Alice Cogswell (August 31, 1805 – December 30, 1830) was the inspiration to

Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet (December 10, 1787 – September 10, 1851) was an American educator. Along with Laurent Clerc and Mason Cogswell, he co-founded the first permanent institution for the education of the deaf in North America, and he bec ...

for the creation of the

American School for the Deaf The American School for the Deaf (ASD), originally ''The American Asylum, At Hartford, For The Education And Instruction Of The Deaf'', is the oldest permanent school for the deaf in the United States, and the first school for children with dis ...

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since t ...

Cogswell and Gallaudet

At the age of two, Cogswell became ill with " spotted fever" (cerebral-spinal

meningitis Meningitis is acute or chronic inflammation of the protective membranes covering the brain and spinal cord, collectively called the meninges. The most common symptoms are fever, headache, and neck stiffness. Other symptoms include confusion or ...

). This illness took her hearing and later she lost her speech as well. At the time, deafness was viewed as equivalent to a mental illness, and it was widely believed that the deaf could not be taught. Gallaudet moved into the house next door to hers when she was nine years old. Upon learning she was deaf and noticing she wasn't interacting with other children, he decided to teach her to communicate through pictures and writing letters in the dirt. Gallaudet and Alice's father, Dr. Mason Cogswell, decided that a formal school would be best for her, but no such school existed in the United States. Gallaudet went to Europe for 15 months, bringing

Laurent Clerc Louis Laurent Marie Clerc (; 26 December 1785 – 18 July 1869) was a French teacher called "The Apostle of the Deaf in America" and was regarded as the most renowned deaf person in American Deaf History. He was taught by Abbé Sicard and de ...

back with him upon his return. During the time of his absence, Alice attended a hearing school and somewhat furthered her education, though the situation was not ideal. She was very lively, and enjoyed reading, sewing, and dancing. She was reportedly very good at mimicking others, and was fascinated by the concept of music. Alice Cogswell and six other deaf students (George Loring, Wilson Whiton, Abigail Dillingham, Otis Waters, John Brewster, and Nancy Orr) entered the school that would become the

in April 1817. She died at the age of twenty-five on December 30, 1830, thirteen days after the death of her father.

Legacy

On the campus of the American School for the Deaf at Hartford stands a statue of Gallaudet and Cogswell. Another statue of Gallaudet and Cogswell, by

Daniel Chester French Daniel Chester French (April 20, 1850 – October 7, 1931) was an American sculptor of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, best known for his 1874 sculpture '' The Minute Man'' in Concord, Massachusetts, and his 1920 monum ...

, stands in front of

Gallaudet University Gallaudet University ( ) is a private university, private University charter#Federal, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C. for the education of the Hearing loss, deaf and hard of hearing. It was founded in 1864 as a gramma ...

, depicting Gallaudet sitting on a chair and Cogswell standing next to him to share their communication of "A" in fingerspelling. The Alice Cogswell statue (American School for the Deaf Founders Memorial), by

Frances Laughlin Wadsworth Frances Laughlin Wadsworth (1909-1978) was an American sculptor active in Hartford, Connecticut. Wadsworth was born in Buffalo, New York, on June 11, 1909. Her parents were Frank and Martha Laughlin. Wadsworth graduated from St. Catherine's S ...

, also represents her as a young girl. The Gallaudet University Alumni Association gives the Laurent Clerc Cultural Fund Alice Cogswell Award to people for valuable service on behalf of deaf citizens. Cogswell is known as a remarkable figure in the history of deaf culture, illustrating a breakthrough in

deaf education Deaf education is the education of students with any degree of hearing loss or deafness. This may involve, but does not always, individually-planned, systematically-monitored teaching methods, adaptive materials, accessible settings, and othe ...

. She showed that the deaf are capable of being taught and of high intelligence. Alice stands as an example of I. King Jordan's famous quote, "Deaf people can do anything hearing people can do, except hear." Alice Cogswell statue - Hartford, CT - 3

Alice Cogswell statue - Hartford, CT - 3

External links

Third Report of the Directors and Officers 1819

Fifteenth Report of the Directors and Officers 1831

Alice Cogswell

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cogswell, Alice 1805 births 1830 deaths Deaf culture in the United States Deaf people from the United States People from Hartford, Connecticut