Benjamin Banneker: The African-American Astronomer who shaped D.C.
Release Date: 02/17/2026
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info_outlineBenjamin Banneker used math, astronomy, and publication to claim space in a country that tried to deny him authority. This episode follows his path from a Maryland farm to almanacs that carried his name across the young republic, and to the 1791 boundary survey work that helped set the lines of the new federal district.
What You’ll Learn
1. How Banneker became an astronomer without a formal scientific education and why an ephemeris inside an almanac mattered so much in the late 1700s.
2. What Banneker actually did in 1791 during Andrew Ellicott’s boundary work, and why later stories about his role in Washington’s design grew beyond the record.
3. How publishing changed his life by carrying his calculations, voice, and reputation into a wider public, starting with the 1792 almanac (issued in 1791) and continuing through 1797.
Resources and further reading
· National Park Service: Benjamin Banneker and the boundary survey (Jones Point)
https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/nama-notebook-benjamin-banneker.htm
· Library of Congress: Banneker’s 1792 almanac record (issued 1791)
https://www.loc.gov/item/98650590/
· Encyclopedia Virginia: Banneker’s letter to Jefferson (Aug. 19, 1791)
https://encyclopediavirginia.org/primary-documents/letter-from-benjamin-banneker-to-thomas-jefferson-august-19-1791/
· Library of Congress: Jefferson’s reply to Banneker (Aug. 30, 1791)
https://www.loc.gov/item/mcc.028/
· Smithsonian Libraries & Archives: context on Banneker and later myths
https://blog.library.si.edu/blog/2017/02/15/americas-first-known-african-american-scientist-mathematician/
· American Philosophical Society: Ellicott, Banneker, and boundary-survey context
https://www.amphilsoc.org/news/surveyors-andrew-ellicott-benjamin-banneker-and-boundaries-nation-and-knowledge
· PBS: Banneker overview (includes Ellicott lending books/tools context)
https://www.pbs.org/wgbh/aia/part2/2p84.html
· Smithsonian Magazine: discussion of Banneker’s almanacs and cultural impact
https://www.smithsonianmag.com/blogs/smithsonian-books/2024/01/04/benjamin-bannekers-almanac-of-strange-dreams/
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