;
Lorem Ipsum Dolor Spring 2016
2
Image 3: Drawing of the
original Tennessee
School for the Blind
Building (mansion).
Technology at
TSB
TSB has come a long way from its humble
beginnings. James Champlin, blind from birth, was
inspired to launch a small private school for the blind
in Nashville in 1844. His service to the visually
impaired was so successful that the Tennessee
Legislature voted to underwrite the establishment of
a "state" school for the blind.
In the 1860s, the school struggled to maintain
its existence through two deadly influenza epidemics
and the ravages of the Civil War. During the latter,
the school was appropriated by the northern army as a military hospital.
Victorious Federal troops later destroyed it by fire. During the Reconstruction
Years, 1865-1877, students reconvened in Nashville homes and rented
facilities until a wealthy philanthropist
donated a large mansion to house the
school. The institution flourished at this
location for some 80 years.
During the 19
th
and early 20
th
centuries, students received some
academic training, but the majority of
their day was spent in musical and
vocational training, including broom and
mattress making, chair caning, rug
64
