Though many Connecticut schools were violently attacked and vandalized at the onset of integration attempts in the early 1800s, one local school remained unharmed.

The American School for the Deaf – the first school in the state and, possibly, the nation to educate black students – will now be recognized as a site on the Connecticut Freedom Trail.

"It shows our dedication to the education of all students, as we have done almost for 200 years," said Brad Moseley, ASD museum coordinator. "It's not the color of your skin that's the key thing. Most of the time, when deaf people see other deaf people, they don't see color."

Moseley said ASD historians and teachers helped research the school's history with the Amistad affair in the mid-1800s and the Connecticut Abolitionist Movement before applying for site recognition.

The school is hosting a ceremony on Sept. 19 to celebrate their recent recognition as a site on the Freedom Trail, which designates places that embody the state's struggle toward freedom and celebrates the accomplishments of the state's African American community.

Gary E. Wait, a retired ASD archivist, said the school started accepting black students as early as 1825, many of whom came from other New England states.

Also historically significant is the school's connection to the Amistad trial, he said. In 1839, the slave ship Amistad washed ashore in New London carrying kidnapped Mende Africans. Connecticut officials were unable to communicate with the prisoners, Wait said.

Scrolls from ASD showing pictures and words were brought to the Mende Africans to help them learn English, Moseley said.

ASD Founders Thomas Gallaudet and Laurent Clerc also introduced sign language to the Mende captives, ASD Executive Director Jeffrey Bravin wrote in a letter to the Connecticut Freedom Trail Selection Committee.

"This intervention by ASD's founders not only allowed for the stories of the Mende Africans to be told, but perhaps allowed for their ultimate freedom, as well," Bravin wrote.

Liz Whitty, ASD director of institutional advancement, said it is important for the school to recognize the influence it has had on the community.

"One of the things I find really significant about getting this honor is that we have been around here 200 years and we have been a part of American history," she said. "The Amistad story is a part of American history … and we were instrumental in that."