View source for Anne Sullivan

{{Short description|Teacher and companion of Helen Keller (1866–1936)}}
{{About|the teacher and companion of Helen Keller}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
{{Infobox person
| name          = Anne Sullivan
| image         = AnneSullivanMacy.jpg
| caption       = Sullivan in 1887
| birth_name    = Johanna Mansfield Sullivan
| birth_date    = {{birth date|1866|4|14}}
| birth_place   = [[Feeding Hills, Agawam, Massachusetts]], U.S.
| death_date    = {{death date and age|1936|10|20|1866|4|14}}
| death_place   = [[New York City]], U.S.
| spouse        = {{marriage|John Albert Macy|May 3, 1905|1932|reason=d}}
| resting_place = [[Washington National Cathedral]]
}}

'''Anne Sullivan Macy''' (born as '''Johanna Mansfield Sullivan'''; April 14, 1866 – October 20, 1936) was an American teacher best known  for being the instructor and lifelong companion of [[Helen Keller]].<ref name="Herrmann35">Herrmann, Dorothy. ''Helen Keller: A Life'', Alfred A. Knopf, New York, 1998, p. 35; {{ISBN|0-679-44354-1}}.</ref> At the age of five, Sullivan contracted [[trachoma]] which left her partially blind and without reading or writing skills.<ref name="ReferenceA">McGinnity, Seymour-Ford, & Andries, 2014</ref> She received her education as a student of the [[Perkins School for the Blind]]. Soon after graduation at age 20, she became a teacher to Keller.<ref name="ReferenceA" />

==Childhood==
[[File:Anne_Sullivan_Memorial.jpg|alt=Sign in a park that says "Anne Sullivan Memorial, Feeding Hills, Massachusetts, Funded by the Community Preservation Act Committee" under the Town of Agawam seal.|thumb|Anne Sullivan Memorial in Feeding Hills, Massachusetts.]]
On April 14, 1866, Sullivan was born in [[Feeding Hills, Agawam, Massachusetts]], United States. The name on her baptismal certificate was Johanna Mansfield Sullivan but she was called "Anne" or "Annie" from birth.<ref name="afb.org2">{{Cite web |author=American Foundation for the Blind |date=2009 |title=Anne Sullivan Macy Biography <!--DUPLICATE |date=2018-04-02--> |url=http://www.afb.org/annesullivan/asmbiography.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180402230158/http://www.afb.org/annesullivan/asmbiography.asp |archive-date=April 2, 2018}}</ref> She was the eldest child of Thomas and Alice (née Cloesy) Sullivan, who had emigrated from Ireland to the United States during the [[Great Famine (Ireland)|Great Famine]].<ref name="ReferenceA2">McGinnity, Seymour-Ford, & Andries, 2014</ref>

When she was five years old, Sullivan contracted the bacterial eye disease [[trachoma]], which caused many painful infections and over time made her nearly blind.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> Growing up, she suffered poverty and physical abuse at the hands of her alcoholic father.<ref>{{cite web |title=Anne Sullivan - Women In History |url=https://www.womeninhistoryohio.com/annie-sullivan.html |website=Women In History |access-date=2 October 2025}}</ref> When she was eight, her mother died from [[tuberculosis]], and her father abandoned the children two years later for fear that he could not raise them on his own.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> She and her younger brother, James (Jimmie), were sent to the run-down and overcrowded [[almshouse]] in [[Tewksbury, Massachusetts]], today part of [[Tewksbury Hospital]], and their younger sister, Mary, was left to an aunt. Jimmie had a weak hip condition and then died from tuberculosis four months into their stay. Anne remained at Tewksbury after his death and endured two unsuccessful eye operations.{{fact|date=February 2023}}

In 1875, as a result of reports of cruelty to inmates at Tewksbury, including sexually perverted practices and cannibalism, the Massachusetts Board of State Charities launched an investigation into the institution.<ref name="braillebug.org">{{Cite web |url=https://braillebug.org/hkgallery.asp?frameid=76 |title=A Brief Exit from Tewksbury – Anne's Formative Years (1866–1886) – Helen Keller Kids Museum |website=braillebug.org |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20200703190015/https://braillebug.org/hkgallery.asp?frameid=76 |archivedate=July 3, 2020 |date=2019 |author=American Printing House for the Blind }}</ref> The investigation was led by [[Franklin Benjamin Sanborn]], then chairman of the board, and [[Samuel Gridley Howe]], founder of the [[Perkins School for the Blind]] in Boston.{{fact|date=February 2023}}

In February 1877, Sullivan was sent to the [[Sisters of Charity|Soeurs de la Charité]] hospital in Lowell, Massachusetts, where she had another unsuccessful operation. While there, she helped the nuns in the wards and went on errands in the community until July of that year, when she was sent to the city infirmary, where she had one more unsuccessful operation. She was then transferred back to Tewksbury under duress.<ref name="braillebug.org"/> Instead of returning to the facility for predominantly ill and insane patients, she was housed with single mothers and unmarried pregnant women.{{fact|date=February 2023}}

In 1880, during a subsequent inspection of Tewksbury by [[Franklin Benjamin Sanborn]], now State Inspector of Charities, Sullivan implored of him to allow her to be admitted to the [[Perkins School for the Blind]], in [[Watertown, Massachusetts]], when she threw herself in front of him, pleading, “Mr. Sanborn, I want to go to school!” Within a matter of months, that plea was granted.<ref name="braillebug.org"/>

==Education==
{{stack|[[File:1912 HoweBuilding Watertown Massachusetts byAHFolsom.png|thumb|Howe Building, Perkins School for the Blind (1912).]]}}

On October 7, 1880, Sullivan began her studies at the Perkins School.<ref name="ReferenceA"/> Although her first years at Perkins were humiliating because of her rough manners, she managed to connect with a few teachers and made progress with her learning.<ref name="ReferenceA" />

While at Perkins, Sullivan befriended [[Laura Bridgman]], a graduate of Perkins and the first blind and deaf person to have been educated there; Sullivan learned the [[manual alphabet]] from Laura. During her time there, she had a series of eye operations that significantly improved her vision.<ref name="afb.org">{{Cite web |author=American Foundation for the Blind |date=2009 |title=Anne Sullivan Macy Biography <!--DUPLICATE |date=2018-04-02--> |url=http://www.afb.org/annesullivan/asmbiography.asp |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180402230158/http://www.afb.org/annesullivan/asmbiography.asp |archive-date=April 2, 2018}}</ref> In June 1886, graduating at age 20 as the [[valedictorian]] of her class, Sullivan stated:

{{Quote|Fellow-graduates: Duty bids us go forth into active life. Let us go cheerfully, hopefully, and earnestly, and set ourselves to find our especial part. When we have found it, willingly and faithfully perform it; for every obstacle we overcome, every success we achieve tends to bring man closer to God and make life more as He would have it.<ref name="ReferenceA"/>}}

==Career==
[[File:PSM V63 D081 Helen keller and miss sullivan.png|thumb|upright|Helen Keller (left) in 1899 with lifelong companion and teacher Anne Sullivan (right). Photo taken by [[Alexander Graham Bell]] at his School of Vocal Physiology and Mechanics of Speech.]]

The summer after Sullivan had graduated, the director of Perkins School for the Blind, Michael Anagnos, was contacted by Arthur Keller, Helen Keller's father, who was in search of a teacher for his seven-year-old blind and deaf daughter.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> Anagnos immediately recommended Sullivan for this position and she began her work on March 3, 1887, at the Kellers' home located in Alabama.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> As soon as she arrived, she argued with Helen's parents about the [[American Civil War|Civil War]] and over the fact that they had [[slavery in the United States|owned slaves]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Nielsen |first=Kim E. | author-link= Kim E. Nielsen |title=The radical lives of Helen Keller |date=2004 |publisher=New York University Press |isbn=9780814758144 |location=New York}}</ref> At the same time, she quickly connected with Helen. It was the beginning of a 49-year relationship: Sullivan evolved from teacher to governess and finally to companion and friend.<ref name="rnib">[http://www.rnib.org.uk/aboutus/aboutsightloss/famous/Pages/helenkeller.aspx The life of Helen Keller] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121231065031/http://www.rnib.org.uk/aboutus/aboutsightloss/famous/Pages/helenkeller.aspx |date=December 31, 2012 }}, [[Royal National Institute of Blind People]], last updated August 14, 2012. Retrieved December 30, 2012.</ref>

[[File:Helen Keller27.jpg|thumb|upright|Anne Sullivan (standing) with Helen Keller, {{circa}} 1909]]

Sullivan's curriculum involved a strict schedule, with constant introduction of new vocabulary; however, she quickly changed her teaching method after seeing it did not suit Keller.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> Instead she began to teach her vocabulary based on her own interests, by spelling each word out into Keller's palm;<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.afb.org/asm/asmgallery.asp?FrameID=98|title=Teaching Helen – Anne as Teacher (1886–1904)|website=www.afb.org|access-date=February 27, 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190228004003/https://www.afb.org/asm/asmgallery.asp?FrameID=98|archive-date=February 28, 2019|url-status=dead}}</ref> within six months this method proved to be working, since Keller had learned 575 words, some multiplication tables and the [[Braille]] system.<ref name="ReferenceA" />

Sullivan strongly encouraged Helen's parents to send her to the Perkins School, where she could have an appropriate education. Once they had agreed Sullivan took Keller to Boston in 1888 and stayed with her there. Sullivan continued to teach her bright protégée, who soon became famous for her remarkable progress.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.irishtimes.com/life-and-style/abroad/anne-sullivan-the-irish-american-who-taught-helen-keller-to-speak-1.3145288|title=Anne Sullivan, the Irish-American who taught Helen Keller to speak|last=Wallace|first=Arminta|newspaper=The Irish Times|language=en|access-date=February 27, 2019}}</ref> With the help of the school's director, Anagnos, Keller became a public symbol for the school, helping to increase its funding and donations and making it the most famous and sought-after school for the blind in the country. An accusation of plagiarism against Keller greatly upset Sullivan; she left and never returned but remained influential to the school.<ref name="ReferenceA" />

Sullivan remained a close companion to Keller and continued to assist in her education, which ultimately included a degree from [[Radcliffe College]] (now part of [[Harvard University]]). In 1916, Sullivan and Keller went on a lecture tour under the auspices of the [[Y.W.C.A.]] that brought them to the stage at the [[Mabel Tainter Memorial Building]] in [[Menomonie, Wisconsin]], on January 22, 1916. During the hour-long presentation, Sullivan, identified as Mrs. Macy in the newspaper account, described her work with Keller, followed by Keller's talk on "Happiness".<ref>"Helen Keller Is a Favorite Here," ''The Dunn County News'', January 27, 1916, p. 1 accessed on April 13, 2023, https://menomoniepubliclibrary.newspapers.com/image/542669318/?terms=%22Helen%20Keller%22&match=1</ref>

==Personal life==
[[File:Helen Keller with Anne Sullivan in July 1888.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan vacationing at [[Cape Cod]] in July 1888]]

On May 3, 1905, Sullivan  married [[Harvard University]] instructor and literary critic John Albert Macy (1877–1932), who had helped Keller with her publications.<ref name="Lash, 1980">Lash, 1980</ref> When she married, Sullivan was already living with Keller as her personal teacher, so Macy moved into the household of both women. However, within a few years, the marriage began to disintegrate. By 1914, they separated, though Macy is listed as living as a "lodger" with them in the 1920 U.S. Census.<ref name="1920census">In the 1920 census, Keller was 38 years old and listed as head of her household in Queens, New York. Sullivan, age 52, is listed as living with her as a private teacher. John, age 44, is also listed as living with them, as a "lodger", with the occupation of writer/author.</ref> As the years progressed after their separation, Macy appears to have faded from her life, and the two never officially divorced. Macy died in 1932 of a heart attack.<ref>{{cite web |title=Dr. John Albert Macy Dies |url=https://www.newspapers.com |website=Newspapers.com |publisher=The Baltimore Sun |date=August 27, 1932 |access-date=October 20, 2021 |page=2}}</ref> Sullivan never remarried.

==Awards==
In 1932, Sullivan and Keller were each awarded honorary fellowships from the [[Educational Institute of Scotland]]. They were also awarded honorary degrees from [[Temple University]].<ref>Herrmann, pp. 252–53</ref> In 1955, Keller was awarded an [[honorary degree]] from Harvard University,<ref name="Lash, 1980" /> and in 1956 the director's cottage at the Perkins School was named the Keller-Macy Cottage.<ref name="ReferenceA" /> In 2003, Sullivan was inducted into the [[National Women's Hall of Fame]].<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.womenofthehall.org/inductee/anne-sullivan/|title=Anne Sullivan (Anne Sullivan Macy)|website=National Women's Hall of Fame}}</ref>

==Death==
Sullivan had been seriously visually impaired for almost all of her life, but by 1935, she became completely blind. On October 16, 1936, she had a [[coronary thrombosis]], fell into a coma, and died four days later<ref>Nielsen, p. 266</ref> at the age of 70 in the [[Forest Hills, Queens|Forest Hills]] neighborhood of [[Queens|Queens, New York]], with Keller holding her hand.<ref>Herrmann, p. 255.</ref> Keller described Sullivan as being very agitated during her last month of life, but during the last week, she was said to return to her normal generous self.<ref>Nielsen, p. 266.</ref> Sullivan was cremated and her ashes interred in a memorial at the National Cathedral in Washington, D.C.<ref>Wilson, Scott. ''Resting Places: The Burial Sites of More Than 14,000 Famous Persons'', 3rd ed.: 2 (Kindle Locations 24972–24974). McFarland & Company, Inc., Publishers. Kindle edition.</ref> She was the first woman to be recognized for her achievements in this way. When Keller died in 1968, she was cremated as well and her ashes were interred alongside those of Sullivan.<ref>{{cite web |title=Becoming Helen Keller |url=https://www.pbs.org/wnet/americanmasters/becoming-helen-keller-full-episode-with-extra-accessibility-features/18856/ |website=PBS.org |date=October 20, 2021 |access-date=October 20, 2021}}</ref>

==Media representation==
In the 1919 film ''[[Deliverance (1919 film)|Deliverance]]'' she is played by Edith Lyle. Sullivan is the main character in ''[[The Miracle Worker (play)|The Miracle Worker]]'' by [[William Gibson (playwright)|William Gibson]], originally produced for television in 1957, in which she was portrayed by [[Teresa Wright]].<ref>{{IMDb name|0942863|Teresa Wright (I)}}</ref> ''The Miracle Worker'' then moved to Broadway and later was produced as a [[The Miracle Worker (1962 film)|1962 feature film]]. Both the play and the film featured [[Anne Bancroft]] as Sullivan.<ref>{{IMDb name|0000843|Anne Bancroft (I)}}</ref> [[Patty Duke]], who played Keller on Broadway and in the 1962 film, later played Sullivan in a [[The Miracle Worker (1979 film)|1979 television remake]].<ref>{{IMDb name|0001157|Patty Duke}}</ref> [[Blythe Danner]] portrayed her in ''[[The Miracle Continues]]'' and [[Roma Downey]] portrayed her in the TV movie ''Monday After the Miracle'' (1998).<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.deseret.com/1998/11/15/19412262/roma-downey-also-stars-in-cbs-movie-miracle|title=Roma Downey also stars in CBS movie 'Miracle'|date=November 15, 1998|website=Deseret News}}</ref> [[Alison Elliott]] portrayed her in a [[The Miracle Worker (2000 film)|2000 television movie]].<ref>{{IMDb name|0254362|Alison Elliott (I)}}</ref> [[Alison Pill]] played her on Broadway in the short-lived 2010 revival, with [[Abigail Breslin]] as Keller. In 1980, the United States Postal Service issued a [[:File:Helen Keller & Anne Sullivan issue of 1980.jpg|commemorative stamp]], honoring Sullivan and Keller.<ref>{{cite web |title=Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan |url=https://postalmuseum.si.edu/exhibition/women-on-stamps-part-2-education-enriching-lives/helen-keller-and-anne-sullivan |access-date=December 24, 2024 |website=National Postal Museum}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |last=Hotchner |first=John M. |date=March 30, 2021 |title=Readers respond to Helen Keller stamp designs |url=https://www.linns.com/news/us-stamps-postal-history/readers-respond-to-helen-keller-stamp-designs |access-date=December 24, 2024 |magazine=Linns Stamp News}}</ref>

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
* {{Cite book | last = Lash | first = Joseph | title = Helen and teacher: the story of Helen Keller and Anne Sullivan Macy | publisher = Delacorte Press | location = New York | year = 1980 | isbn = 9780440036548 }}
* McGinnity, B. L., J. Seymour-Ford, and K. J. Andries. "Anne Sullivan". Perkins School for the Blind. February 14, 2014. Accessed February 14, 2014. [http://www.perkins.org/vision-loss/helen-keller/sullivan.html Anne Sullivan] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141107215827/http://www.perkins.org/vision-loss/helen-keller/sullivan.html |date=November 7, 2014 }}.
* {{Cite book |last=Nielsen |first=Kim E.| author-link= Kim E. Nielsen |title=Beyond the miracle worker: the remarkable life of Anne Sullivan Macy and her extraordinary friendship with Helen Keller |date=2009 |publisher=Beacon Press |isbn=9780807050507 |location=Boston}}
* [http://library.uml.edu/clh/tewalms/SAlms.htm Tewksbury Almshouse patient records]—UMass Lowell Library

==Further reading==
{{Library resources box|by=yes|onlinebooks=yes|viaf= 15027612 }}
* {{Cite book |last=Braddy |first=Nella |year=1933 |title=Anne Sullivan Macy: The Story Behind Helen Keller |url=https://archive.org/details/annesullivanmacy000333mbp |publisher=Doubleday, Doran & Company}}
* {{Cite book |last=Keller |first=Helen |year=1955 |title=Teacher, Anne Sullivan Macy: A Tribute by the Foster Child of Her Mind |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Usu7AAAAIAAJ |publisher=Doubleday }} {{isbn|9780313247385}}.
* {{Cite book |last=Delano |first=Marfe Ferguson |year=2008 |title=Helen's Eyes: A Photobiography of Annie Sullivan, Helen Keller's Teacher |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y0dr8AZP5wAC |publisher=National Geographic Books |isbn=978-1-4263-0209-1}}
* {{Cite book |last=Miller |first=Sarah |year=2007 |title=Miss Spitfire: Reaching Helen Keller |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zo17vvgQj1IC |publisher=Atheneum |isbn=978-1-4169-2542-2}}

==External links==
{{commons category|Anne Sullivan}}
* [https://www.afb.org/about-afb/history/online-museums/anne-sullivan-miracle-worker Anne Sullivan Macy: Miracle Worker, a multimedia museum from the American Foundation for the Blind]
* {{Gutenberg author |id=896| name=Annie Sullivan}}
* {{Internet Archive author |sname=Anne Sullivan |sopt=t}}
* {{Librivox author |id=16020}}
* [https://www.afb.org/about-afb/history/online-museums/helen-keller-museum Helen Keller Kids Museum Online]
* [https://www.perkins.org/anne-sullivan/ Anne Sullivan at Perkins School for the Blind]
* {{Find a Grave|659|Anne Sullivan|work=Educator|date=January 1, 2001|access-date=August 18, 2011}}

{{Helen Keller}}
{{National Women's Hall of Fame}}
{{The Story of My Life}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sullivan, Anne}}
[[Category:1866 births]]
[[Category:1936 deaths]]
[[Category:19th-century American educators]]
[[Category:19th-century American women educators]]
[[Category:20th-century American educators]]
[[Category:20th-century American women educators]]
[[Category:American blind people]]
[[Category:American governesses]]
[[Category:American people of Irish descent]]
[[Category:Blind educators]]
[[Category:Burials at Washington National Cathedral]]
[[Category:Deaths from coronary thrombosis]]
[[Category:Educators from Massachusetts]]
[[Category:Educators from New York City]]
[[Category:Educators of the blind]]
[[Category:Educators of the deaf]]
[[Category:Helen Keller]]
[[Category:Language teachers]]
[[Category:People from Agawam, Massachusetts]]
[[Category:People from Queens, New York]]
[[Category:People from Tewksbury, Massachusetts]]