1 00:00:00,120 --> 00:00:05,680 Speaker 1: This Day in History Class is a production of iHeartRadio. 2 00:00:05,840 --> 00:00:10,000 Speaker 1: Hello and welcome to This Day in History Class, a 3 00:00:10,119 --> 00:00:13,440 Speaker 1: show for those who can never know enough about history. 4 00:00:15,360 --> 00:00:18,720 Speaker 1: I'm Gabe Lucier, and in this episode, we're looking at 5 00:00:18,720 --> 00:00:21,680 Speaker 1: the origin story of the American School for the Deaf, 6 00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:25,919 Speaker 1: an academic refuge for the hearing impaired and the birthplace 7 00:00:26,079 --> 00:00:36,640 Speaker 1: of American Sign language. The day was April fifteenth, eighteen seventeen, 8 00:00:37,560 --> 00:00:42,760 Speaker 1: America's first permanent school for deaf children opened in Hartford, Connecticut. 9 00:00:43,600 --> 00:00:48,080 Speaker 1: Originally called the Connecticut Asylum for the Education and Instruction 10 00:00:48,280 --> 00:00:52,560 Speaker 1: of Deaf and Dumb Persons, the institution was later renamed 11 00:00:52,720 --> 00:00:57,040 Speaker 1: to the American School for the Deaf, a much snappier moniker, 12 00:00:57,240 --> 00:01:01,600 Speaker 1: which it still operates under today. The path to opening 13 00:01:01,680 --> 00:01:05,959 Speaker 1: this pioneering school began with a chance encounter between aspiring 14 00:01:06,040 --> 00:01:10,480 Speaker 1: preacher Thomas Hopkins Galadet and his young deaf neighbor, nine 15 00:01:10,520 --> 00:01:15,720 Speaker 1: year old Alice Cogswell. Galadet was born in seventeen eighty 16 00:01:15,760 --> 00:01:21,000 Speaker 1: seven in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. After graduating from Yale and working 17 00:01:21,040 --> 00:01:24,319 Speaker 1: for a time as a traveling salesman, he began studying 18 00:01:24,360 --> 00:01:29,480 Speaker 1: theology with the aim of becoming a congregational minister. In 19 00:01:29,560 --> 00:01:34,720 Speaker 1: May of eighteen fourteen, Galadet graduated from the Andover Theological 20 00:01:34,800 --> 00:01:38,319 Speaker 1: Seminary and then returned to his parents' home in Hartford 21 00:01:38,520 --> 00:01:42,039 Speaker 1: to rest up from his studies. While he was there, 22 00:01:42,319 --> 00:01:44,559 Speaker 1: he noticed that one of the kids in the neighborhood, 23 00:01:44,800 --> 00:01:48,440 Speaker 1: Alice Cogswell, always played by herself instead of with the 24 00:01:48,480 --> 00:01:52,680 Speaker 1: other children. Galadet mentioned the matter to the girl's father, 25 00:01:52,920 --> 00:01:58,360 Speaker 1: a prominent surgeon named Mason Fitch Cogswell. The doctor explained 26 00:01:58,400 --> 00:02:02,320 Speaker 1: that Alice had lost her here after contracting meningitis when 27 00:02:02,360 --> 00:02:06,000 Speaker 1: she was just two years old. At the time, there 28 00:02:06,000 --> 00:02:10,120 Speaker 1: were no accommodations for deaf children and American schools. Some 29 00:02:10,360 --> 00:02:13,799 Speaker 1: parents worked with their children to develop signs and gestures 30 00:02:13,840 --> 00:02:16,840 Speaker 1: to use around the house, but the vast majority of 31 00:02:16,960 --> 00:02:21,040 Speaker 1: children born deaf never learned to communicate with those outside 32 00:02:21,040 --> 00:02:25,600 Speaker 1: their household. As a result, deaf people were often assumed 33 00:02:25,600 --> 00:02:30,000 Speaker 1: to be cognitively impaired by the public, an ignorant viewpoint 34 00:02:30,120 --> 00:02:35,760 Speaker 1: that led to Alice Cogswell playing alone. Thomas Galladet had 35 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:38,680 Speaker 1: planned to go into the ministry, but after spending some 36 00:02:38,760 --> 00:02:41,480 Speaker 1: time with Alice, he decided to devote his life to 37 00:02:41,560 --> 00:02:46,079 Speaker 1: a different cause. He believed that, contrary to public opinion, 38 00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:50,200 Speaker 1: Alice Cogswell and other children like her could be taught. 39 00:02:50,800 --> 00:02:54,239 Speaker 1: All they needed were willing teachers and the right method 40 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:59,440 Speaker 1: of instruction. By that point, Mason Cogswell and a handful 41 00:02:59,520 --> 00:03:03,040 Speaker 1: of other concerned parents had already determined that there were 42 00:03:03,080 --> 00:03:06,480 Speaker 1: at least eighty five deaf children living in the state. 43 00:03:07,360 --> 00:03:10,400 Speaker 1: That was more than enough to warrant starting a school 44 00:03:10,480 --> 00:03:14,639 Speaker 1: devoted exclusively to their education, but the project couldn't get 45 00:03:14,680 --> 00:03:19,280 Speaker 1: off the ground without qualified instructors. Once it was clear 46 00:03:19,400 --> 00:03:23,200 Speaker 1: that Galadet was sincere in his desire to help the community, 47 00:03:23,280 --> 00:03:26,000 Speaker 1: raised enough money to send him to Europe, where deaf 48 00:03:26,160 --> 00:03:30,920 Speaker 1: education was much more established. His goal was to study 49 00:03:31,040 --> 00:03:35,120 Speaker 1: educational methods and identify potential teachers for the new school 50 00:03:35,160 --> 00:03:40,560 Speaker 1: in Hartford. Galadet's first stop was the esteemed Braidwood Academy 51 00:03:40,800 --> 00:03:45,520 Speaker 1: in Edinburgh, Scotland. It was renowned for its in house curriculum, 52 00:03:45,680 --> 00:03:51,400 Speaker 1: which taught a combination of oral communication and hand gestures. However, 53 00:03:51,760 --> 00:03:55,240 Speaker 1: Galadet found that the school placed too much importance on 54 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:58,880 Speaker 1: lip reading. He was also put off by the Braidwood 55 00:03:58,920 --> 00:04:03,960 Speaker 1: family's elitist approach to education. The private for profit school 56 00:04:04,240 --> 00:04:07,600 Speaker 1: came with a hefty price tag, and because the Braidwoods 57 00:04:07,720 --> 00:04:11,400 Speaker 1: viewed Galadet as a competitor, they refused to share their 58 00:04:11,440 --> 00:04:14,200 Speaker 1: methods with him unless he agreed to pay them a 59 00:04:14,280 --> 00:04:19,760 Speaker 1: fee for every student he taught. Needless to say, Galadet 60 00:04:19,920 --> 00:04:24,240 Speaker 1: declined the offer. His next stop was London, where he 61 00:04:24,279 --> 00:04:27,640 Speaker 1: attended a demonstration of the teaching methods used by the 62 00:04:27,680 --> 00:04:32,360 Speaker 1: French Royal Institution for the Deaf in Paris. The French 63 00:04:32,400 --> 00:04:36,960 Speaker 1: school's philosophy was much more egalitarian than the braid Woods. 64 00:04:37,040 --> 00:04:41,040 Speaker 1: The teaching was done through manual instruction or sign language, 65 00:04:41,320 --> 00:04:44,440 Speaker 1: and tuition was only charged for those who could afford it, 66 00:04:44,800 --> 00:04:49,360 Speaker 1: with poor students welcome to attend for free. The trio 67 00:04:49,520 --> 00:04:54,840 Speaker 1: of French teachers behind the demonstration were Abscard, Laurent Clerk 68 00:04:55,240 --> 00:04:59,640 Speaker 1: and Jean Massieu. They had been sent abroad to promote 69 00:04:59,640 --> 00:05:03,560 Speaker 1: the school, and after learning about Galadet's mission, they invited 70 00:05:03,600 --> 00:05:06,080 Speaker 1: him to return with them to Paris to study their 71 00:05:06,120 --> 00:05:11,840 Speaker 1: methods firsthand. The institution in Paris didn't invent sign language. 72 00:05:12,120 --> 00:05:15,599 Speaker 1: Pocket communities had been using hand signs to communicate for 73 00:05:15,800 --> 00:05:20,200 Speaker 1: centuries before the school's founding. However, it was one of 74 00:05:20,240 --> 00:05:24,000 Speaker 1: the few learning facilities in the world where hand gestures 75 00:05:24,080 --> 00:05:30,160 Speaker 1: indicating abstract concepts were formally taught. Galadet believed the method 76 00:05:30,279 --> 00:05:33,279 Speaker 1: was just what he'd been looking for. The only problem 77 00:05:33,480 --> 00:05:36,240 Speaker 1: was it would take him far too long to learn 78 00:05:36,360 --> 00:05:39,880 Speaker 1: it himself. What he really needed was someone who was 79 00:05:39,960 --> 00:05:43,599 Speaker 1: already fluent in the language and willing to move to Connecticut. 80 00:05:44,400 --> 00:05:47,720 Speaker 1: It was a tall order, considering the school hadn't even 81 00:05:47,760 --> 00:05:52,240 Speaker 1: been established yet, but Galadet managed to convince Laurent Clerk 82 00:05:52,520 --> 00:05:55,880 Speaker 1: to take the leap of faith. The pair sailed to 83 00:05:55,920 --> 00:06:00,160 Speaker 1: the US together in early eighteen sixteen, and along the way, 84 00:06:00,320 --> 00:06:04,800 Speaker 1: Galadet learned sign language from Clerk and Clerk learned English 85 00:06:04,880 --> 00:06:09,520 Speaker 1: from Galadet. Once they arrived, the men spent several months 86 00:06:09,600 --> 00:06:13,919 Speaker 1: touring New England, promoting the school in soliciting donations both 87 00:06:13,960 --> 00:06:17,800 Speaker 1: public and private. In May of that year, they were 88 00:06:17,800 --> 00:06:21,320 Speaker 1: granted a charter for the school from the Connecticut General Assembly. 89 00:06:22,040 --> 00:06:26,080 Speaker 1: They set up shop in the Bennett's City Hotel in Hartford, Connecticut, 90 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:30,360 Speaker 1: and then the following spring, with the support of doctor Cogswell, 91 00:06:30,720 --> 00:06:34,719 Speaker 1: Galadet and Clerk opened the first permanent school for the 92 00:06:34,760 --> 00:06:39,720 Speaker 1: deaf in the country. Galadet served as principal and Clerk 93 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:44,080 Speaker 1: was the head teacher. Their inaugural class consisted of seven 94 00:06:44,240 --> 00:06:48,719 Speaker 1: full time students, one of whom was Alice Cogswell. The 95 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:53,400 Speaker 1: first classes were held on April fifteenth, eighteen seventeen, and 96 00:06:53,480 --> 00:06:57,240 Speaker 1: because traveling in those days was expensive and arduous, the 97 00:06:57,279 --> 00:07:01,120 Speaker 1: students lived at the school throughout the term. As you 98 00:07:01,200 --> 00:07:04,960 Speaker 1: might expect, the sign language that Clerk taught was rooted 99 00:07:05,000 --> 00:07:08,000 Speaker 1: in the French system, but as time went on, the 100 00:07:08,040 --> 00:07:11,640 Speaker 1: students helped modify and expand the signs into what we 101 00:07:11,800 --> 00:07:17,080 Speaker 1: now know as American Sign Language or ASL. In addition 102 00:07:17,240 --> 00:07:20,840 Speaker 1: to learning the language itself, the school also gave instruction 103 00:07:21,040 --> 00:07:26,320 Speaker 1: in math, reading, writing, geography, history, and, most importantly to 104 00:07:26,360 --> 00:07:30,880 Speaker 1: the children's parents, in the Bible. Within a year of opening, 105 00:07:31,040 --> 00:07:34,120 Speaker 1: the American School for the Deaf had attracted dozens of 106 00:07:34,200 --> 00:07:37,120 Speaker 1: students from up and down the East Coast, and not 107 00:07:37,240 --> 00:07:41,160 Speaker 1: just children either. The oldest student among the early classes 108 00:07:41,520 --> 00:07:46,320 Speaker 1: was a fifty one year old portrait painter. In eighteen nineteen, 109 00:07:46,680 --> 00:07:50,240 Speaker 1: the school received its first annual grant from the Connecticut 110 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:54,440 Speaker 1: General Assembly, making it the first recipient of state sponsored 111 00:07:54,640 --> 00:07:59,560 Speaker 1: educational aid in US history. The following year, the school 112 00:07:59,560 --> 00:08:02,800 Speaker 1: made his way story again when the United States Congress 113 00:08:02,840 --> 00:08:06,720 Speaker 1: awarded it a land grant in the Alabama Territory, marking 114 00:08:06,760 --> 00:08:09,640 Speaker 1: the first time that federal aid had ever been granted 115 00:08:09,760 --> 00:08:14,360 Speaker 1: for special education. The American School for the Deaf became 116 00:08:14,440 --> 00:08:19,120 Speaker 1: the model for numerous other such institutions throughout the nineteenth century, 117 00:08:19,600 --> 00:08:23,680 Speaker 1: many of which were founded by its graduating students. This 118 00:08:23,960 --> 00:08:28,080 Speaker 1: flowering of deaf education in America led to a dramatic 119 00:08:28,160 --> 00:08:31,640 Speaker 1: shift in the way society related to people with disabilities. 120 00:08:32,280 --> 00:08:35,280 Speaker 1: It also launched a golden age of self awareness and 121 00:08:35,360 --> 00:08:40,360 Speaker 1: collaboration among America's deaf community, allowing them to enrich each 122 00:08:40,360 --> 00:08:43,480 Speaker 1: other's lives in a way that hadn't been possible without 123 00:08:43,480 --> 00:08:48,240 Speaker 1: the common ground of language. More than two hundred years later, 124 00:08:48,559 --> 00:08:51,800 Speaker 1: the American School for the Deaf is still creating those 125 00:08:51,840 --> 00:08:56,640 Speaker 1: opportunities for elementary and secondary students in Hartford and down 126 00:08:56,679 --> 00:09:00,920 Speaker 1: in the nation's capital. Galadet University does the same thing 127 00:09:01,040 --> 00:09:04,360 Speaker 1: for college dage students who are deaf or hard of hearing. 128 00:09:05,320 --> 00:09:10,080 Speaker 1: The private university was founded by Thomas Galladet's son Edward, 129 00:09:10,520 --> 00:09:13,760 Speaker 1: and a statue of his father and of Alice Cogswell 130 00:09:14,080 --> 00:09:21,200 Speaker 1: stands proudly on the campus grounds. I'm Gabe Bluesyay, and 131 00:09:21,320 --> 00:09:24,720 Speaker 1: hopefully you now know a little more about history today 132 00:09:24,920 --> 00:09:27,720 Speaker 1: than you did yesterday. If you'd like to keep up 133 00:09:27,760 --> 00:09:30,479 Speaker 1: with the show, you can follow us on Twitter, Facebook, 134 00:09:30,520 --> 00:09:34,760 Speaker 1: and Instagram at TDI HC Show, and if you have 135 00:09:34,840 --> 00:09:37,720 Speaker 1: any comments or suggestions, feel free to send them my 136 00:09:37,800 --> 00:09:42,559 Speaker 1: way by writing to This Day at iHeartMedia dot com. 137 00:09:42,600 --> 00:09:45,640 Speaker 1: Thanks to Kasby Bias for producing the show, and thanks 138 00:09:45,679 --> 00:09:48,040 Speaker 1: to you for listening. I'll see you back here again 139 00:09:48,120 --> 00:10:03,880 Speaker 1: tomorrow for another day in history class.