The famous address excerpted in this recording (1908) - the only known recording of his voice - was originally delivered at the opening of the Cotton States and International Exposition in Atlanta, Georgia on September 18, 1895. Long known as "The Atlanta Compromise", it would have a substantial impact on race relations in America.

On the recording, Washington reads the first through the third paragraphs complete, skips the fourth, and closes in the middle of the fifth, with only minor alterations to the original published text.