Lynn Thorp is the energy behind MV Signs: Then and Now, an endeavor to revive Martha’s Vineyard sign language used from the 17th to 19th century.
Sign language
2016
2010
May 27, 2010
Sitting in a coffee shop in Oak Bluffs this week, Casandra Paasche could barely contain her hands as she spoke. Though speaking to a hearing person, her hands followed up every word with a signed gesture. As a sign language interpreter, she has made a career of translating spoken English for the deaf, and signing comes as naturally to her as breathing.
1997
December 5, 1997
This weekend, the Island remembered a time when many of its residents were bilingual -- when Vineyarders spoke both English and sign language and for over 250 years the deaf were accepted, not stigmatized by society.
It is a remarkable part of Island history, yet it seldom is the cause for celebration as it is a history that has been largely forgotten in recent years.
Until last Friday. On Friday, Vineyard residents and visitors were reintroduced to the Island’s signing history at the very first Sign Language Heritage Event, held at the Old Whaling Church in Edgartown.
1922
August 24, 1922
The death of Alexander Graham Bell arouses renewed interest in the great inventor’s connection with Martha’s Vineyard. Bell’s concern with the island and its people was much more than a thing of the moment. His visits and at least one prolonged stay on the island were the result of his desire to investigate the so-called “deaf-mute” town in Chilmark about which a fictitious tradition had sprung up.
1860
August 10, 1860
[Correspondence of the Gazette.]
CHILMARK, Aug. 1th, 1860.
