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Perkins Trust photograph collection

finding aid

Creator:

Perkins School for the Blind

Date Range:

1957-2013, bulk 1980-1999

Call number:

AG84

Abstract:

The collection consists of photographs documenting student activities, special events, initiatives, and educational programming and departments at Perkins from the late 1950s to 2013.

Extent:

4 linear feet, six 3” O-ring box albums, three 1.5 O-ring box albums, 1 print box for oversize photographs, ½ sized document case for negatives.

Language:

English

Processed by:

Jen Hale, 2015 ; updated by Jen Hale in 2016 ; updated by Jen Hale in 2019 to include an abstract, historical note, more detailed extent and group portraits of Perkins Board of Trustees members in box 3.

Biographical/Historical notes:

In 1829, Perkins School for the Blind became the first school of its kind in the United States. Inspired by the school founded in Paris in 1784, Dr. John Dix Fisher gathered together a group of fellow Bostonians who advocated successfully for a school in Boston dedicated to the education of pupils who were blind. Contrary to popular perceptions at the time, the school’s founders believed that people who were blind could be educated and could live independently. 

The school opened to students in 1832 under our first director, Samuel Gridley Howe. Students followed a curriculum divided between academic subjects similar to any other school in Boston, and curriculum designed to improve tactile dexterity and provide employment options. Physical activity including daily walks, calisthenics, swimming, and rowing were also an important part of the curriculum. 

In 1837, eight-year old Laura Bridgman came to Perkins to be educated. She would become the first person who was deafblind to complete a formal education. The initiative would bring Anne Sullivan and Helen Keller together 50 years later and would evolve into the Perkins Deafblind School that continues to be a leader in the field today.

High demand required the school to move several times to accommodate more students. In 1912 the Watertown campus opened and was the first home to Perkins designed especially for students who were blind. This campus combined accessible architectural elements with an abundance of outdoor space that helped us improve the quality of services for our students. 

Over the years, Perkins has responded directly to the evolving needs of children who are blind or visually impaired. For example, Perkins expanded its Deafblind Program tenfold in the 1960s in response to the surge of babies born with deafblindness due to the rubella epidemic. With mainstreaming beginning in the 1970s, inclusive public education became the model for students who were blind.

Perkins continues to focus on students with multiple disabilities, supplemental outreach programming, and early childhood education. Perkins also supports the families, educators, professionals and researchers who support children through educational and accessibility services, and professional development.

The Perkins Trust was created in 2007 and works to fund Perkins programs through philanthropy.

Restrictions:

Restricted to internal use due to student privacy.

Copyright:

It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from the owner of the copyright (the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless Perkins School for the Blind, its officers, employees, and agents from and against all claims made by any person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.

Credit line/Citation:

AG84 Perkins Trust Photograph Collection. Perkins School for the Blind Archives, Watertown, MA.

Scope/Contents:

This collection spans the years 1957-2013, the bulk dating from 1980 through 1999. It contains color and black and white photographs, negatives, and 35 mm slides. Subjects photographed include Perkins students, staff, and board members, projects, programs, graduations, adult services, Howe Press, school activities, and notable persons. Notable people include, President George Bush, Ted Kennedy, Bobby Orr, Ray Charles, and Robert Smithdas. There are also a few related items included with the photographs, such as a brochure and newspaper clipping. Some photographs are reproductions of material from the 1930s and earlier.

Arrangement:

1 Series, 12 boxes in original order, primarily in alphabetical order by topic

Related collections:

AG129 Photographs in the Archives Collection, Perkins School for the Blind Archives, Watertown, MA.

Container List:

Box 1:

  • Blind Babies Foundation, San Francisco, CA, undated
  • Blind Children’s Center, Los Angeles, CA, undated
  • Boy Scout black and white photographs, undated
  • Development/PR Office photographs and negatives, including a reproduction of a David Abraham photograph from 1930s, undated
  • Howe Press display boards for Corporation Day, 1984
  • Foundation for the Junior Blind, L.A., CA, undated
  • Gallagher, Bill, photographs and negatives of him as Perkins student and leader at the American Foundation for the Blind, undated
  • Graduation black and white photographs, 1988
  • Hilton building booklet negatives, undated
  • Hilton building dedication program and photographs of President George Bush, 1994
  • Hilton Program, Perkins campus, circa 1990, 1995
  • Hilton, Conrad portrait slide, undated
  • HP [Hilton Perkins] slides for a presentation, 1990-1999
  • Horticulture photos [also labeled Horticulture Therapy Handbook: 1993], circa 1993, 2001
  • Jane Atwood black and white photos, 1983

Box 2:

  • Foundation for the Junior Blind, undated
  • Various photographs of Perkins students, campus, and Ted Kennedy, circa 1987, 1988
  • National Conference on Deaf-blindness contact sheets, 1992
  • Navajo Project, circa 1993
  • Pappas Greenhouse and weight room equipment negatives, undated
  • Playground, Bradlee Field, undated
  • Preschool, circa 1994

Box 3:

  • Horticultural Therapy Handbook, 1993
  • Julie O’Neil, 1990
  • Perkins Board of Trustees Portraits, 2005-2007, 2010-2011

Box 4:

  • William Gibson
  • Edward Allen, Jr.
  • Ray Charles
  • Anne Bancroft
  • Mary Grace Knap Burtt (alumni)
  • Up with People
  • Perkins Choir, Kathleen Kelleher
  • Willie Whistle
  • Charles Winchell (alumni)
  • Joseph P. Lash, Jaimie Lard
  • Bobby Orr
  • Sina Fladeland Waterhouse
  • Robert Smithdas, Tom Sullivan
  • Patty Duke
  • Sidewalk Sam
  • Ted Kennedy, Joe Kennedy
  • George Bush, Hiltons

Box 5:

  • Lower school, circa 1960-1999
  • Lower school, circa 1980-1993
  • Lower school, circa 1980-1999

Box 6:

  • Lower school, circa 1980-1999
  • Secondary school, circa 1960-1999
  • Secondary school, circa 1980-1993

Box 7:

  • Howe Press, circa 1960-1999
  • Deafblind program, circa 1960-1999
  • Deafblind program, circa 1960-1999
  • Program supervisors, circa 1960-1999
  • Recycling, circa 1980-1999
  • Recycling, circa 1993
  • Adult services, circa 1960-1999

Box 8:

  • Circus clowns, circa 1990
  • Track meet, circa 1980-1999
  • Braille Talking Book Library, circa 1960-1999
  • Donations, circa 1986
  • Infant toddler program, circa 1960-1999
  • Infant toddler program, circa 1970-1999

Box 9:

  • Campus, circa 1910-1999
  • Employee recognition, circa 1970-1999
  • Howe Press, 1992 (Delis Etienne & Perkins Brailler)
  • ​John Dix Fisher’s Grave, Mt. Auburn Cemetery, 1979 [includes photocopy of news story]
  • Interior/globe, undated 1994
  • Director’s Office, undated, 1957
  • Head injury adult services, July 1987
  • Education Leadership Program graduation, 1995

Box 10 OVERSIZE:

  • Infant Toddler Program, circa 1970-1999
  • Deafblind program, circa 1960-1999
  • Lower school, 1980-1993
  • Sidewalk Sam, Ect., contact sheet
  • Bobby Orr, contact sheet, 1981
  • Willie Whistle, lower school, contact sheet
  • Blind Babies Foundation

Box 11: 35mm Negatives

  1. D. Delpolio View Book 35 mm negatives
  2. ​Personalities– Bobby Orr 35 mm negatives, 1981
  3. Personalities– Ray Charles 35 mm negatives, 1982
  4. Personalities– Ray Charles 35 mm negatives, 1982
  5. Personalities– Sidewalk Sam, ect. 35 mm negatives
  6. Personalities– UP with People, space shuttle, Ken Stuckey 35 mm negatives, 1986
  7. Personalities– Edward Allen, Jr. 35 mm negatives, undated
  8. Personalities– Willie Whistle/Lower School 35 mm negatives, 1986
  9. Preschool 35 mm negatives
  10. Preschool 35 mm negatives
  11. Preschool #29 Bobby from preschool file, 35 mm negatives
  12. Preschool #11 Tommy from preschool file, 35 mm negatives
  13. Recycling 35 mm negatives, circa 1993
  14. Recycling 35 mm negatives, circa 1993
  15. Track meet 35 mm negatives, circa 1980-1999

Box 12: Large format negatives

  • Director’s Office, 4×5 negatives, undated, 1957
  • ​Adults working on wood boat, 2×4 negative, circa 1960-1999
  • Head Injury Adult Services, 8×10 negatives, 1987

Provenance:

This collection was transferred to Perkins Archives by the Perkins Trust Department.

Subject Headings: 

  • Perkins School for the Blind.
  • Perkins School for the Blind–History.
  • Student activities.
  • Trusts and trustees.
  • Kennedy, Edward Moore, 1961-
  • Smithdas, Robert J.
  • Orr, Bobby, 1948-
  • Sidewalk Sam
  • Charles, Ray, 1930-2004
  • Bush, George, 1924-2018

Explore more resources from the Archives

Learn more about our collections, including digitized materials, and resources related to the history of Perkins School for the Blind and the history of education for people with blindness or deafblindness.