Hunter, William

Born deaf at Southwark and attended the London Asylum for the Deaf and Dumb (Bermondsey) 1793-1801, then was appointed a teacher there. This made him the first deaf teacher of the deaf in Britain; he was trained in the Braidwood method of deaf teaching by John Creasy (q.v.), also deaf. Competing training in 1804, Hunter began teaching and remained there for 57 years until his death by apoplexy. Married a hearing woman. In an incident during the Napoleonic Wars, he barely escaped being forcibly impressed into naval service by a press gang that refused to believe he was deaf, because he spoke so well.