APH Perspectives
This site, sponsored
by the American Printing House for the Blind, has a number of exhibits
from their Callahan Museum, including Building
a Future: U.S. Residential Schools for Blind and Visually Impaired
Students and the Hall of Fame: Leaders and Legends of the Blindness
Field.
Blindness:
Is History Against Us?
This speech by Kenneth
Jernigan, president of the National Federation of the Blind, is a
fascinating foray into historic figures who were blind, most of whom are still unknown today. In another
speech, Blindness: The
Lessons of History, Jernigan gives the four decade history of the
National Federation. Other speeches given at the NFB's
annual convention can be found online by clicking here.
Braille History
The
Blindness Resource Center of the New York Institute for Special
Education has an excellent section on its website detailing the history
of braille. Not only does the section have a biography of Louis
Braille and links to many other biographies of Braille, it also
contains information on Valentin Hauy and shows other tactile writing
systems
for the blind.
A Brief History of Tactile Writing Systems...
Written by Dr. Holly Copper of
the Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, this paper on the
various tactile writing systems developed for the blind includes
excellent photos and illustrations.
Deaf/Blind History
The resources in this section
provide information about how people with deafblindness or other
disabilities lived, worked, and were viewed by society in the past, and
how that past has shaped the present day.
Deaf History Timeline
A
useful timeline that begins with capsule biographies of major figures
in deaf history internationally and then becomes more detailed and
event-oriented in the modern era.
Deaf
History - Martha's Vineyard
This website gives a short
introduction into the culture that developed on Martha's Vineyard as a
result of the hereditary deafness of
many 19th century residents.
Disability Social History Project
This site contains a brief
timeline of important events in the history of disability in the world
and exhibits on such subjects as freak shows
and historic disability campaigns.
The Disability Rights Movement
This online exhibit from the
Smithsonian's National Museum of American History uses images, objects,
and text to present a history of the movement.
Dummy
Hoy
This
website celebrates the life and career of major league baseball player
William Ellsworth "Dummy" Hoy.
H-Disability
This site is
maintained by a scholarly discussion group that explores the historical
issues surrounding the experience and phenomenon of 'disability.'
History Through Deaf Eyes
Developed
by Gallaudet University, History Through Deaf Eyes is a traveling
social history exhibition aligning nearly 200 years of United States
history with the experiences of deaf people. This site describes the
exhibit and shows portions of it. It also gives information for booking
the exhibit.
History
of Blindness
A page
of the American Action Fund's website, The History of Blindness
provides a good, if short, introduction to the subject written by James
Omvig.
History
of Cerebral Palsy
A short
essay explaining the development of a scientific understanding of
Cerebral Palsy. Another short history can be found on the site Living
With Cerebral Palsy.
Lesson
Plan: History of the Disability Rights Movement
This is
a lesson plan created by the Anti-Defamation League. It was created so
that students could "examine how past prejudicial attitudes and social
exclusion of people with disabilities led to the rise of a nation wide,
grassroots movement for the recognition of equal rights, equal access
and equal treatment of people with disabilities." It was designed for
grades 10-12. The site includes handouts such as "A Brief history of
the Disabilities Rights Movement," a handout, "History of the Treatment
of Disability in Pictures and Words, 1849 – 1939" and a slide
show, "History of Disability Rights & Self-Determination in
Pictures and Words (Post-1940)"
Museum
of disABILITY History
Founded
by People, Inc. the online elements of the museum--which is located in
Buffalo, New York--has sections on the media representations of people
with disabilities, as well as a history of the medical establishment's
treatment of people with disabilites and society's treatment of people
with disabilities. The site also has a search engine that enables
online visitors to find specific items in the museum's collections.
Parallels in Time: A
History of Developmental Disabilities
The
Minnesota Governor's Council on Developmental Disabilities has created
a wonderful site that presents man's understanding and treatment
of developmental disabilities from 1500 BC through the modern era.
The
Sound and the Fury
The website for this PBS special contains
an illustrated timeline, interviews, resources, and lesson plans.
Timeline: History of
Gallaudet and the Deaf Community
Gallaudet
University Archives has created an excellent, simple timeline of the
history of the deaf community from 1000 B.C. to the present.
Images
There are many images on the websites listed above. Also many
of the sites listed in our guide to Image
Research Online contain images of people with disabilities that can
be retrieved with some careful searching. If necessary, try using older
terms that are no longer in use such as "crippled," "handicapped," or
"retarded." These terms might have been part of an original caption
that was transcribed to the website.
Also try Rochester
Images
(New York). This database of over 22,000 images contains some amazing
photographs. Of particular interest are the photographs taken by Albert
R. Stone for various 1920s era articles in the Rochester Herald. Type in the search terms
"disabled" or "handicapped" to begin searching. The
images are for non-commercial, personal, educational, or research use
only. Excellent download quality.
Books
For some of the
most comprehensive books on the subject of people with disabilities, go
to our Books page.
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