Benjamin Banneker was born on November 9, 1731 and died in his cabin on October 25, 1806. Soon after his funeral, his cabin burst into flames. Did you know that Benjamin Banneker built the first functional clock in America? He made it by taking apart a pocket watch and copying the parts out of wood. His clock kept accurate time for over fifty years. He also predicted a solar eclipse that other scientists didn't know about. Did you know that in 1792 he published an Almanac and that he was an amazing mathematician? Ben calculated when the sun would rise and set and he estimated when there would be eclipses of the sun and moon together. These calculations were part of the Almanac he published. He also helped survey the land for the capitol in Washington, D.C.