The remarkable life of Benjamin Banneker – surveyor, mathematician, astronomer and farmer – is the subject of this year’s African-American History Month program.  You’re invited to “meet” Banneker, as portrayed by actor and storyteller Bob Smith of Baltimore, Maryland.  Smith, a member of the Griot’s Circle of Maryland, and the National Association of Black Storytellers, relates the story of Banneker from the “first person” perspective.  Also participating in the program will be Gwen Marable, a retired Baltimore area educator and Griot’s Circle storyteller who is a direct descendant of Benjamin Banneker’s sister, Jemima.  A member of the board of the Friends of Benjamin Banneker Historical Park and Museum in Catonsville, Maryland, Marable remains engaged in programming for the museum, and has worked in schools with “Storybuddies,” an intergenerational, oral-history program.

To round out the program, local collector and authority on early mathematical and surveying instruments, Jim Hill, will be on hand to answer questions and show examples of the types of surveying and mathematical instruments that formed the basis of of Banneker’s work.  Light refreshments and conversation will conclude the program.  Presented in collaboration with the African-American Museum of Bucks County. The program is included with museum admission.