Telisa Poole
Jan-18-07
Benjamin Banneker was born November 9, 1731. Benjamin Banneker grew up on a family farm near Baltimore Maryland. Robert Bannakay is Benjamin Banneker’s father and Mary Banneky is his mother. Benjamin Banneker was a free African American mathematician, astronomer, clockmaker, and publisher. For many years, he has been referred to as the first Negro man of science.
Benjamin Bannek
er who’s real name was originally Benjamin Bannakay was a self-taught, mathematician and astronomer at the time when most African Americans were slaves. His grandmother taught him to read using her bible lesson book, because there was no schools for boys to attend. They finally opened a school named Quarter where he attended. That is when the schoolmaster changed his name to Banneker. At this school, he learned to write and do simple arithmetic. Although he only attended elementary school for a few semesters, because he had to quit going to help his parents on their family farm. He taught himself algebra, geometry, trigonometry, logarithms, and astronomy needed to become an astronomer. He also learned on his own how to use a compass, sector, and other astronomical devices.
At age 21, Benjamin started to show just how intelligent he really was, because the most remarkable thing had happened. He had seen a patent watch. The watch belonged to a man named Josef Levi. Banneker was so amused with the watch because he had never seen anything like it before. Josef Levi seen how Fascinated Benjamin Banneker was and gave him the watch. Ben took apart a watch then put it back together to see how it worked and, carved a similar watch piece out of wood, and made a clock of his own. It was the first clock to be made in the United States of America. This clock was so precise it struck every hour, on the hour, for forty years. He gained very little fame from making clocks. His work on the clock led him to repair watches, clocks and sundials.
Banneker's parents died, leaving him the farm since his two sisters had married and moved away. Banneker built a work cabin with a skylight to study the stars and make calculations. Working mostly alone, with very few visitors. Banneker began his study of astronomy at age 58. He was able to make the calculations to predict
solar and
lunar eclipses and to gather information on
ephemeris for the Benjamin Banneker's Almanac, which an anti-slavery society published from
1792 through
1797. He became known as the Sable Astronomer.
In 1791, Benjamin Banneker had received an important appointment to assist in the survey of the lines of the Federal Territory that is a ten-mile square now known as the District of Columbia. Because of illness and the difficulties in helping to survey at the age of 59 Benjamin left the boundary survey in April 1791, and returned to his home at Ellicott Mills to work on his ephemeris. He wrote an almanac and ephemeris from 1791 through 1802, some were published and widely distributed in Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and Virginia. Benjamin Banneker was also a social activist; he wrote a long
letter to Secretary of State, which was Thomas Jefferson in response to Jefferson's assertion in a publication that the Black races of people were void of mental endowments. He attached his first Almanac as evidence that an African-American could be a distinguished scientist. Jefferson was real impressed with Banneker's arguments, and with the almanac that Banneker had prepared computations of the positions of celestial bodies at regular intervals, that he told Banneker he considered it a document to which the whole race had a right for its reason against the doubts which have been entertained from them.
Benjamin Benneker died October 9,1806, But his history lives on even today. He is a big part of our history of famous Black people and he will always be remember for his remarkable work and great significance in black history.