The same year, 1815, saw Gallaudet start upon his errand, his expenses being defrayed by the society.[174] He first visited England, but finding there a monopoly composed of the Braidwood and Watson families, he betook himself to France. In this country he met with a warm reception, and here he eagerly set upon his labors of study and investigation at the school which de l'Épée had established. He observed closely, and then the following year turned his face towards America, equipped for the great work before him, and bringing with him one of the deaf teachers from Paris named Laurent Clerc.
On Gallaudet's return the second part of the undertaking for the creation of a school was to be accomplished, namely, the securing of funds, which required half a year more. For this purpose Gallaudet and a few others set about soliciting contributions. New York, Philadelphia, Albany, New Haven, and other cities were visited, and the interest in the new undertaking was shown by the response made.[175] By the time the school was ready to open, over $12,000 had been obtained, which was soon after more than doubled.[176] The contributions came from various sources, including individuals, societies and churches, and were from not a few states, and even foreign countries. A charter was granted the society in 1816 by the legislature of Connecticut; and $5,000 was appropriated for the school,[177] which was probably the first appropriation of public money for education not in regular schools.[178]
On April 15, 1817, the new school threw open its doors, and thus was established the first institution for the instruction of the deaf—in fact, the first for any of the so-called "defective classes." Its success was assured from the start, and there were many applicants, coming from different parts of the country. The school had to depend mainly upon private contributions, and for its maintenance efforts had to be continued to collect funds, pupils being taken for this purpose to several cities for exhibition, especially before church assemblies and the legislative bodies of New England.[179] It was not long in appearing, however, that, as the school was really to be national in scope, the United States government might be appealed to for aid. Visits were accordingly made to Washington in 1819, and the interest of certain of the members of Congress was secured. Among these was Henry Clay, who showed a particular regard for the new undertaking, and it was largely through his influence that Congress was prevailed upon to bestow upon the school 23,000 acres of the public land, from which in time $300,000 was realized.[180] It was the understanding, there being no census of the deaf at this time, that any state or individual might participate in the benefit of this grant, and that the school was to be open on equal terms to all.[181]
Though the school was regarded as national in one sense, it was also felt to be particularly New England's from the share that these states took in its development. Very soon after it had commenced operations a lively interest had been manifested; and in 1825 a meeting was held at Hartford of official representatives of all these states except Rhode Island, to discuss the possibilities of co-operation in its work.[182] Hardly, indeed, had the school entered upon its labor when, without solicitation, Massachusetts began sending its deaf children to it. It was followed in turn by the others, all the states of New England thus coming to provide for their children here as at a common school—a policy continued with all for many years. By this arrangement a certain amount from the state treasury was allowed for each pupil. The action of Massachusetts was taken in 1819, of New Hampshire in 1821, of Vermont and Maine in 1825, of Connecticut in 1828, and of Rhode Island in 1842. Two other states, far removed from New England, also by special legislative grants provided for pupils in this school for a time. These were Georgia and South Carolina, both beginning in 1834.[183] In addition, there were private pupils sent here from a number of states.[184]
The school at Hartford was now in full operation, with a nation-wide interest upon it.[185] But scarcely had it received its first pupil when other schools began to be established, and indeed New York and Pennsylvania are hardly to be considered behind Connecticut at all, schools in these states being in the course of formation when the Hartford school was opened. From the concern now apparent in many sections, it was soon evident that the new work was to spread over the land, and that the education of the deaf had achieved for itself an established position.
In New York, as we have seen, the Rev. John Stanford had found several deaf children in the almshouse of the city, and, moved by their condition, had sought to teach them. Interest was felt by other men, and the agitation for a school was furthered by letters from the American consul at Bordeaux in 1816, one of which was written by a French teacher and addressed to the "Philanthropists of the United States." A census was made of the deaf in the city,[186] meetings were held in their behalf, a notable one taking place at Tammany Hall, and private funds collected. In 1817 a charter was secured from the legislature, and the following year the school was opened. The city of New York displayed a warm interest in it, making a special appropriation at its beginning, and undertaking the support of a number of pupils for a time, besides furnishing quarters free of cost. In 1819 the state legislature, after an exhibit of pupils, decided to assist, making an appropriation for the benefit of the school, and soon afterward allowing a certain amount for each pupil. In 1821 New Jersey began sending children to the school, action being taken in this state by a unanimous vote.
Pennsylvania followed close upon Connecticut and New York. A committee had been organized in Philadelphia in 1816 to secure contributions for a school, and meetings had been held, though without immediate result. Late in the year 1819, or early in 1820, David Seixas, a Jew, finding several poor deaf-mute children to whom he gave shelter, made attempts to teach them. In the latter year a society was formed by certain citizens, after a meeting in the rooms of the American Philosophical Society; and being pleased with the work of Seixas, it decided to adopt his school. The following year, after an exhibit of pupils, the school was incorporated by the legislature, and granted a per capita appropriation of $160, while contributions from friends were numerous. In 1821, also, pupils were admitted from New Jersey, this state providing for them both at the New York and Philadelphia schools. In 1827 Maryland, and in 1835 Delaware, authorized the sending of children to the Pennsylvania Institution, exhibits of pupils having been made before the legislatures of these states.[187]
Kentucky in 1823 was the fourth state in the Union to establish a school. In this case, however, action was taken directly by the legislature, and the school has always been the property of the state. In 1826[188] Congress granted to it a township of land in Florida, on the theory that this school would be the center for pupils from the western and southern states; and it was for some years the place of education for many of the children from the southern states,[189] and also for a number from western states. With the establishment of this school directly by the state begins a new policy in the provision for the education of the deaf—the work no longer being entrusted to private individuals and societies. All the states that followed Kentucky in the creation of schools, with the exception of Maryland and some of the New England states, adopted this policy.
Ohio came next in 1829, although an attempt had been made to establish a school in Cincinnati as early as 1821.[190] Pupils were also received into it from neighboring states.[191] In 1838 Virginia established a joint school for the deaf and the blind, after exhibitions of pupils had been given in the state. In Indiana a private school was started in 1841, and three years later the state institution, action being taken by the legislature without a single dissenting vote. In this state another stage is reached in the work of educating the deaf: education which had hitherto been, by statute, free to the "indigent" only is in positive terms made free to all. This was done in 1848, and the action has been thus described:[192]
The doors of all asylums built at public expense for mutes, for the blind, and for lunatics were thrown open to all, that their blessings, like the rain and dew of heaven, might freely descend on these children of misfortune throughout the state, without money and without price.