Lone Astrologist
I’ve been reading Frontiers of Freedom: Cincinnati’s Black Community, 1802-1868. This book is by Vassar professor Nikki Taylor. Guess what? Being black in Cincinnati between 1802 and 1868 meant catching a lot of hell.
At the back of the book is a listing of the various types of employment held by black Cincinnatians in 1850 and 1860. For example, there were 136 black barbers, including steamboat barbers, in the Cincinnati of 1850. There were four black women employed as nurses in Cincinnati in 1860.
Of the approximately 2,800 people listed from 1850 and 1860, there is one “astrologist.” There was one black man in Cincinnati who in 1850 made his living, or at least hoped to make a living, as an astrologist. I’ve looked it up and this is the same as an astrologer.
I’ve thought about this man a number of times.
How did he come to this work? Did he set up a shop or did people come to his home? Or maybe he went to other people’s homes and gave his readings. If he had a shop, did he paint stars and moons on the outside of the building? Did he have a robe or any type of costume? Or was it a bare bones operation? I’ve wondered if he believed what he was telling people. Did he try to give people some hope? Was he viewed as a seer by others? Or did people feel he was running a racket?
I hope he was a good person. You can’t blame people hoping for a better life looking for answers any way they can find them. I don’t care so much if Cincinnati’s lone mid-19th century black astrologer was sincere, I just hope he was kind.
