from Baltimore, Maryland. Although his family’s
background is not well known, he is thought to
be the son and grandson of native Africans by
some biographers, whereas others believe he is the
grandson of Mollie Welsh, “an English woman of
the servant class” (Baker 101).
Banneker’s interest in mathematics and sci-
ence made him, according to RICHARD BARKS-
DALE and Keneth Kinnamon, “the foremost Black
intellectual of the eighteenth century” (49). His
friendship with members of the Ellicott family,
prominent Quaker merchants who recognized
his genius, provided Banneker with access to the
scientific instruments, which he used to develop
his curiosity in and explore engineering and the
physical sciences, particularly astronomy. By age
20, Banneker invented what many consider the
first American clock, which he carved with a pock-
etknife from a piece of wood. According to Henry
E. Baker, Banneker’s clock “stood as a perfect piece
of machinery, and struck the hours with faultless
precision for a period of 20 years” (106). By age
60, the primarily self-taught Banneker published
his first Banneker’s New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Dela-
ware, Maryland and Virginia Almanac or Ephemeris
(1791). Unlike many of his contemporary fellow
astronomers, Banneker successfully predicted the
solar eclipse of April 1789. Banneker’s Almanac,
although short lived, was viewed favorably along
with its rival, Poor Richard’s Almanac, which was
published by the better-known inventor-states-
man Benjamin Franklin.
Recognizing Banneker’s genius, President
George Washington appointed him, along with
Major Andrew Ellicott, to a commission headed by
the French civil engineer Pierre Charles L’Enfant to
survey the Federal Territory, the future District of
Columbia, Washington, D.C. Announcing Bannek-
er’s appointment, the Georgetown Weekly Ledger
(March 12, 1791) called Banneker “an Ethiopian,”
noting that his “abilities as surveyor and astrono-
mer already prove that Mr. Jefferson’s concluding
that that race of men were void of mental endow-
ment was without foundation” (Baker, 121). As
Winthrop Jordan points out in White Over Black,
“Ironically, Banneker’s nomination had come from
the Secretary of State, Thomas Jefferson” (450).
Although Banneker is credited with writing
poetry, his verses, primarily mathematical and sci-
entific riddles, pale in comparison to the works of
better-known 18th-century poets GEORGE MOSES
HORTON and Phillis Wheatley. His poem in which
a vintner hires a cooper to make a bathtub is
exemplary.The top and the bottom diameter define
To bear that proportion as fifteen to nine,
Thirty-five inches are just what I crave,
No more and no less, in depth will I have;
Just thirty nine gallons this vessel must
hold,—
Then I will reward you with silver or gold.The speaker’s ultimate concern is found in the
final couplet:Now my worthy friend, find out, if you can,
The vessel’s dimensions and comfort the
man!
(Loggins, 40)Banneker’s greatest literary legacy, however, is
the letter exchange he engaged in with Jefferson.
Not only aware Jefferson’s public stance and pub-
lished theory on the innate inferiority of blacks
but also certain that he was living proof to the con-
trary, in 1791 Banneker sent Jefferson a copy of his
Almanac with a cover letter in which he politely
chided the Secretary of State:Sir, if these are sentiments of which you are
fully persuaded, I hope you cannot but ac-
knowledge, that it is the indispensable duty of
those, who maintain for themselves the rights
of human nature, and who possess the obli-
gations of Christianity, to extend their power
and influence to the relief of every part of the
human race, from whatever burden or oppres-
sion they may unjustly labor under.... Sir, I
have long been convinced, that if your love
for yourselves, and for those inestimable laws,
which preserved to you the rights of human
nature, was founded on sincerity, you could
not but be solicitous, that every individual,32 Banneker, Benjamin