Banneker, Benjamin 323recommended that Banneker work with his uncle (surveyor
Maj. Andrew Elliott) as the astronomer for the initial Capi-
tol City’s 10-mile-square boundary survey (1791). Th e
60-year-old Banneker spent two months in the wilderness
that later became the District of Columbia, solely respon-
sible for the astronomical measurements essential for the
survey’s success. Washington, D.C., named one of its parks
aft er Banneker.
Back on his farm, Banneker prepared his almanacs,
fi rst published in a 1792 edition and continued annually
until 1797. Th ese almanacs, containing antislavery informa-
tion, were also valuable weather aids, purchased by farmers
and mariners. In 1791, Banneker wrote to Th omas Jeff er-
son, giving his perspective as a free educated black person
that slavery was wrong and blacks should be treated with
equality. Banneker’s prepublished almanac supplemented
the letter, as an example refl ecting his scientifi c expertise.
Jeff erson acknowledged in a prompt but brief note. Ban-
neker’s letter and Jeff erson’s response were published with
the 1793 almanac.
Now known to proslavery forces, Banneker was ha-
rassed in his last years. Declining health forced Banneker
to reduce his farming and scientifi c pursuits. On a daily
walk on his beloved farm, Banneker became ill, and he died
peacefully on October 9, 1806. During his funeral, Ban-
neker’s home burned to the ground. Before the funeral,
Banneker’s nephew had retrieved selected items from Ban-
neker’s home and given them to the Elliott family, as in-
structed by his uncle. Among these items—the only ones
that survived—were books, tools, instruments, and Ban-
neker’s journal. Th e Banneker farm site is now the Benja-
min Banneker Historical Park.
See also: Jeff erson, Th omasMargaret Prentice Hecker
Bibliography
Allen, Will W. Banneker: Th e Afro-American Astronomer. Salem,
NH: Ayer Company Publishers, 1987.
Banneker, Benjamin. Banneker’s Almanack and Ephemeris for the
Year of our Lord 1793–1795. Philadelphia: Rhistoric Publica-
tions, 1972.
Bedini, Silvio A. Th e Life of Benjamin Banneker. New York: Charles
Scribner’s Sons, ca. 1972.
Bedini, Silvio A. “Th e Survey of the Federal Territory: Andrew El-
licott and Benjamin Banneker.” Washington History 3, no. 1
(1991):76–95.
Cerami, Charles. Benjamin Banneker: Surveyor, Astronomer, Pub-
lisher, Patriot. New York: John Wiley and Sons, 2002.
Eglash, Ron. “Th e African Heritage of Benjamin Banneker.” Social
Studies of Science 27, no. 2 (April 1997):307–15.Banneker. Th e merchant invited him to his Baltimore
home, where Banneker saw his fi rst watch, given to him as
a loan. From this watch, Banneker studied timekeeping and
its mechanism. He then built and carved a wooden clock,
fi nished in 1753. A marvel to his neighborhood, Banneker’s
clock regularly struck on the hour for 50 years.
Banneker’s scientifi c contributions fl ourished aft er he
became acquainted with a fellow astronomer, George El-
liott, whose family established a grain mill business that be-
came Elliott’s Mills. As Quakers, the Elliott family opposed
slavery and believed in human equality. As a neighbor and
customer, Banneker regularly took his wheat crops to El-
liott’s Mills, purchased goods from its store, and conferred
with Elliott on scientifi c matters. Banneker was provided
with advanced books and instruments that allowed him
to pursue astronomy professionally on his own. Elliot
Benjamin Banneker’s Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland and
Virginia Almanack and Ephermera, for the Year of Our Lord
1792.... Banneker was a free African American scientist and
publisher. (Library of Congress)