Aberdeen Institution for the Education of the Deaf and Dumb

ABERDEEN INSTITUTION FOR THE EDUCATION OF THE DEAF AND DUMB (1817-?); later the Aberdeen School for the Deaf

As with the Glasgow Institution, it was inspired by the Edinburgh Institution and its teacher Mr Kinniburgh.  It began at a house in upper Kirkgate in Whitsun 1819, later moving to School-hill.  The young teacher, Mr Taylor, was sent to train in Paris under the Abbe Sicard in 1818.  When Taylor resigned in 1833 a Deaf teacher, Mr Burns, took over until 1841.  From 1841 the teacher was Mr. Weir. In 1909, when the head was Alexander Pender (see picture below, with what appear to be long johns under his kilt!), there were 21 pupils at the school.

A rival day school was set up in 1818 ‘by a person of the name of England’ but it was unsuccessful and closed after a few years.

The school is still going, and has a link to the Education Secretary Michael Gove whose mother taught there.

History. Annual report, 1821. pp. 12-15. [photocopy of original]

Aberdeen Institution – in The Edinburgh Messenger, No.7, p.69-75, June 1844.

New development for Aberdeen School. British Deaf News, 1998, Jun, 3.

Annual Reports – 1821 (photocopy), 1844-6, 1846-1847, 1879, 1910-1912

Mission work in a constituted form did not however begin in Aberdeen until the late 19th century, something we see in other parts of the country.  The Aberdeen Deaf and Dumb Benevolent Society (1895-1959) was founded in 1895, later becoming The Aberdeen & N.E. Society for the Deaf (1960-? ) and The Aberdeen and North East Deaf Society (?-2010). Money problems were a constant issue for these missions, which have always lived on public generosity or small assets, and sadly the Aberdeen society crashed in 2010 with large debts.

We have the following annual reports –

1899-1922 (Bound volume), 1900-1970/71, 1976/77-1980/81 loose

One person of note connected with the mission was  William Wright (1859-1941). The son of deafened parents, he became Missioner at the Aberdeen Deaf and Dumb Benevolent Society in 1896. His son Hugh was Missioner at the Glamorgan and Monmouth Institute from 1931-39 and his daughter-in-law became Matron at Castelview Home in Edinburgh from 1945-62.

WRIGHT, T. William Wright. Deaf History Journal, 2001, 4(3), 18-20.