Benjamin banneker education

1731-1806

Who Was Benjamin Banneker?

A free Black man who owned a farm near Baltimore, Benjamin Banneker was largely self-educated in astronomy and mathematics. The 18^th century intellectual used his knowledge to create a series of almanacs in the 1790s. He also helped survey territory for the construction of the American capital city, Washington D.C. An early civil rights advocate, Banneker exchanged letters with Thomas Jefferson, politely challenging the then-Secretary of State to do what he could to ensure racial equality. Banneker died at age 74 in October 1806.

Quick Facts

FULL NAME: Benjamin Banneker
BORN: November 9, 1731
DIED: October 9, 1806
BIRTHPLACE: Ellicott’s Mills, Maryland
ASTROLOGICAL SIGN: Scorpio

Early Life and Education

Benjamin Banneker was born on November 9, 1731, in Ellicott’s Mills, Maryland—now known as Ellicott City. He was the son of an ex-slave named Robert and his wife, Mary Banneky. Mary was the daughter of an Englishwoman named Molly Welsh, a former indentured servant, and her husband, Bannka, an ex-slave whom she freed and who asserted that he came from tribal royalty in West Africa.

Because both of his parents were free, Benjamin escaped the wrath of slavery as well. He was taught to read by his maternal grandmother and, for a very short time, attended a small Quaker school. Primarily, Banneker was self-educated. He taught himself astronomy and accurately forecasted lunar and solar eclipses.

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One of his early accomplishments was constructing an irrigation system for the family farm. After his father’s death, Banneker ran his own farm for years, cultivating a business selling tobacco via crops.

Accomplishments: Almanacs, Capital Survey, and Clock

Banneker’s Clock

In 1753, Banneker was inspired to build his own clock after receiving a watch from an acquaintance. Banneker deconstructed the watch to examine its components and how they worked. After making drawings of each, he carved larger versions out of wood and ultimately built a clock that stayed accurate for more than 50 years.

As a result, Banneker was often asked for assistance in repairing watches, clocks, and sundials. The Banneker Inc. watch and clock company is named after the 18^th century intellectual.

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Washington D.C. Land Survey

Banneker’s talents and intelligence eventually came to the attention of the Ellicott family, entrepreneurs who had made a name and fortune by building a series of gristmills in the Baltimore area in the 1770s. George Ellicott had a large personal library and loaned Banneker numerous books on astronomy and other fields. Using mathematical calculations, Banneker accurately predicted his first solar eclipse.

In 1791, Andrew Ellicott, George’s cousin, hired Banneker to assist in surveying territory for the nation’s capital city. The area eventually became Washington, D.C. Banneker primarily worked in the observatory tent using a zenith sector to record the movement of the stars. According to the White House Historical Association, both President George Washington and Secretary of State Thomas Jefferson knew of Banneker’s involvement in the survey. However, due to a sudden illness, Banneker was only able to work for Ellicott for about three months.

Almanacs

Banneker’s true acclaim, however, came from his almanacs, which he published for six consecutive years during the later years of his life, between 1792 and 1797. These handbooks included his own astronomical calculations as well as opinion pieces, literature, and medical and tidal information, with the latter particularly useful to fishermen. Outside of his almanacs, Banneker also published information on bees and calculated the cycle of the 17-year locust.

Letter to Thomas Jefferson

Banneker’s accomplishments extended into other realms as well, including civil rights. In 1791, Thomas Jefferson was secretary of state and Banneker considered the respected Virginian, though a slaveholder, to also be open to view African Americans as more than slaves. Thus, he wrote Jefferson a letter hoping that he would “readily embrace every opportunity to eradicate that train of absurd and false ideas and opinions which so generally prevail with respect to us.” To further support his point, Banneker included a handwritten manuscript of an almanac for 1792, containing his astronomical calculations.

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In his letter, Banneker acknowledged he was “of the African race” and a free man. He recognized that he was taking “a liberty” writing to Jefferson, which would be unacceptable considering “the almost general prejudice and prepossession which is so prevalent in the world against those of my complexion.” Banneker then respectfully chided Jefferson and other patriots for their hypocrisy, enslaving people like him while fighting the British for their own independence.

Jefferson quickly acknowledged Banneker’s letter, writing a response. He told Banneker that he took “the liberty of sending your almanac to Monsieur de Condorcet [secretary of the French Academy of Sciences]... because I considered it as a document to which your whole colour had a right for their justification against the doubts which have been entertained of them.” Below is the letter from Jefferson to Banneker dated August 30, 1791, from the Library of Congress:

I thank you sincerely for your letter of the 19th. instant and for the Almanac it contained. no body wishes more than I do to see such proofs as you exhibit, that nature has given to our Black brethren, talents equal to those of the other colours of men, and; that the appearance of a want of them is owing merely to the degraded condition of their existence both in Africa & America. I can add with truth that no body wishes more ardently to see a good system commenced for raising the condition both of their body & mind to what it ought to be, as fast as the imbecillity of their present existence, and other circumstance which cannot be neglected, will admit. I have taken the liberty of sending your almanac to Monsieur de Condorcet, Secretary of the Academy of sciences at Paris, and member of the Philanthropic society because I considered it as a document to which your whole colour had a right for their justification against the doubts which have been entertained of them. I am with great esteem, Sir, Your most obedt. humble servt. Th. Jefferson

Banneker published Jefferson’s letter alongside his original piece of correspondence in his 1793 almanac. Banneker’s outspokenness with regard to the issue of slavery earned him the widespread support of the abolitionist societies in Maryland and Pennsylvania, both of which helped him publish his almanac.

Later Years

Never married nor a father, Banneker continued to conduct his scientific studies throughout his life. By 1797, sales of his almanac had declined and he discontinued publication. In the following years, he sold off much of his farm to the Ellicotts and others to make ends meet, continuing to live in his log cabin.

Death

On October 9, 1806, after his usual morning walk, Banneker died in his sleep, just a month short of his 75^th birthday. In accordance with his wishes, all the items that had been on loan from his neighbor, George Ellicott, were returned by Banneker’s nephew. Also included was Banneker’s astronomical journal, providing future historians one of the few records of his life known to exist.

He was laid to rest at the family burial ground a few yards from his house on October 11. During the services, mourners were startled to see his house had caught on fire, quickly burning down. Nearly everything was destroyed, including his personal effects, furniture, and famously accurate wooden clock. The cause of the fire was never determined.

Legacy

Banneker’s life was remembered in an obituary in the Federal Gazette of Philadelphia and has continued to be written about over the ensuing two centuries. With limited materials having been preserved related to his life and career, however, there’s been a fair amount of legend and misinformation presented.

In 1972, scholar Sylvio A. Bedini published an acclaimed biography on the 18th century icon: The Life of Benjamin Banneker: The First African-American Man of Science. A revised edition appeared in 1999. Banneker was also the subject of a 1979 docudrama The Man Who Loved the Stars, starring Ossie Davis as Banneker.

The U.S. Postal Service featured Banneker on a 15-cent stamp in 1980 as part of its Black Heritage Series. Started in 1978 and continuing through 2017, the series was created to celebrate Black Americans and the vital role they have played in U.S. history. Other individuals featured in the series include Harriet Tubman, Martin Luther King Jr., Bessie Coleman, Langston Hughes, Thurgood Marshall, and Jackie Robinson. On his stamp, Banneker is seen using a surveying device in the foreground with his portrait appearing behind.

A number of schools bear Banneker’s name, including Benjamin Banneker Academic High School in Washington, D.C.; the Benjamin Banneker Academy for Community Development in Brooklyn, New York; and Benjamin Banneker High School in College Park, Georgia.

The Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum in Catonsville, Maryland, which features a replica of his log cabin and showcases his life story. Additionally, the Banneker-Douglas Museum in Annapolis serves as Maryland’s official museum of African American heritage.

Quotes

• The color of the skin is in no way connected with strength of the mind or intellectual powers.
• I am annoyed to find that the subject of my race is so much stressed. The work is either correct or it is not. In this case, I believe it to be perfect.
  

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