W.E.B. DuBois (1868-1963) was born in Great Barrington and in 1895 was the first black man awarded a Ph.D. by Harvard. His hometown neighbors contributed to his undergraduate study at Fisk University in Nashville; despite becoming a citizen of the world, DuBois remained fond of his hometown throughout his long life.
He was a pioneer in the new academic field of sociology, was a co-founder of the N.A.A.C.P. and engaged in Civil Rights work throughout America and Africa. Chief among his legacy is his essay collection, Souls of Black Folk, the title of which is hinted at in the opening stanza of his poem, The Song of the Smoke:
I am the smoke king,
I am black.
I am swinging in the sky,
I am ringing worlds on high;
I am the thought of the throbbing mills,
I am the soul of the Soul toil kills,
I am the ripple of trading rills.
Up I’m curling from the sod,
I am whirling home to God.
I am the smoke king,
I am black.
W.E.B. DuBois resources online
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