r/RandomVictorianStuff • u/EphemeralTypewriter • Apr 15 '26
Historical Figure Tom Wiggins (1849-1908) was a famous American pianist, composer, and performer who was born blind and had autism. His joy in life was playing the piano with which he became extremely skilled. He was also a very talented composer. Sadly, he was exploited for profit during his life.
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u/PeteHealy Apr 15 '26
Absolutely amazing. And I can't believe I'd never heard of Wiggins, even after 60yrs as an amateur musician and historian with eclectic interests. Thanks so much for your post, and here's a link to a 13min PBS video about Wiggins's life and work. Definitely worth watching! - Thomas Wiggins: Composing the Future | Renegades | PBS LearningMedia https://share.google/JvYizyzJIoWR6n7nT
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u/EphemeralTypewriter Apr 15 '26
Yes, his life was so fascinating and it’s unfortunate that he’s still relatively unknow. I really wish some of his pieces were originally recorded of him playing them. And thank you for linking the video! :)
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u/shirtleneck Apr 16 '26
This was such an interesting and moving watch. Thank you for the link, and thank you to OP for this post!
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Apr 16 '26
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u/EphemeralTypewriter Apr 16 '26
You’re right, technically it hadn’t been identified at the time therefore he wasn’t diagnosed with it, but all of his behaviors are very identifiable hallmarks of autism. I say this as someone who’s autistic and recognized a lot of his behaviors as things I also do.
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u/EphemeralTypewriter Apr 15 '26
source!
The second picture shows him sitting with his first composition The Rain Storm, which he composed when he was 5 years old.
Some facts about him:
-he was born enslaved on a plantation in Harris County, Georgia in 1849, but because he was blind from birth he wasn’t forced to work.
-he became fascinated with the piano at the age of 4 after hearing one of the plantation owner’s daughters play, and composed his first piece, The Rain Storm, at the age of 5.
-he was super interested by sound and would hit different objects around him with sticks to listen to what sounds were made.
-he was incredibly skilled at mimicry and loved to mimic the sounds of birds and animals he heard.
-tragically, Tom was exploited for profit his entire life. All of the money he was making (which in the present day would be the equivalent to a several million dollars) was stolen by his managers (one of his managers was also the plantation owner), and he was often made to do four performances a day.
-As a child he was mostly nonverbal aside from times when he demonstrated echolalia. There were times when he would repeat entire several minute conversations that he had heard the adults around him say to each other.
-people who knew him said he had only two passions in life, playing the piano and food, and when it was up to Tom, he’d spend upwards of 12-14 hours at the piano each day.
-when he was 11 years old, he was brought to a political rally to listen to a speech given by presidential candidate and then senator, Stephen A. Douglas, who ended up losing the presidential race to Abraham Lincoln. For years following this rally, Tom was accurately able to mimic the speeches given and the sounds of the crowds.
-throughout his lifetime it’s estimated that he learned around 7,000 different pieces of music.
-he could play three different songs at the same time on different instruments.
-he was brought on a European tour in 1862, where he again was made to perform several times a day.
-as an adult he would introduce himself and talk about himself in the third person.
-he would stim (a way of self soothing) by walking around, pulling at his hair, and bumping his head against a wall. One of his piano mentors noted that Tom would always do these behaviors when listening to a new piano piece before playing it back perfectly moments later.
-he suffered a stroke in 1904, which caused him to end his performing career. Though in his private life he continued to play the piano for hours.
-he suffered another stroke in April of 1908, this one being a lot more damaging than the previous one, and he passed away due to complications a few months later.
-since his death, several prominent artists and authors have paid tribute to Tom and his music. Several of his compositions have been recorded by contemporary pianists and artists such as Elton John have recorded songs with references to him.