In 1893, two pioneering orthopedic surgeons, Dr. Augustus Thorndike and Dr. Edward Bradford, saw the need to educate children whose physical challenges prevented them from attending school.  As an experiment, they founded The Industrial School for Crippled and Deformed Children in Boston.  Modeled after 19th-century European institutions, the school was America’s first for children with physical disabilities.

President David Manzo and Director of Advancement Elizabeth Campbell Peters trace Cotting’s rich history using photographs from the school’s archives.