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Benjamin Banneker: Surveyor, Astronomer, Publisher, Patriot

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Benjamin Banneker: Surveyor, Astronomer, Publisher, Patriot Charles A. Cerami. Benjamin Banneker: Surveyor, Astronomer, Publisher, Patriot. New York: John Wiley & Sons, 2002. xiii + 257 pp. $24.95, cloth, ISBN 978-0-471-38752-7. Reviewed by Mary Beth Corrigan Published on H-Maryland (April, 2003) Benjamin Banneker: Fabled Genius Consid‐ Cerami effectively explains how Banneker de‐ ered veloped his intellect without formal education. Formerly the principal editor of Kiplinger His family undoubtedly provided Banneker his Washington Publications and the author of more educational foundation in the sciences and letters. than ten books on the economy, Charles A. Cerami Cerami discovers little about Benjamin's father takes a stab at historical biography with Benjamin Robert, a frst-generation slave who fed his own‐ Banneker: Surveyor, Astronomer, Publisher, Patri‐ er and then married a freeborn woman, Mary. In‐ ot. With earnest conviction, Cerami seeks appro‐ stead, he emphasizes the role of Mary's parents, priate recognition of Benjamin Banneker by the Irish-born Molly Welsh and African-born Ban‐ public. Few are aware of his accomplishments, neka, in the early education of Benjamin. Molly even though schools, museums, and other public and Banneka frst met when she purchased him places throughout the District and Maryland bear to help establish her farm. A member of the Do‐ his name. Perhaps people know that Banneker, gon tribe, known for their knowledge of astrono‐ born a free black in 1731, participated in the sur‐ my and physics, Banneka cleared Molly's land, vey of the District of Columbia. In addition, Ban‐ solved irrigation problems, and implemented a neker developed an extraordinary command of crop rotation for her. Soon thereafter, Molly freed mathematics, science, and literature, and created and married Banneka, who in turn shared his clocks, compiled almanacs, and advocated aboli‐ knowledge of engineering and astronomy with tion in his writings. Banneker's genius challenged her. Though born after Banneka's death, young prevalent assumptions regarding the inferior in‐ Benjamin acquired much of his grandfather's tellectual capabilities of men and women of knowledge via Molly, who taught him how to African descent. Cerami maintains that, in fact, read, farm, and interpret the sky just as Banneka Banneker surpassed Thomas Jefferson, James had taught her. Madison, and George Washington as a thinker. H-Net Reviews Several well-respected and wealthy men ap‐ sumed the leading role in the design of the capi‐ preciated Banneker's talents and, in turn, nur‐ tal. More recently, Sylvio Bedini has found that tured his intellect. As a young teenager, Banneker Banneker worked on the survey two months, a met and befriended Peter Heinrichs, a Quaker finding which has led many, though not Bedini farmer who established a school near the Bannek‐ himself, to diminish the importance of Banneker's er farm. Heinrichs shared his personal library contribution.[1] Cerami accepts the facts without with Banneker and provided his only classroom dismissing Banneker's role and points out that he instruction. He voraciously read and absorbed the held unique qualifications and performed an es‐ language of the classics so that he could later con‐ sential task for the survey. During those months, verse comfortably with educated gentlemen. Dur‐ Banneker slept only a couple of hours at a time, as ing a chance meeting in Baltimore, Joseph Levi, a he took notes on the position of the stars to ensure European trader, showed the twenty-two-year-old the accuracy of the survey. Banneker a watch, the frst clock he had ever Banneker's participation in the survey and seen. Impressed by Banneker's curiosity and intu‐ subsequent publication of his almanac in 1791 itive understanding of the mechanism, Levi gave called his genius to the attention of white contem‐ his watch to Banneker. In subsequent months, poraries, a position that he used to challenge slav‐ Banneker took the watch apart, reassembled it ery in the new republic. Cerami maintains that perfectly, and then built his own wooden clock. the emergence of Banneker as an abolitionist rep‐ Banneker's clockmaking abilities led to his resented an about-face for him, as he did not pro‐ most important friendship, with the Ellicotts, a mote abolition during the Revolution. Throughout Quaker family whose extensive commercial, man‐ his almanacs, Banneker interspersed his meteoro‐ ufacturing, and agricultural enterprises trans‐ logical and astronomical predictions with short formed the Patapsco River region in the late eigh‐ statements of his anti-slavery philosophy. Bannek‐ teenth century. Introduced to his prominent er sent the frst edition of his almanac with a let‐ neighbors in the early 1770s, Banneker's scientific ter of several pages to Thomas Jefferson. Written abilities particularly impressed George Ellicott, an with the sanction of the Ellicotts and listing Elias astronomer twenty years younger than Benjamin. Ellicott as the return address, Banneker in his let‐ George asked Banneker to fx a grandfather clock ter directly questioned the moral foundations of that had stumped all of the Ellicotts. After three slavery in the new republic and challenged Jeffer‐ months of hard work, Banneker solved the prob‐ son's racial views, particularly his assumptions re‐ lem. The friendship with George, in particular, in‐ garding the limited intellectual capabilities of the spired Banneker to continue his studies and, in entire African race (pp. 163-167). the end, led him to compile his own almanac In his carefully worded response to Banneker, which included charts showing the position of the Jefferson did not concede racial equality and in‐ moon, stars, and planets. Between 1791 and 1797, stead revealed his own ambivalence towards Banneker published his almanac annually. race. Jefferson promptly thanked Banneker for Cerami takes an especially balanced view of the almanac and promised to forward it to the Banneker's contributions to the survey of the Academy of Sciences at Paris "because I consider newly-designated District of Columbia in 1791. it a document to which your color had a right for Andrew Ellicott led a team of surveyors, including their justification for the doubts which have been Banneker as the principal assistant surveyor, in entertained them." Jefferson wrote of his ardent defining the boundaries of the District. Many have desire to see a "good system" emerge that would contended that Banneker, in this position, as‐ raise the condition of the entire African race "to 2 H-Net Reviews what it ought to be, as fast as the imbecility of viously, such a note cannot point the reader to their present existence, and other circumstances more information about this clock. If an isolated which cannot be neglected, will admit" (pp. instance, this faw would hardly be worth noting. 168-169). As Cerami correctly points out, Jefferson Yet it is impossible to reconstruct the sources for assumed the degraded condition of the African many, if not most, of Cerami's assertions. race and hoped not for civil or economic rights This documentation style enables Cerami to within the prevailing order, but for the emer‐ offer unsupported conjecture instead of interpre‐ gence of some other system to allow Africans and tation based upon historical facts. This tendency African-Americans to fulfill their potential, sepa‐ undermines some of his most interesting discus‐ rate from Euro-American society. sions, in particular the reception of Banneker as Banneker paid the price for his prominence. surveyor of the District of Columbia. Local white After the publication of the almanacs ceased in residents regarded Banneker as a reflection of all 1797, Banneker went back to his land. Too old to African Americans. Impressed by Banneker's con‐ work the farm, Banneker frst tried to rent out his tributions, The Georgetown Weekly Ledger called land, but proved ill-suited to the task. Instead, Banneker "an Ethiopian, whose abilities as a sur‐ Banneker sold his land to the Ellicotts who agreed veyor and astronomer clearly prove that Mr. Jef‐ to purchase his farm on a deferred basis; that is, ferson's conclusion that this race of men were the Ellicotts paid Banneker in annual install‐ void of mental endowments was without founda‐ ments, but allowed him to live there until he died. tion" (p. 136). Unfortunately, this newspaper is the During these years, Banneker lived comfortably, only primary source cited as Cerami maintains but endured several threats to his life and proper‐ that most white observers, in particular George ty. At the age of 74 in 1806, Banneker died peace‐ Washington and Thomas Jefferson, regarded Ban‐ fully in the company of friends. As hundreds of neker's abilities as an anomaly at best. Washing‐ friends and admirers laid his coffin to rest, his ton hired Ellicott and presumably was aware of house burned to the ground. This fre destroyed Banneker's work, though Cerami uncovered no all of his writings, his clocks, and other instru‐ documentary evidence of their encounter. None‐ ments, except those held by the Ellicott family. theless, Cerami claims that Washington "must Cerami constructs a credible narrative of Ban‐ have been thunderstruck to fnd an African Amer‐ neker's life, but fails to document his research. He ican on the team," and that Banneker's compe‐ provides an apparently thorough list of reposito‐ tence ultimately led to his acceptance by the Presi‐ ries consulted, including the Archives of the State dent (p. 129). With the absence of direct documen‐ of Maryland, the Maryland Historical Society, the tation, Cerami could have instead provided evi‐ Howard County Historical Society, the Historical dence found in credible primary and secondary Society of Washington, and others (pp. 229-230). sources of Washington's treatment of slave and Yet he eschews footnotes and endnotes, and in‐ free black workers to discern his attitudes toward stead provides one or two paragraphs on the Banneker.
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