The famous
African-American piano player John William Boone, known as "Blind Boone,"
came into this world on May 17, 1864. He was born on the Federal
Army camp of the 7th militia company "I" in Miami, Saline County Missouri.
This was near Warrensburg, Missouri.
Boone's mother
was Rachel Boone, a contraband that cooked for the soldiers of the militia.
As a slave, she descended from Daniel Boone. A few months after Boone
was born, Rachel moved to Warrensburg, Missouri and was hired as a servant
to the General Shed.
When John was
just six months old, he came down with brain fever, also known as scarlet
fever. Doctors said the only chance Boone had of living was if they
removed his eyeballs. They were removed and the fever slowly diminished.
The first fourteen
years of Boone's life were spent in Warrensburg. Here he began to learn
about the world of music. He taught himself to play boyish instruments;
his first was a tin whistle and his second was a mouth organ. After mastering
these he learned to play piano. He earned the love of the town as
he played for passersby in the streets. They raised money and sent
Boone to a school for the blind in St. Louis. At his second year
at the school he began slipping away at night to play at people's houses.
The school found out about his activities and he was expelled.
Boone's career
as a piano player began to come alive when a black man named John Lange
found Boone when he was fifteen. He cared for Boone and tried to educate
him as best he could in exchange for half of all his earnings.
Boone may have
been one of the first black musicians to play before white people in a
serious music hall. He had to face much racial discrimination over the
years. He often would play two concerts in one evening- one for blacks,
and one for a white audience. When audiences became restless after numerous
concertos, Boone would stop and say: "We're going to put the cookies on
the lower shelf now," and burst into a ragtime beat.
Eventually,
a man named Cromwell hired Boone to travel and play in the streets again.
Boone agreed because he was low on money and had no choice. Cromwell was
cruel, but Boone was saved by his stepfather when Cromwell lost Boone by
betting him in a poker game. Lange and Boone found each other once more.
In 1888, Boone
married his manager's sister. He had many happy times throughout his career.
He was responsible for the Negro Baptist Church that went up next door
to his newer house in Columbia, even though he wasn't a baptist. He became
well known for being able to reproduce any musical number he heard. He
was a very generous man. He saw his blindness as a blessing, not a burden.
He never wished to have any of his music written down. Boone believed greatly
in education, perseverance, and hard work. At the time of his retirement
from the music business, the Kansas City Star newspaper said his annual
income was $17,000.
Boone's 47 year
career in music ended four months before he died. "Blind" boone died on
October 4, 1927 in the home of his brother, Samuel Hendrix. His death was
caused by a stroke of apoplexy. He was buried in Columbia, Missouri. His
grave lies there still today, peaceful and respected for his gift to the
musical community.
This web page was created by:
Amber, Amanda, and Ben.
Bibliography
-all sources are from the Johnson County Old Courthouse Historical Museum
*Progress; Holden, MO 1927
*Star Journal; Warrensburg, MO
1960
*Star Journal; Warrensburg, MO
Mar. 18, 1981
*Star Journal; Warrensburg, MO
Mar. 20, 1981
*Post Dispatch; St. Louis, MO
Mar. 1, 1974