Thomas Greene Wiggins

Composers Datebook

Synopsis

On this date in 1908, Thomas Greene Wiggins died in Hoboken, New Jersey at 59. Known as “Blind Tom Wiggins,” he was one of the most celebrated — and cruelly exploited — Black concert performers of the 19th century.

Born enslaved in Georgia in 1849, Wiggins and his parents were offered for sale in an ad reading: “Price: $1,500 without Tom, $1,200 with him.” They were purchased by Georgia anti-abolitionist newspaper editor, James Bethune, who noticed the blind boy’s uncanny ability to mimic the sounds he heard played on the family’s piano.

At five, Tom was playing original music of his own and was exhibited as a child prodigy by Bethune throughout Georgia. During the Civil War, Tom played only in Southern states, earning his owner more than $100,000 a year. In the Antebellum years, he toured extensively here and abroad.

In addition to his own compositions, Wiggins played classical selections like Bach and Beethoven. Despite emancipation, Tom, who was perhaps autistic, remained a ward of and virtually indentured to the Bethune family for 38 years. By 1903, he was performing on the vaudeville circuit in New York and New Jersey before suffering fatal stroke in 1908.

Music Played in Today's Program

Thomas Greene ‘Blind Tom’ Wiggins (1849-1908): The Battle of Manassas; John Davis, piano; Newport Classics 85660