A driving force in the Deaf community died on this date (Jan. 20) in 2008. James LeVoy Sorenson passed away at a Salt Lake City hospital at the age of 86. Utah's richest man was estimated to be worth $4.5 billion by Forbes magazine. Perhaps best known for co-developing the first real-time computerized heart monitor and for founding Sorenson Communications, he donated more than $5 million to Gallaudet University. Read more about his life here.

A 16th century Spanish monk is recognized by most historians as the first teacher of deaf children. Pedro Ponce de Leon lived from 1520 to 1584. However, some point to Spanish painter Juan Fernández Navarrete as the first. He lived in the early part of the century. Ponce de Leon was a Benedictine monk who took a vow of silence and developed a form of sign language to communicate. He apparently taught finger-spelling to deaf children who probably arrived at his monastery alrea

Grace Anna Goodhue was born on January 3, 1879, in Burlington, Vermont. She is known to history as the wife of the 30th president of the United States, Calvin Coolidge. What many people don't know is that she was a teacher of the deaf. As the first lady, she worked hard to educate the public and invited Helen Keller to visit the White House. Helped by the President, Mrs. Collidge raised $2 million for the Clarke School for the Deaf. Read more about her life here .

Ian Berry became the first deaf man to walk to the South Pole on this day (Dec. 31, 2009). The UK native dragged a sled across 112 miles of ice to raise more than $40,000 for the National Deaf Children's Society. The 43-year-old reached the pole on New Year's Eve as part of a five-person team.

About 20 years before Helen Keller’s education, Laura Bridgman became first deaf-blind American to gain a significant education in the English language. The two were connected through Bridgman's friend Anne Sullivan who became Helen Keller's teacher and aide. B orn in New Hampshire on Dec. 21, 1829, Bridgman lost her sight and hearing at two years of age to scarlet fever. She had limited communication skills until the director of the Perkins School for the Blind in Watertown,

Best known for a TV show about her work for the FBI, Sue Thomas passed away on Dec. 13, 2022. Sue Thomas speaking in 2011 Sue Thomas became nationally known through a TV series based on her life called Sue Thomas FBEye . She went on to become an author and motivational speaker. Early Life: Thomas was born in Ohio on May 24, 1950 and became deaf at 18 months of age. At the age of seven, she became the youngest free-style ice skater in Ohio state history. Health: In 2001, she w

Annie Jump Cannon was born Dec. 11, 1863. The deaf astronomer was also a suffragist. New York World-Telegram and the Sun Newspaper via Wikimedia Commons Cannon lost most of her hearing in childhood, which has been attributed to scarlet fever. The valedictorian of her class at Wellesley College, she became an astronomer at the Harvard College Observatory. She worked with another prominent deaf astronomer: Henrietta Swan Leavitt. Despite getting paid at half the rate paid to m

Thomas Gallaudet was born on this day (Dec. 10) in 1787. Birthplace - Philadelphia Family - Oldest of 12 children College - Attended Yale at age 14, graduating with highest honors at 17 Ministry - Ordained in 1814, sometimes preaching at church Deaf Interest - Became interested in deaf issues when he met a 9-year-old deaf neighbor School - Founded The American School for the Deaf   in Hartford, Connecticut which opened its doors in 1817 Travels - Learned the manual form of si

During Nelson Mandela’s memorial service in Johannesburg on this date (Dec. 10) in 2013, a man pretending to interpret for the dignitaries that spoke was declared a fraud by South Africa's deaf federation. image from Sky News video U.S. President Barack Obama was among the heads of state attending the service at the 95,000-seat football stadium when Thamsanqa Jantjie took to the stage. The incident raised security concerns and is an embarrassment for the South African governm

It was on this date (Dec. 7, 2012) that Dr. William F. House died in Oregon at the age of 89. image from House Ear Institute Dr. House is credited with installing the first cochlear implant in 1961. He was told by experts the electric current he was using would destroy the ear, but that didn't stop him. He believed in what implants could do to change someone's life. Here's a little about him: Known as the "father of neurotology." He received his do

It was on this day (Dec. 6) in 1976 that professional stuntwoman Kitty O'Neil set a record for land speed by a female driver. It was in Oregon's Alvord Desert that Kitty hit 512 miles per hour. Her women's absolute land speed record stood until 2019. The previous record had been 321 mph. Childhood diseases left her deaf and nearly killed her. She became a champion diver at a young age. As a teenager, she planned to take part in the 1964 Olympics but an injury and illness cut

In the 1600s, the court of the Ottoman Empire employed some 40 deaf servants. Sultan Selim III in front of the Gate of Felicity (1789) via Wikimedia Commons They were chosen not in spite of their deafness, but because of it. The deaf servants were favored companions of the sultan, and their facility in nonverbal communication made them indispensable to the court, where decorum restricted speech in the sultan’s presence. Read the fascinating story of the deaf servants here . .

Nyle Dimarco won America's Next Top Model  contest on this date (Dec. 4) in 2015. Photo ABC The first deaf contestant to win on the reality show, afterward Dimarco told People magazine: "Being a deaf person on a television show alone is pretty groundbreaking, so it felt incredible just to be on the show – but to win it was amazing!" Read more of that interview here .

He was born on this date (Dec. 3) in 1751. Donaldson’s School for the Deaf was named after him. Donaldson’s School for the Deaf has long been a dominant feature of the Edinburgh skyline. It was named for Edinburgh printer and businessman James Donaldson. He was born on Dec. 3, 1751, and died on Oct. 19, 1830. Donalson left large sum go to the building of a facility to care for children who would otherwise have been living on the streets. When it opened, 20 years later, the sc

Charles-Michel de l'Épée was born November 24, 1712, in Versailles, France. L'Épée become known as the "Father of the Deaf"after...

For decades it was illegal to teach ASL in US schools. PBS explains why in this video.

Professional stuntwoman Kitty O'Neil died seven years ago today (Nov. 2, 2018) from pneumonia at the age of 72. Among other things, the deaf daredevil set a record for land speed by a female driver in 1976. It was in Oregon's Alvord Desert that Kitty hit 512 miles per hour. Childhood diseases left her deaf and nearly killed her. She became a champion diver at a young age. Her work later as a Hollywood stuntwoman was featured in TV shows like Quincy, Baretta and The Bionic Wom

The Rhode Island School for the Deaf was founded by Mary Ann Lippitt who was born on this date (Oct. 7) in the year 1823. Her daughter became deaf after contracting Scarlet Fever in 1856. "Lippitt created her own program and founded the Providence Day School for the Deaf in 1876. Her husband Henry Lippitt, who had become governor in 1875, used his own influence to inspire the State to take over the administration of the school the following year." Read more here .

Edward Miner Gallaudet served as president (1864–1910) of the school that would become Gallaudet University. Edward was the youngest of eight children born to Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet. He died on this date, Sept. 26, in 1917. When plans were made to change the name of the school from the Columbia Institution for the Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb, Edward Miner Gallaudet wanted the honor to go to his father, as a pioneer in deaf education, rather than to himself. So the scho

On this day (Sept. 16) in 1973, the first deaf player ran onto the field for the St. Louis Cardinals against the Philadelphia Eagles. Bonnie Sloan played in four games at defensive tackle and only lasted one season, because of knee injuries, but he had made his mark at the age of 25. The 6-foot-5, 260-pounder was a 10th-round draft pick out of Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee, where he was the first player to bench press 500 pounds. Sloan was an All-Ohio