Beginning 200 years of Deaf Education

Today the Bushnell Towers stand on the former location of the City Hotel. Rev. Thomas H. Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc rented rooms at this hotel and it was here that the American School for the Deaf first opened its doors on April 15, 1817. Originally this institution was called the Connecticut Asylum at Hartford for the Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb Persons. Seven students enrolled as part of the first class: Alice Cogswell, John Brewster, Jr., George Loring, Wilson Whiton, Abigail Dillingham, Nancy Orr, and Otis Waters. By the end of the year there were more than 30 students and larger quarters were needed.

Credits and Sources:

Photos courtesy of:

Keenan; Keenan; ASD.