Bridgman, Laura

brij'man, Laura (1829-1889), a noted American woman. At the age of two she was attacked by a fever and lost her sight, her hearing, and sense of smell. She may be described, therefore, as a blind deaf-mute. She is noted in the annals of education for the great ease with which she learned to sew, to knit, to read, and to write. She had a touch of marvelous delicacy. By placing her fingers against the lips of a speaker, she could understand what was said. She learned to write with rapidity and accuracy. Anyone whom she had ever met, she was able to recognize by the mere touch of the hand. She became well versed in geography, history, and literature. She became a teacher in a Boston Institute for the education of the blind. She carried on an extensive correspondence with the deaf-mutes throughout the world and was very happy in her work and friends. See Blindness; Telephone