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Ivy Green-Childhood Home of Helen Keller

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

This site is where deaf and blind Helen Keller was born and learned to communicate, with the aid of her teacher and constant companion, Anne Sullivan. By age 10, Helen had mastered Braille as well as the manual alphabet and even learned to use the typewriter. By the time she was 16, Helen could speak well enough to go to preparatory school and to college. In 1904 she was graduated "cum laude" from Radcliffe College.


Images

  • Tours of the house are offered daily, while playwright William Gibson's epic drama, "The Miracle Worker" is performed on the grounds on weekends from early June through mid July.
  • The Story of My Life, first published in 1903, is Helen Keller's autobiography detailing her early life.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Helen Keller would eventually become one of the most influential Americans, working to increase awareness of issues related to blindness and other disabilities. She was also a strong advocate of social and economic equality and delivered lectures in more than 25 countries on topics related to a number of social causes. Many of these causes, such as her support for birth control, women's suffrage, and socialism, were unpopular at the time (and/or remain controversial). Read more about her efforts in "The Radical Lives of Helen Keller" from NYU Press by clicking on the link below. 

Additional Information