John Vickrey Van Cleve & Barry A. Crouch 
Place of Their Own [PDF ebook] 
Creating the Deaf Community in America

Using original sources, this unique book focuses on the Deaf community during the 19th century. Largely through schools for the deaf, deaf people began to develop a common language and a sense of community. A Place of Their Own brings the perspective of history to bear on the reality of deafness and provides fresh and important insight into the lives of deaf Americans.