman changed the whole direction of his work and established the base on which his success in amateur photography would be built.He later said: "When we started out with our scheme of film photography, we expected that everybody who used glass plates would take up films. But we found that the number which did so was relatively small. In order to make a large business we would have to reach the general public."Advertising Eastman's faith in the importance of advertising, both to the company and to the public, was unbounded. The very first Kodak products were advertised in leading papers and periodicals of the day -- with ads written by Eastman himself. Eastman coined the slogan, "you press the button, we do the rest," when he introduced the Kodak camera in 1888 and within a year, it became a well-known phrase. Later, with advertising managers and agencies carrying out his ideas, magazines, newspapers, displays and billboards bore the Kodak banner. Space was taken at world expositions, and the "Kodak Girl," with the style of her clothes and the camera she carried changing every year, smiled engagingly at photographers everywhere. In 1897, the word "Kodak" sparkled from an electric sign on London's Trafalgar Square -- one of the first such signs to be used in advertising. |
An early ad featuring a slogan coined by Eastman. | The word "Kodak" was first registered as a trademark in 1888. There has been some fanciful speculation, from time to time, on how the name was originated. But the plain truth is that Eastman invented it out of thin air.He explained: "I devised the name myself. The letter 'K' had been a favorite with me -- it seems a strong, incisive sort of letter. It became a question of trying out a great number of combinations of letters that made words starting and ending with 'K.' The word 'Kodak' is the result." Kodak's distinctive yellow trade dress, which Eastman selected, is widely known throughout the world and is one of the company's more valued assets.Thanks to Eastman's inventive genius, anyone could now take pictures with a handheld camera simply by pressing a button. He made photographers of us all.Benefiting the Employee Beyond his inventive genius, Eastman blended human and democratic qualities, with remarkable foresight, into the building of his business. He believed employees should have more than just good wages -- a way of thinking that was far ahead of management people of his era.Early in his business, Eastman began planning for "dividends on wages" for employees. His first act, in 1899, was the distribution of a substantial sum of his own money -- an outright gift -- to each person who worked for him. |
Camera manufacturing in the 1890's. |
Later he set up a "Wage Dividend," in which each employee benefited above his or her wages in proportion to the yearly dividend on the company stock. The Wage Dividend was an innovation, and represented a large part of the distribution of the company's net earnings.Eastman felt that the prosperity of an organization was not necessarily due to inventions and patents, but more to workers' goodwill and loyalty, which in turn were enhanced by forms of profit sharing.In 1919, Eastman gave one-third of his own holdings of company stock -- then worth $10 million -- to his employees. Still later came the fulfillment of what he felt was a responsibility to employees with the establishment of retirement annuity, life insurance, and disability benefit plans. With these benefits, and the Wage Dividend, employees could confidently look forward to a more secure future.Carl W. Ackerman, a biographer, writing in 1932, said: "Mr. Eastman was a giant in his day. The social philosophy, which he practiced in building his company, was not only far in advance of the thinking during his lifetime, but it will be years before it is generally recognized and accepted."Giving Away His FortuneEastman is almost as well known for his philanthropy as he is for his pioneering work in photography. In this field, as in others, he put the direction of an enthusiastic amateur to work.He began giving to nonprofit institutions when his salary was $60 a week -- with a donation of $50 to the young and struggling Mechanics Institute of Rochester, now the Rochester Institute of Technology.He was an admirer of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology because he had hired some of its graduates, who had become his best assistants. This admiration, after thorough study, was translated into a handsome gift to M.I.T., eventually reaching $20 million. It was given anonymously from a "Mr. Smith," and for several years the identity of mysterious "Mr. Smith" was speculated about, even finding expression in a popular M.I.T. song.Dental clinics were also of great interest to Eastman. He devised complete plans and financial backing for a $2.5 million dental clinic for Rochester. He then started a large-scale, remedial dental program for children. Dental clinics were also given to London, Paris, Rome, Brussels and Stockholm. When asked why he favored dental clinics, he replied, "I get more results for my money than in any other philanthropic scheme. It is a medical fact that children can have a better chance in life with better looks, better health and more vigor if the teeth, nose, throat and mouth are taken proper care of at the crucial time of childhood."Eastman loved music and wanted others to enjoy the beauty and pleasure of music. He established and supported the Eastman School of Music, a theatre, and a symphony orchestra. "It is fairly easy to employ skillful musicians. It is impossible to buy appreciation of music. Yet without a large body of people who get joy out of it, any attempt to develop musical resources of any city is doomed to failure," he said. So his plan had a practical formula for exposing the public to music -- with the result that the people of Rochester have for decades supported their own philharmonic orchestra.Interest in hospitals and dental clinics had grown with Eastman's work and study of the field. He promoted and brought to fruition a program to develop a medical school and hospital at the University of Rochester, which became as nationally prominent as the university's music school. Rochester is filled with Eastman landmarks that contribute to the enrichment of community life. His sincere concern for the education of African Americans brought gifts to the Hampton and the Tuskegee Institutes. One day in 1924, Eastman signed away $30 million to the University of Rochester, M.I.T., Hampton and Tuskegee. As he laid down the pen he said, "Now I feel better."In explaining these large gifts, he said, "The progress of the world depends almost entirely upon education. I selected a limited number of recipients because I wanted to cover certain kinds of education, and felt I could get results with those named quicker and more directly than if the money were spread." Eastman often made the beneficiary match his gift in some way, so the institution would have the confidence of standing on its own. For him, great wealth brought the greater opportunity to serve.Leisure Hours Eastman was reticent and shunned publicity. It seems paradoxical that the man whose name is synonymous with photography should have fewer photographs taken of him than many other outstanding leaders of his time. He could walk down the main street of Rochester without being recognized. Eastman lived his philosophy, "What we do during our working hours determines what we have; what we do in our leisure hours determines what we are." A tough competitor, hard-bitten and practical in business, he was gentle and congenial at home or in the field of outdoor enjoyment. |
George Eastman relaxing in his library. |
In his yearly visits to Europe, he toured the art galleries methodically -- even cycling from place to place. By the time he could afford masterpieces, he had learned enough to say, "I never buy a painting until I have lived with it in my home." The result: his home became the showplace of one of the finest private collections of paintings.The Vision of a PioneerHe was a modest, unassuming man... an inventor, a marketer, a global visionary, a philanthropist, and a champion of inclusion.Eastman died by his own hand on March 14, 1932 at the age of 77. Plagued by progressive disability resulting from a hardening of the cells in the lower spinal cord, Eastman became increasingly frustrated at his inability to maintain an active life, and set about putting his estate in order."Eastman was a stupendous factor in the education of the modern world," said an editorial in the New York Times following his death. "Of what he got in return for his great gifts to the human race he gave generously for their good; fostering music, endowing learning, supporting science in its researches and teaching, seeking to promote health and lessen human ills, helping the lowliest in their struggle toward the light, making his own city a center of the arts and glorifying his own country in the eyes of the world." |
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Biographical Highlights
George Eastman (1854-1932) was a self-motivated inventor, entrepreneur, and philanthropist who revolutionized the photography and film industries. George founded the Eastman Kodak Company after inventing a chemical emulsion and machine to apply the emulsion to dry plates, thus making the taking of pictures outside of a studio much easier. The process eliminated the need for extensive equipment out in the field. These and other inventions produced by his company were the beginning of modern photography and the motion picture industry.
Naturally, with this success came a good deal of wealth and an opportunity for Eastman to decide how to use it. Luckily, Eastman's roots provided a strong commitment to philanthropy from before his birth, starting with the participation of his grandparents, parents, aunts and uncles in the Underground Railroad (Brayer 1996, 12). Committed to education, Eastman's father founded a college that would serve as a model for later business schools. George made his own early donations at Sunday school and to those less fortunate than he. Ultimately, with wealth, Eastman made unprecedented donations to the University of Rochester, M.I.T., Tuskegee Institute, hospitals, dental health clinics, an orchestra hall, and music school in his hometown, and employees of Eastman Kodak Company.

Historic Roots
George Eastman was born on July 12, 1854, to Maria Kilbourn and George Washington Eastman in the village of Waterville, New York. George's parents were both raised in abolitionist homes that were active parts of the Underground Railroad. George's father was an ambitious man with an entrepreneurial spirit. George W. founded Eastman Mercantile College in Rochester, New York, in 1842. This school was a prototype for later business schools (Garraty and Carnes 1999, 248). George W. also had a successful nursery business (Brayer 1996, 18).
George endured several family tragedies in his youth. When he was age seven, his father died. Maria, George's Mother, was left with very little. George W. had sold the nursery years earlier and her late husband's partner controlled the business school. Maria turned to taking in borders to provide for her family (Ibid., 19). George resented that his mother had to cook and clean for strangers to provide for her family. One of Eastman's two older sisters, Katie, was an invalid because of polio. She died when he was sixteen. Katie was the recipient of some of George's earliest philanthropy - he bought her things and paid for her to take carriage rides (Ibid., 22).
George was educated in both private and public schools until he dropped out at the age of thirteen to get a job and help with the family expenses (Traub 1997, 104). He first worked as a messenger boy at an insurance company. Later, he began selling insurance. Then, after studying accounting at night at home, he began work as a junior clerk at Rochester Savings Bank (Kodak 2001). By the time he was hired at the Bank, George had already begun making charitable donations. "Account books from 1868 to 1874 list entries such as contributions to his Sunday school and 'the poor unfortunate who lost his fingers'" (Garraty and Carnes 1999, 249). Many of these early experiences take on greater import when viewed in light of his later philanthropy.
It was also while Eastman worked at Rochester Savings Bank that he became interested in photography. He had noticed that many of the bank's wealthier customers made a significant amount of their wealth in real estate and decided to begin similar investing. One of his co-workers, who had been part of Powell's historic trip through the Grand Canyon, suggested that he take photographs of land that he intended to purchase, especially on a trip to Santo Domingo that Eastman was planning (Brayer 1996, 24).
Though George never went to Santo Domingo, he did take the advice of his co-worker and purchased a camera to document land purchases. Yet, he struggled with the difficulty of the equipment available at the time. Even when he mastered the technique of wet plate photography, he was annoyed by the need to carry an entire darkroom with him to take pictures in the field. Eastman was in the habit of reading European scientific journals about photography when, in 1878, he read about a new type of photography that used dry plates. The process thereby reduced the amount of equipment needed for outdoor photography (Garraty and Carnes 1999, 248).
At the end of his day at the bank, George began working in his mother's kitchen, attempting to develop his own formula for the coating needed to produce dry plates. By 1879, he had developed a very high quality emulsion, the light sensitive chemical mixture that makes photography possible. He also invented a machine for applying the emulsion to the glass plates. He patented the machine in Britain and began the company that would eventually become Eastman Kodak Company (Kodak 2001). This company, and the inventions that Eastman and his employees developed, created both the modern photography industry and, in collaboration with Thomas Edison, the motion picture industry (Traub 1997, 110). The Eastman Kodak Company made George Eastman one of the wealthiest men of his day.
Eastman had no children and never married. For this reason, he felt free to donate his entire fortune to the charities in which he believed. Elizabeth Brayer, one Eastman's biographers, estimates that Eastman donated 125 million dollars to these charities. This level of giving made Eastman one of the four largest donors in history to that point (Capital Research Center 2002). Despite this level of giving, Eastman's philanthropy is largely unknown outside of the institutions to which he donated.
This lack of recognition is partly due to Eastman, who worked hard to maintain his privacy. In one of the now infamous stories of Eastman protecting his privacy, George donated over $22 million in cash and Kodak stock to Massachusetts Institute of Technology over a period of eight years, on the condition that his donations remain anonymous. Richard Cockburn Maclaurin, then head of M.I.T., invented the name "Mr. Smith" for the anonymous donor to help protect Eastman's privacy. For eight years the hounds were out and yet unable to discover the identity of the elusive Mr. Smith despite many clues given by Maclaurin himself. Mr. Smith was immortalized in song by M.I.T. students at the time (Ibid.).
Finally, in 1918 George pledged an additional $4 million in Kodak stock to M.I.T. and consented to the revealing of Mr. Smith's identity, both on the condition that other donors match his donation by December 31, 1919. Maclaurin raised the money; but the effort took a toll on his health and, in December 1919, he contracted pneumonia. The speech he was to give on January 10 of the following year had to be given by others. Unfortunately, Maclaurin died the next week (Ibid.).
Eastman developed a spinal cord disease later in life that made it increasingly difficult to maintain his active lifestyle and made him increasingly dependant on others (Traub 1997, 117). He set his effects in order and, on March 14, 1932, asked over a small group of friends to witness some changes to his will. After a friendly chat with the group, at seventy-seven years of age, George Eastman asked them to leave and retired to his room where he placed a towel over his chest and shot himself through the heart (Brayer 1996, 523).

Importance
Eastman's importance to philanthropy is expansive. He provided contrast to the Rockefellers and Carnegies, the only other donors of his magnitude at that time. Where they endowed foundations and made great noise with their philanthropy, Eastman gave away all of his money personally and went to great pains to reduce the notoriety of his gifts. Speaking in 1923, George Eastman explained,
"If a man has wealth, he has to make a choice, because there is the money heaping up. He can keep it together in a bunch, and then leave it for others to administer after he is dead. Or he can get into action and have fun, while he is still alive. I prefer getting into action and adapting it to human needs, and making the plan work." (Capital Research Center 2002)
He deplored the passing on of wealth, saying that those who passed wealth to children created "wastrels, race-track touts and whoremongers of their sons and gilded parasites of their daughters" (Ibid.).
Where other industrialists often made their money at the expense of their employees, Eastman worked in partnership with his employees and compensated them in ways that others of his day would never have done. He even made the first worker dividend payments out of his own wealth and not the company coffers. Later, he would give $10 million worth of Kodak stock to his employees (McGraw-Hill 1973).
Eastman was also a philanthropist who involved himself in the details of the organizations he funded, requiring that the buildings he funded have very little ornamentation to avoid wasting money. In the hospital associated with the University of Rochester, that he helped fund, he insisted that the corners of the stairwells be painted bright white because he believed that "only a hardened sinner would spit in a white corner" (Capital Research Center 2002).
In addition, Eastman focused almost exclusively on causes that had direct local impact and only on causes that had affected his life directly. According to Blake McKelvey, the chief historian for Eastman's hometown, Rochester was largely remade in George's image because of his concentration on local causes (Ibid.). This is one of the reasons that Rochester, a relatively small upstate New York town, has maintained its prominence on the world's stage even in the shadow of the big city to its south.

Ties to the Philanthropic Sector
George Eastman participated in the philanthropic sector for most of his life, becoming one of the largest American donors of his time. Eastman's philanthropy focused on causes that had a direct impact on his life. He did not make donations to a large number of organizations, as compared to his contemporaries. He did not set up a perpetually endowed foundation, as did others. Nor did he publicize his philanthropy. For these reasons, primarily, he is relatively unknown as a philanthropist, despite the enormity of the donations he made.
An example of a cause in which Eastman became involved, stemmed from a boyhood problem. George and his mother both had trouble with their teeth. In 1917, one of George's first philanthropic endeavors, after making his fortune in the photography industry, was to set-up free dental clinics in Rochester and New York that served both children and adults. He later established such clinics in London, Paris, Stockholm, Brussels, and Rome, all cities where his Kodak Company had factories (Garraty and Carnes 1999, 250).
At a very personal level, George's sister Katie provided the inspiration for future gifts to health facilities. She was very precious to him and, yet, she spent much of her life with severe medical difficulties and died while still young. Katie's difficulties, along with those of Maria, George's mother, and George W. can explain why millions of George's dollars were donated to the University of Rochester's medical school and its affiliated hospitals.
Similarly, George's parents had placed great importance on education, with George's father even founding a prototype for America's first business schools. Despite what others perceived as a dislike of his father, and his own decision to leave school at an early age, George's largest gifts were made primarily to institutions of higher learning. Eastman is known to have given $54.5 million to the University of Rochester in his hometown. He also gave in excess of $26.5 million to M.I.T. In fact, in a single year, 1924, Eastman donated $30 million to four institutions of higher learning: University of Rochester, M.I.T., Hampton Institute, and Tuskegee Institute (Capital Research Center 2002). He is also known to have given monetary donations and equipment to the Mechanics' Institute (now Rochester Institute of Technology) as early as 1889. Ironically, Eastman was making monetary donations when his salary was only sixty dollars a week (Kodak 2001). In further support for excellence in education, Eastman created a professorship of American studies at Oxford University (Garraty and Carnes 1999, 250).
George also loved music from a young age (Brayer 1996, 21). He donated vast amounts of his wealth to create the Eastman School of Music and helped form the Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra (now the Eastman Rochester Philharmonic). Within the Eastman School of Music, George even dedicated a concert hall, Kilbourn Hall, to his mother Maria Kilbourn (Kodak 2001).
In the broader context of philanthropy, his institution of employee dividends and profit sharing, life insurance, retirement annuities, disability plans and other employee-focused benefits set him apart from the other major industrialists of his day. They, unlike George, had no such concern for their employees and did not bring their philanthropy into their own factories as did Eastman (Garraty and Carnes 1999, 249).

Key Related Ideas
Among the many important topics related to the life and philanthropy of George Eastman are: Worker's Rights, invention, anti-trust legislation, patent and copyright law, photography, inheritance, dental technology, music appreciation, cinema, international business, Tuskegee Institute, African-American education, school dropouts, single parenting, optics, England, Dominican Republic, Powell's trip through the Grand Canyon, foundations, women's education, early women's employment, endowments, the Underground Railroad, hard work, scientific research and journals, chemistry, advertising, and universities.

Important People Related to the Topic
Edward Bausch: Son of John Jacob Bausch and inventor of many of the products produced by his father's company. These products were purchased by Eastman and other clients. Edward became a close friend of George and was a common collaborator in both Eastman's philanthropic efforts and his efforts to reform local Rochester politics.
John Jacob Bausch and Henry Lomb: Partners in the Bausch and Lomb Optical Company. Both men were recent immigrants from Germany when they formed the company that would supply lenses and other parts for Kodak cameras from 1883 until 1912.
Charles Bennett: British researcher whose development of a method of dry plate photography was the catalyst for George Eastman's early success.
Thomas Edison: Fellow inventor and collaborator in the development of motion pictures.
Henry Alvah Strong: One of Eastman's mother's former boarders. Strong was later the first of Eastman's partners. He provided the financing to start the first Eastman Company and became one of George Eastman's closest friends and advisors.

Related Nonprofit Organizations
The Eastman Dental Institute, named after George Eastman, is dedicated to "the advancement of orofacial health care sciences, so as to benefit society by research, scholarship, and education of the highest international standard." Information about the Institute's educational opportunities, research, patient care, and various departments can be found at http://www.eastman.ucl.ac.uk.
The Eastman Rochester Philharmonic was begun in 1922 by George Eastman. Its mission is "to perform and present a broad range of quality music; attract, entertain and educate audiences with superior musical performances; maintain and build the Orchestra's national reputation; and enhance the reputation of the Rochester community as a place in which to live, work, play, visit and learn." Visit the Web site at http://www.rpo.org for information on the Philharmonic's current season, its musicians, community outreach programs, and its history.
Eastman School of Music, located at the University of Rochester, was founded by George Eastman with philosophy that professional musicians have an opportunity to receive an education in a rich environment. Information about its programs, history, institutes, departments, faculty, community programs and more can be found at http://www.rochester.edu/eastman. Naturally, the University of Rochester, itself, was also a recipient of generous donations from Eastman during his lifetime.
Hampton Institute (now called Hampton University) was established in 1868 to provide African Americans with an education, leadership and job skills to help prepare them to lead and teach others during the Reconstruction. The school, located in Virginia, offered an education to Native Americans at a time when they were considered of lower status than blacks. In 1984 it formally took on the structure of a university (http://www.hamptonu.edu).
Massachusetts Institute of Technology is a world-renowned research and technology institution. Its mission is "to advance knowledge and educate students in science, technology, and other areas of scholarship that will best serve the nation and the world in the 21st century" (http://web.mit.edu).
Tuskegee Institute (now Tuskegee University) is most well-known for the leadership of its founder, Booker T. Washington, and the accomplishments of an alumni, George Washington Carver. During World War II, the Tuskegee campus was used as a training ground for black pilots because it had an excellent aeronautics engineering program. The pilots became known as the Tuskegee Airmen. Learn more about the university's programs and history at http://www.tuskegee.edu/.

Related Web Sites
American Experience's "The Wizard of Photography" is featured on the Public Broadcasting Service Web site. Information on the television program's episode focusing on George Eastman includes a timeline, a teacher's companion guide, and coverage of people and events related to his life. Find these resources at http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/amex/eastman/.
The Web site of the George Eastman House International Museum of Photography and Film is found at http://www.eastmanhouse.org/. A nonprofit museum, located on what "was the urban estate of George Eastman (1854-1932), founder of Eastman Kodak Company. Opened in 1949, the Museum includes Mr. Eastman's restored house and gardens, an archives building and research center, galleries, two theaters, and an education center. The Museum displays the art, technology, and impact of photography and motion pictures over 150 years, and interprets the life of Mr. Eastman, an influential industrialist and philanthropist." The Web site provides a section "About George Eastman."
The Kodak Company Web site, at http://www.kodak.com/eknec/PageQuerier.jhtml?pq-path=2/6868&pq-locale=en_US&_requestid=20284, contains a full range of information about the company. In the "History of Kodak" section, along with histories of the company, there is a short biography of George Eastman.

Bibliography and Internet Sources
Brayer, Elizabeth. George Eastman: A Biography. Baltimore: The John Hopkins University Press, 1996. ISBN: 0801852633.
Briggs, Asa. A Dictionary of Twentieth Century Biography. New York: Oxford University Press, 1992.
Capital Research Center. George Eastman: America's Unknown Giant of Philanthropy. [cited 6 November 2002]. Currently unavailable from http://www.capitalresearch.org/publications/alternatives/1997/april.htm [no longer available].
DeVinney, James A. In My Case Music. Produced and directed by James A. DeVinney. 57 min. Green Light Productions, 2000. Videocassette.
Garraty, John A. and Mark C. Carnes. American National Biography. Vol. 5. New York: Oxford University Press, 1999.
Kodak. History of Kodak: George Eastman... the Man. [updated 14 September 2001; cited 19 September 2002]. Available from http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/kodakHistory/eastmanTheMan.shtml. Kodak. History of Kodak: Introduction. [updated 14 September 2001; cited 19 September 2002]. Available from http://www.kodak.com/US/en/corp/kodakHistory/.
Magnusson, Magnus and Rosemary Goring. Cambridge Biographical Dictionary. Cambridge: Press Syndicate of the University of Cambridge, 1990.
The McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of World Biography. Vol. 5. New York: McGraw Hill, 1973.
Traub, Carol G. Profiles: Philanthropists and Their Legacies. Minneapolis: The Oliver Press, 1997. ISBN: 1881508420.