About Meharry THE SALT WAGON STORY The Story of Meharry . . . An Act of Kindness In the 1820s, 16-year-old Samuel Meharry was hauling a load of salt through Kentucky when his wagon slid off the road into a muddy ditch. With rain and nightfall limiting his options, Samuel searched for help. He saw a modest cabin that was home to a black family recently freed from slavery. The family, still vulnerable to slave hunters paid to return freedmen to bondage, risked their freedom to give Meharry food and shelter for the night. At mornings light, they helped lift the wagon from the mud and Meharry continued his journey. The black familys act of kindness touched young Meharry so deeply that he vowed to repay it. I have no money now, he said as he departed, but, when I am able, I shall do something for your race. Tragically, history never recorded the name of the courageous black family, and perhaps their identity even receded in the mind of Samuel Meharry as he grew prosperous in the years that followed. Even so, 40 years later, as the Civil War ended and black citizens began their long struggle for rights guaranteed by the Constitution, Meharry seized an opportunity to redeem his vow. When leading Methodist clergymen and laymen organized the Freedmens Aid Society in August 1866, to elevate former slaves, intellectually and morally, Meharry acted. He and his four brothers Alexander, David, Hugh and Jesse, pledged their support to Central Tennessee Colleges emerging medical education program. With $30,000 in cash and real property, the Meharry brothers repaid the black familys Act of Kindness with one of their own. In 1876, they funded the Colleges Medical Department, which evolved over time into what we now know as Meharry Medical College. Today, the contemporary Salt Wagon image symbolizes those several acts of kindness and philanthropy and countless others performed by the Colleges loyal supporters. Use the links at the left to learn more about our mission, vision, and how to be a part of it.
Posted on: Sun, 27 Jul 2014 22:34:36 +0000
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