Louis Laurent Marie Clerc was a French teacher called "The Apostle of the Deaf in America" and was regarded as the most renowned deaf person in American

Laurent Clerc arrived in Hartford in 1816 and brought with him the sign language of Paris, a city with a large Deaf community. He taught this visually sophisticated language to Gallaudet and other teachers.

Laurent Clerc stands as a monumental figure in the history of deaf education and advocacy. Born deaf in 1785 in La Balme-les-Grottes, France, Clerc’s journey from a silent world to becoming a pivotal figure in the establishment of the first permanent school for the deaf in America is a story of resilience, innovation, and profound influence. This article delves into the life of Laurent Clerc, exploring his early years, education, pivotal partnership with Thomas Gallaudet, and lasting legacy in the deaf community.

He was taught by Abbé Sicard and deaf educator Jean Massieu, at the Institution Nationale des Sourds-Muets in Paris. With Thomas Hopkins Gallaudet, he co-founded the first school for the deaf in North America, the Asylum for the Education and Instruction of the Deaf and Dumb, on April 15, 1817 in the old Bennet's City Hotel, Hartford, Connecticut.

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