Harlan Lane - The People of the Eye: Deaf Ethnicity and Ancestry (Perspectives on Deafness)

"A valuable contribution to Deaf Studies and other fields, The People of the Eye will certainly improve our understanding of humanity."

-Yerker Andersson, President Emeritus, World Federation of the Deaf

"A wonderful contribution that certainly makes a convincing case for Deaf ethnicity."

-Dennis Cokely, Director, American Sign Language Program; Director, World Languages Center, and Professor and Chair, Department of Languages, Literatures and Cultures, Northeastern University

"Outright fascinating."

-Richard Eckert, Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, University of Wisconsin-Richland

"Elegant prose, meticulous research, and well-aimed quotes make a convincing case for ethnicity. I especially enjoyed the spirited debate in the 'Yes, But' section, which had me on the edge of my seat. The historical portrait of early Deaf American life, which the authors painted so vividly, is sure to inform and inspire many generations to come."

-Anna Mindess, Interpreter Educator, and author of Reading Between the Signs: Intercultural Communication for Sign Language Interpreters

"The genealogical work in this book is groundbreaking. It goes beyond elite-driven histories and shows a dense web of interconnections among grassroots Deaf people. This book fundamentally alters our understanding of the origins of the American Deaf community."

-Joseph Murray, Assistant Professor, Department of Deaf Studies, Gallaudet University

Series Editors

Marc Marschark

Patricia Elizabeth Spencer

A Lens on Deaf Identities

Irene W. Leigh

The World of Deaf Infants: A Longitudinal Study

Kathryn P. Meadow-Orlans, Patricia Elizabeth Spencer, and Lynn Sanford Koester

Sign Language Interpreting and Interpreter Education: Directions for Research and Practice

Edited by Marc Marschark, Rico Peterson, and Elizabeth A. Winston

Advances in the Sign Language Development of Deaf Children

Edited by Brenda Schick, Marc Marschark, and Patricia Elizabeth Spencer

Advances in the Spoken Language Development of Deaf and Hard-of-Hearing Children

Edited by Patricia Elizabeth Spencer and Marc Marschark

The Gestural Origin of Language

David F. Armstrong and Sherman E. Wilcox

Deaf Cognition: Foundations and Outcomes

Edited by Marc Marschark and Peter C. Hauser

The People of the Eye: Deaf Ethnicity and Ancestry

Harlan Lane, Richard C. Pillard, and Ulf Hedberg

Harlan Lane

Richard C. Pillard

Ulf Hedberg

On the nature of the Deaf:

"The deaf are ... first, last, and all the time the people of the eye."

-George Veditz (President, National Association of the Deaf, 1861-1937). Ninth Convention of the National Association of the Deaf and Third World's Congress of the Deaf, 1910. Philadelphia: Philocophus Press, 1912. p. 30.

On sign language and the Deaf:

"The topic that concerns you, gentlemen, rather than an ordinary medical issue is, above all, a lofty question of humanity and civilization which requires deep reflection, not only by doctors but by teachers, philosophers and scholars."

-Ferdinand Berthier (French Deaf leader and educator, 18031886). Observations sur la mimique consideree dons ses rapports avec 1'enseignement des sourds-muets. A M. le President et a Messieurs les Membres de I'Academie Imperiale de Medecine. Paris: Martinet, 1853. (transl. H. Lane)

List of Illustrations xiii

Acknowledgments xv

Introduction xvii

Part I: Ethnicity and the Deaf-World

1. Cultural Cohesive Forces

Language

Bonding to One's Kind

Cultural Rules and Values

Social Institutions

The Language Arts

The Visual Arts

History

Ethnic Territory

Kinship

Ancestry in the Deaf-World

Socialization

2. Ethnic Boundaries

Outside Forces

Inside Forces

Multiethnicity

Summary

3. Yes, But

On Assimilation

On Deaf Bodies

On Socialization

On Other Challenges to Deaf Ethnicity

On Scholarly Recognition

On Disability

On Deaf Diversity and American Pluralism

Notes to Part I

Part II: Deaf Ancestry: Henniker, NH, and Martha's Vineyard, MA

4. Context: Settling the New World

5. The Brown Family of Henniker, NH

6. Martha's Vineyard

Vineyard Lineages

A Kentish Enclave

Life and Marriage on Martha's Vineyard

7. Assimilating and Differentiating Societies

The Bali Example: Desa Kolok

Notes to Part II

Part III: Deaf Ancestry in Maine-Northern Cluster

8. Migration from Martha's Vineyard to Maine

The Smith-Parkhurst Clan

The Davis Clan

The Newcomb Clan

The Smith-Hinckley Clan

The Sebec Lovejoys

The Samuel Allen Clan

9. Other Settlers in the Northern Cluster

The Jellison Clan

The Jack Clan

The Berry Clan

The Lovejoy Clan

Where Deaf People Lived

Notes to Part III

Part IV: Deaf Ancestry in Maine-Southern Cluster

10. Southern Cluster

The Rogers-Holmes Clan

The Badger-Boardwin-Brown-Glidden Clan

The Campbell Clan

The Curtis-Rowe Clan

Notes to Part IV

Part V: Deaf Ancestry: Summary and Reflections

Summary

Reflections

Notes to Part V

Appendices

Appendix A. Briefly Noted Lineages

Appendix B. What the Pedigrees Reveal about Genetic Transmission

Appendix C. Pedigree Methods

Appendix D. Every Name Index to Pedigrees at Our Website

Notes to the Appendices

Figures 2 through 17

Index

We thank the following people who assisted us in gathering, analyzing or displaying our findings: Ms. Ellen Adams, Ms. Carole Browne, Ms. Isabelle Chopin, Ms. Merce Crosas, Ms. Flossie Dere, Col. Wayne Frank, Mr. Jason Freitas, Ms. Mary French, Ms. Emily Gilchrist, Dr. Sue Hotto, Ms. Katarzyna Kaczynski, Ms. Eunice Ladd, Ms. Kay Lam, Ms. Shannon Locke, Mr. Jean-Louis Martinez, Ms. Jillian Motyl, Mr. Edward Murkland, Ms. Kelly Milligan, Mr. Michael Olson, Ms. Harriette Otteson, Ms. Cheryl Patten, Ms. Nancy Porter, Dr. Judy Shepard-Kegl, Mr. Tommy Strunk, Mr. Gary Wait, Ms. Sherry Walrath, Mr. Christian Wayser, Dr. Bencie Woll, Dr. James Woodward, Dr. Del Wynne.

We are indebted to the following colleagues who made many valuable suggestions concerning the manuscript: Dr. Yerker Andersson, Dr. Kathleen Arnos, Dr. Doug Baynton, Dr. Dennis Cokely, Mr. Russell Dover, Dr. Carol Erting, Dr. Francois Grosjean, Dr. Tom Humphries, Dr. Robert E. Johnson, Dr. Paddy Ladd, Dr. Harry Lang, Ms. Ella Lentz, Dr. Ceil Lucas, Dr. Harry Markowicz, Ms. Anna Mindess, Dr. James Morris, Dr. Joseph Murray, Dr. Carol Padden, Mr. Frank Philip, Ms. Joan Poole-Nash, Dr. Rachel Rosenstock, Mr. Gerald Shea, Dr. Theresa Smith, Dr. Ted Supalla.

In addition to the preceding colleagues, we had fruitful discussions of Deaf ethnicity with: Dr. MJ Bienvenu, Mr. Aaron Brace, Dr. Jere Daniell, Dr. Richard Eckert, Dr. Nora Groce, Dr. John Hinnant, Mr. Bill Moody, Ms. Sharon Neumann-Solow, Dr. Vincent Parillo, Mr. Brian Riley, and Dr. James Woodward.

We acknowledge gratefully the following organizations: the Gallaudet University Archives, the Harvard-MIT Data Center of the Institute for Quantitative Social Science, the History Factory, the Maine Historical Society, the Maine State Archives, the Maine State Library, the New England Historic Genealogical Society, Northeastern University Inter-Library Loan service, the Volta Bureau. The Office of the Provost, Northeastern University, provided partial support for this research and for Dr. Lane's sabbatical year. He acknowledges with appreciation the support of his scholarly work by his chair and dean.

The United States has many ethnic groups-it is a hallmark of our culture. This book asks if we have failed to recognize one: Americans whose primary language is American Sign Language (ASL).' No one knows how many such people there are but estimates generally range from half a million to 1 million members in the United States.' For the present purpose, we need to distinguish Deaf ASL signers from the much larger and more heterogeneous group of more than 10 million hearing-impaired Americans who communicate primarily in English or another oral language.2 Most of the people in this larger group had conventional schooling and became deaf after acculturation to hearing society-many of them late in life. Accordingly, they do not see themselves as members of a sign-language minority nor do they participate in its organizations, profess its values, or follow its customs; rather, they consider themselves hearing people with a hearing disability. Something similar is true in all nations: there is a group of visual people3 who use a natural visual-manual language (ASL in the United States) and who are often not distinguished from the larger group of people who view themselves as hearing impaired and who use a spoken language in its oral or written form.4 We warmly endorse calls for greater recognition and study of both groups.5 This book is about the Deaf signers of ASL, for if any class of deaf people constitutes an ethnic group, surely it is the signed language minority. In choosing to address this minority, we also benefit from considerable research about its language, culture, history, and social structure.