Benjamin Banneker

Benjamin Banneker was a self-taught inventor, scientist, mathematician, almanac author, surveyor, humanitarian and farmer. Banneker, a descendant of enslaved Africans, was born free in Maryland and taught to read by his grandmother as a young boy. A natural mathematician and inventor, Banneker, in his early 20s, created a working clock made almost entirely out of wood and without any instruction.

Benjamin Banneker was also an advocate to eradicate slavery.