Description: This group of men and women who were alumni of the Ohio School for the Deaf had traveled to attend the World's Fair in Chicago during the summer of 1893. Originally known as the Institution for the Education of the Deaf and Dumb, the Ohio School for the Deaf was founded in 1829 in Columbus, Ohio. The school's Alumni Association was organized in 1870 and still supports the institution to this day. Also called the World's Columbian Exhibition, the 1893 Chicago World's Fair celebrated the 400th anniversary of the discovery of the New World. It emphasized modern technological, commercial, and agricultural advances and highlighted art, education, and culture. Between May and October of 1893, more than 28 million visitors flocked to see the 65,000 exhibits located on 686 acres of Chicago's South Side. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_WorldsFair1893
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Expositions and fairs; World's Columbian Exposition;
Places: Chicago (Illinois)
 

Description: Group portrait of the Ohio School for the Deaf baseball club, the Independents, in 1879. The seated man in the suit is Parley P. Pratt, the team's coach and a teacher of shoemaking at the school. Pratt is credited with introducing baseball to the Ohio School for the Deaf, and was manager for the team during their successful 1879 tour around the country. The Independents covered more than 3,500 miles during the tour, competing against professional and semi-professional teams and ending with a 44-7 record. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Independents1879
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball players; Athletes; Sports--Ohio--History;
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of Parley Pratt from "Historical and Biographical Souvenir of the Ohio School for the Deaf," published in Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. In addition to a history of the school's operation, the book includes "portraits and biographical sketches of representative alumni" such as Pratt. His biographical sketch states that Pratt was born in Pennsylvania in 1838, and lost his hearing due to illness at the age of 3. His family moved to Cincinnati in 1848, and Pratt was enrolled in the Ohio School for the Deaf around age 10. After graduating, he was appointed foreman of the school's shoe shop, a trade which he continued to follow throughout his career. He was recognized for introducing baseball to the Ohio School for the Deaf, and was manager for the school baseball club the Independents during their successful 1879 tour around the country. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Pratt
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball teams; Sports--Ohio--History;
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of William Ellsworth Hoy from "Historical and Biographical Souvenir of the Ohio School for the Deaf," published in Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. In addition to a history of the school's operation, the book includes "portraits and biographical sketches of representative alumni" such as Hoy. Hoy was born in rural Hancock County near the village of Houcktown in 1862. After losing his hearing at age 6, he was enrolled in the Ohio School for the Deaf in 1872. He graduated as valedictorian in 1879, and worked as a shoemaker back in Hancock County before entering the field of professional baseball in 1886. His career, recognized as the most accomplished for a deaf player in major league baseball history, included seasons as a center fielder with the Northwestern League in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, the Washington National League, the Buffalo Players' National League, the St. Louis American Association, and the Cincinnati National League, among others. He left baseball in 1903, and operated a dairy farm outside of Cincinnati with his family, but was active in support of the deaf community and the field of baseball. He died following a stroke in 1961, at the age of 99. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Hoy
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball players; Athletes; Sports--Ohio--History;
Places: Hancock County (Ohio); Mount Healthy (Ohio); Hamilton County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of Collins Stone Sawhill from "Historical and Biographical Souvenir of the Ohio School for the Deaf," published in Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. In addition to a history of the school's operation, the book includes "portraits and biographical sketches of representative alumni" such as Sawhill. His biographical sketch states that Sawhill was born in Pennsylvania in 1857, and moved to Columbus to attend the Ohio School for the Deaf in 1871. He worked in the school's book bindery as a student, and also played as a left fielder for the school's baseball club the Independents for three years. Sawhill went on to work in the steel industry in Pennsylvania, but remained active with the Ohio School for the Deaf alumni organization. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Sawhill_CS
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball players; Athletes; Sports--Ohio--History; Steel industry;
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of Edward Dundon, from "Historical and Biographical Souvenir of the Ohio School for the Deaf," published in Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. In addition to a history of the school's operation, the book includes "portraits and biographical sketches of representative alumni" such as Dundon. His biographical sketch states that Dundon was born in Columbus in 1858 (though other sources list 1859), and after losing his hearing at an early age, enrolled in the Ohio School for the Deaf at age 10. He was an active athlete, playing for the school's baseball team the Independents. He was drafted to the American Association for the Columbus Buckeyes in 1884, becoming the first deaf player in the major leagues. He continued playing professional baseball for various teams around the country until 1889, when his health forced him to retire. Dundon died several years later in 1893. According to the volume, "Since his day other deaf ball players have won distinction on the diamond, but he was practically the first one to enjoy a national reputation along this line. In the athletic annals of the Institution his name and memory will always remain illustrious." View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Dundon
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball players; Athletes; Sports--Ohio--History;
Places: Columbus (Ohio); Franklin County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of Isaac ("Ike") H. Sawhill from "Historical and Biographical Souvenir of the Ohio School for the Deaf," published in Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. In addition to a history of the school's operation, the book includes "portraits and biographical sketches of representative alumni" such as Sawhill. His biographical sketch states that Sawhill was born in Pennsylvania, and first moved to Columbus to attend the Ohio School for the Deaf in 1872. He graduated as valedictorian, and was also an active athlete, playing catcher for the school's baseball club the Independents. Sawhill went on to work in hog farming and later dry goods after a brief professional baseball career. At the time this volume was written, Sawhill lived in Seville, Ohio, and was "known as one of the best amateur cyclists of Northern Ohio, having held the county championship for the past two years." His wife, Sadie, is also noted as a skilled cyclist. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Sawhill_I
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball players; Athletes; Sports--Ohio--History; Bicycles and bicycling;
Places: Seville (Ohio); Medina County (Ohio)
 

Description: Portrait of William Sawhill from "Historical and Biographical Souvenir of the Ohio School for the Deaf," published in Columbus, Ohio, in 1898. In addition to a history of the school's operation, the book includes "portraits and biographical sketches of representative alumni" such as Sawhill. His biographical sketch states that Sawhill was born in Pennsylvania in 1865, and after his family moved to Guernsey County, he began attending the Ohio School for the Deaf in 1873. As a young man, he worked as a laborer before joining the Ohio and Inter-State League as a professional baseball player in the spring of 1885. After several years, he found a career in the oil industry, and married another Ohio School for the Deaf alumni, Emma Kob, with whom he had four children. View on Ohio Memory.
Image ID: 362_4H629_Sawhill_W
Subjects: Deafness; Ohio School for the Deaf; Baseball--History; Baseball players; Athletes; Sports--Ohio--History;
Places: Washington (Ohio); Guernsey County (Ohio)