A Visit with Professor George F. Keyser (Ph.

D)
Two Alumnis Search for Retired Professor By Dennis Prather (B.S.E.E. '79) & Clarence Jones (B.S.E.E. '79)

Many engineering students who attended Howards School of Engineering between 1974 and 1989 will probably remember Professor of Electrical Engineering Dr. George Ficklin Keyser. The no nonsense, but fair Professor, who could ruin or bring elation at the end of a semester of Engineering Math, Network Analyses, or Strength of Materials retired from Howards School of Engineering in 1989. In 2010, Clarence, Sr. Technical Writer for IDirect Inc, returned to the DC Metro area. Clarence and myself, Intl. Engineering Project Manager for a US Corp, met soon after his arrival to the area and during conversions about school, Clarence mentioned that it would be nice to visit Dr. Keyser. That suggestion started our search. We had no idea where Dr. Keyser retired to, but thought that he might still be in the DC, Maryland or Virginia area. Starting in late 2010 through early 2011, we tried metro area telephone directories, on-line White Page and Google searches with no results. The search went cold until early October 2012, when I tried another Google search and up popped a new result.

A link to Scotia Manor, an estate in Amissville, VA, described the historical estate, its origin and in the last paragraph mentioned that A Dr. George Ficklin Keyser, retired Professor of Engineering from Howard University owned the land to the south of the Manor. The property was originally purchased by Dr. Keysers maternal grandfather, Strother Ficklin, in 1901 and has remained in the family since that time. Several generations of the Ficklin family are buried on the property. Fantastic found him! With the name of the town, state and that unique middle name we quickly found the phone number and address online. A phone call to the Dr. verified our search results and when asked if he minded if we visited, he pleasantly stated Sure come over! -and then proceeded to give very specific directions to his home. After we entered Amissville we would certainly need those specifics as we later found out. The fall foliage shown in brilliant arrays of colors as we drove out Rt. 211 from Warrenton, VA towards Skyline Drive on a beautiful, crisp October morning. We grew more excited when we passed the Amissville highway sign and within a couple of miles we made the right turn onto Rt. 643. Proceed slowly on 643 until you reach the white mailbox numbered 281, Dr. Keyser had stated during his phone conversation. After a mile or so on the narrow country road we spotted the white mailbox numbered 281.

~1~

Make a left turn off the road at the mailbox and keep the white fence to your right! Then proceed for about a half mile, Dr. Keyser had stated. We sat for a moment to ponder the directions as we looked down the long lane towards the woods and wondered if this could be right.

Dr. Keyser turned 80 years old this past September and is a healthy looking gentlemen, who maintains an active lifestyle chopping wood, maintaining the lawn, cooking and cleaning. He quickly recognized both Clarence and myself.

So, off we started slowly down the worn lane towards the tree line. At the bottom of the lane a private property gate was opened and we thought, this must be it! The Dr. obviously values his privacy!

Dr. Keyser built a large portion of his rustic home during his tenure at Howard University and moved in for good in 1995 following the death of his mother.

Another quarter mile up the rolling driveway we approached a clearing and finally saw Dr. Keyser, who came out to greet us.

This is certainly not a lifestyle that many could live today! No internet, flat screen TV, late model desktop or laptop PC! But, the Dr. seems to be very satisfied here and is very proud of the heritage of this land that belonged to his maternal grandfather, Strother Ficklin. His
~2~

home is modest with a large potbelly stove in the center of the first floor that provides most of the heat. The country aroma of the house reminded me of my grandmothers house when I was a young lad.

A visit upstairs to the Drs well used library showed a collection of old engineering books, journals and newspapers. His current readings and project on materials still indicate an active mind. Shown here with Dr. Keyser are Dennis Prather (l) and Clarence Jones (r).

Dr. Keyser told us the story of his family and showed us a photo of his grandfather, Strother Ficklins family. Dr. Keysers mother is the little girl in between her parents with the two long ponytails. The other three children in the front are his two uncles and aunt. The girl standing in the rear was adopted by his grandparents. His grandfather was born a slave in 1854, in Amissville. He was freed in 1865 and purchased 37 acres at $10.00 an acre in 1901. That was quite a sum of money in those days! And he earned it by making and selling molasses.

The visit to Dr. Keyser would not be complete without a hike back to the ruins of his grandparents home, where he reminisced about his childhood days spending the summers there with his grandparents. Dr. Keyser was certainly up to the hike, another two or three tenths of a mile further back in the woods behind his house. These are dense woods, but Dr. Keyser seemed magically drawn to the exact location of the old house up on a hill!

~3~

Overgrowth hides the old house until you are just about on it. It must have been built of sturdy wood to still stand, 111 years later!

Satisfied that his ancestors have been found, Dr. Keyser plans to install more durable markers in the future.

We worked our way up the hill in front of the old front porch where Dr. Keyser and his older brother would read to his grandmother who could neither read nor write.

The long walk back to the Drs house was filled with stories of his youth and we could clearly see that he loves this land and has no intention of leaving anytime soon! It really is a lesson for todays youth, many whom seem detached from their roots and drift aimlessly through life without a strong sense of purpose and family history. Dr. Keysers life has gone full circle and he now lives in the shadow of his ancestors, peacefully awaiting the day when he will rejoin them!

Dr. Keyser had heard through family tradition that his grandfather, grandmother, aunt and an unidentified family member were buried near the old house. After much investigation, he found the graves and marked with white pipes in a heavily overgrown area in the back of the house.

When we departed, we could only wonder if we would ever see him again!
~4~