This historic house was the birthplace and childhood home of Heller Keller, a deaf-blind woman who became an author and an international public speaker, advocating for equal rights for people with disabilities and becoming a symbol of overcoming challenges to do great things. Heller Keller (1880-1968) was a healthy child, the oldest of five children who lived in a homestead, Ivy Green. She became deaf and blind at 19 months due to an illness. Keller learned to communicate with close people with 60 home signs; her mother, seeking ways to promote Keller, reached out to the school director of the Perkins Institute for the Blind, and he sent them one of the teachers, the 20-year-old Anne Sullivan. On March 5th, 1887, Sullivan came to Ivy Green to teach Keller ways to communicate; it was the beginning of a relationship that lasted for 50 years, at first as her governess and later as a companion. A month after her arrival, Sullivan was spelling the word water on the palm of Keller’s hand while running cold water over her other hand, symbolizing the concept of water. At that moment, Keller understood the mystery of language and learned to communicate. A year later, she started her formal education in several schools for the blind and deaf. In 1904, at 24, Keller graduated from Radcliffe, becoming the first deaf-blind person to earn a Bachelor of Arts degree. She traveled the world giving lectures, promoting equal rights for disabled people, and inspiring everyone with her story. Keller’s grandparents built Ivy Green in 1820; the simple structure originally served as a plantation office. Later, it became the home of Keller’s parents, Arthur Henley Keller and Catherine (Kate) Everett Keller. In 1954 the historic house became a museum commemorating the legacy and heritage of Hellen Keller. 85% of the items displayed on the house belonged to the Kellers. Also on view is a replica of the statue of Keller in the National Statuary Hall collection in the US Capitol, representing Alabama. Outside stands the historic water pump, where seven-year-old Keller understood the word, Water, a moment that opened the door to communication and took Keller out of her silent and dark surroundings into a new world. The museum hosts special events, including the annual Helen Keller Festival in the last week of June, celebrating her birthday and the annual Helen Keller Day, and the outdoor performance, the Miracle Worker, a play about Keller and Sullivan, presented during the summer time. Read more...