{"id":10876,"date":"2010-06-18T12:02:21","date_gmt":"2010-06-18T17:02:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/?p=10876"},"modified":"2010-06-18T13:19:18","modified_gmt":"2010-06-18T18:19:18","slug":"historical-marker-hints-at-tarnished-reputation-at-tsd","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2010\/06\/18\/historical-marker-hints-at-tarnished-reputation-at-tsd\/","title":{"rendered":"Historical marker hints at tarnished reputation at TSD"},"content":{"rendered":"

Historical marker hints at tarnished reputation at TSD<\/strong><\/p>\n

Ken Herman, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN<\/p>\n

Published: June 17, 2010<\/p>\n

Say you lived a long, full life. And say, like most folks, you had done some
\ngood stuff, some bad stuff and some somewhere-in-between stuff.<\/p>\n

And say, after you died, you got mentioned on a Texas historical marker. And
\nsay all it mentioned was a lowlight of your life.<\/p>\n

“In 1875-76, (Texas School for the Deaf’s first superintendent) returned to
\nNew York and Gov. Richard Coke appointed Gen. Henry ?McCulloch as
\nsuperintendent. McCulloch’s leadership caused the faculty and staff,
\nincluding then-Principal Emily Lewis, to leave.”<\/p>\n

In his 78 years, Henry Eustace McCulloch was a soldier in the Texas
\nrevolution, a Gonzales sheriff, a Texas Ranger, a Confederate Army brigadier
\ngeneral, a Seguin businessman, a Texas lawmaker, a U.S. marshal and a
\nMethodist church trustee.<\/p>\n

But on the historical marker at TSD all we learn is McCulloch’s “leadership
\ncaused the faculty and staff … to leave.” What, one might wonder (if one
\nhad too much spare time), did McCulloch do to earn such ignominy?<\/p>\n

Hey, I’ve got too much spare time. Let’s look for answers.<\/p>\n

At UT’s Briscoe Center for American History, I found a Jan. 31, 1877, notice
\nin which the board of what was then the Deaf and Dumb Asylum reported the
\nschool “has a full corps of competent teachers and employees” thanks to
\nMcCulloch’s “energy and management.”<\/p>\n

A Dec. 2, 1878, board notice to McCulloch reported on its review of
\n“dissatisfaction of some of your teachers and the demoralization of the
\npupils.” The problem, the board concluded, stemmed from “your mode and
\nmanner of living \u2014 which is like one family, all eating at the same table
\nand of the same food.”<\/p>\n

At the Texas Historical Commission, the application for the TSD marker noted
\nthat McCulloch’s “decision not to learn sign language caused an upheaval in
\nthe school.” But on the plus side, the application said, ?”McCulloch was
\nreviled for ideas which, from the perspective of a later age, seem
\nprogressive and even rational. He spoke out on the issue of providing
\neducation for black students who were deaf or mentally challenged.”<\/p>\n

So that’s the deal? Hounded from office because he was ahead of his time?<\/p>\n

“He may have alienated a lot of people by doing the right thing, which has
\nbeen known to happen in Texas,” said Stephen Hardin, a McMurry University
\nhistory professor who claims no deep insight into McCulloch’s TSD tenure.<\/p>\n

The fact that McCulloch gets positive mention \u2014 mostly for military exploits
\n\u2014 on other Texas historical markers doesn’t mean he wasn’t a giant screw-up
\nat TSD. But where’s the evidence?<\/p>\n

Perhaps in the Texas House Journal from the 16th Legislature. If you believe
\nour lawmakers (and who doesn’t?), it looks like “caused the faculty and
\nstaff … to leave” may be kinder than McCulloch deserves. A March 1879
\nlegislative report found nepotism, incompetence, fiscal shenanigans, cruelty
\nand a conclusion that McCulloch was “tyrannical and unyielding.”<\/p>\n

“The young ladies of the institution have been compelled to clean up the
\nrooms of the matrons of the institution, and not unfrequently have they been
\ncompelled to remove the evidences of those little accidents, which, by
\nreason of nature’s laws, occur to children at a tender age,” said the
\nreport.<\/p>\n

I’ll omit other findings in deference to those of you reading this over
\nbreakfast.<\/p>\n

But where’s McCulloch’s side of the TSD story? His autobiography at the
\nBriscoe Center notes he had to deal with outside political pressure and
\n“trouble with dishonorable aspirants … on the inside.” The center also has
\nan Aug. 14, 1879, McCulloch open letter about the legislative investigation.
\nThirteen pages, hand-written and, save for a few phrases such as “vile and
\nslanderous assault,” illegible.<\/p>\n

I’m not sure if it’s the same document, but a TSD history book authored by
\nSharon Kay Crawford \/ Forestal Hovinga and published for the school’s alumni
\nassociation refers to a booklet containing McCulloch’s defense. On the cover
\nis this unattributed quotation: “In robes of seeming truth and trust came
\nsly dissimulation. And underneath a gilded crust lurked dirty defamation.”<\/p>\n

The book notes the school’s board, in a statement, defended McCulloch as “an
\nold lion torn and mangled by curs and jackasses.”<\/p>\n

“Although equipped by neither education nor training to be superintendent of
\na school for the deaf,” the book concludes, “Henry ?McCulloch, in
\nretrospect, appears to have done as well as anyone could, given the
\nadministrative and financial burdens under which he labored. In light of
\nthis, it is amazing he was able to accomplish what he did in his short
\ntenure as superintendent.”<\/p>\n

Today’s lesson, courtesy of professor Hardin: When it comes to learning
\nhistory, “Markers are a good place to start but never a good place to
\nfinish.”<\/p>\n

kherman@statesman.com, 512-445-3907<\/p>\n

Source:
\nhttp:\/\/www.statesman.com\/opinion\/historical-marker-hints-at-tarnished-reputation-at-tsd-754344.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Historical marker hints at tarnished reputation at TSD Ken Herman, AUSTIN AMERICAN-STATESMAN Published: June 17, 2010 Say you lived a long, full life. And say, like most folks, you had done some good stuff, some bad stuff and some somewhere-in-between…<\/p>\n

Read more →<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_crdt_document":"","advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":false,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[5229,4621,21,4355,5228,5218,5223,5227,5215,5213,985,5221,5219,5226,5214,17,5224,5225,5220,5216,5217,604,80,1500,251,5222],"class_list":["post-10876","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-deaf-news","tag-alumni-association","tag-article","tag-austin","tag-autobiography","tag-briscoe-center","tag-confederate-army-brigadier-general","tag-deaf-and-dumb-asylum","tag-forestal-hovinga","tag-gonzales-sheriff","tag-henry-eustace-mcculloch","tag-history","tag-methodist-church-trustee","tag-seguin-businessman","tag-sharon-kay-crawford","tag-soldier","tag-texas","tag-texas-historical-commission","tag-texas-house-journal","tag-texas-lawmaker","tag-texas-ranger","tag-texas-revolution","tag-texas-school-for-the-deaf","tag-tsd","tag-tsd-history-book","tag-tsdaa","tag-u-s-marshal"],"jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p752R-2Pq","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":31881,"url":"https:\/\/deafnetwork.com\/wordpress\/blog\/2015\/09\/15\/deaf-awareness-week-2015-austin\/","url_meta":{"origin":10876,"position":0},"title":"Deaf 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