By Russell Roberts
In early American times, whites held a strong perception that African-Americans were inferior to them…they didn’t have as high an intelligence level as whites. However, people like Benjamin Banneker proved this foolish theory wrong, and became the first African-American federal employee.
Born on a farm outside Baltimore on November 9, 1731, Banneker’s grandmother was a white indentured servant from England, his grandfather an African prince who was once her slave, the two married, and Banneker grew up on their farm as a freeman. He learned to read by reading the Bible. Later, using books he either owned or borrowed, he taught himself history, literature, and most significantly, math.
Banneker was a certifiable math genius. In his twenties, he built a clock with wooden parts, and used math to determine the relationship of the clock’s gears and wheels. Later in life, he became so proficient in math that he could solve any problem, including writing a paper on the 17-year locust, correctly predicting a solar eclipse, and a research paper on bees.
After becoming friendly with the Ellicotts, a Quaker family of surveyors and industrialists, Banneker assisted them in calculating base points when George Washington hired the Ellicotts to survey what is today Washington, D.C., and became the first African-American federal employee.
After returning to his Maryland farm, his interest in astronomy continued with the publication of almost 30 almanacs containing astrological and various other data, which impressed President Thomas Jefferson so much that he sent them overseas as gifts to leaders and scientists in other countries. Banneker became world famous, and his lifelong accomplishments stood in stark contrast to the belief that African-Americans were intellectually inferior. He died on October 8, 1806.
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