The Ladd School was once widely recognized as a state-run facility providing residential, vocational, and medical services for youth and adults with developmental disabilities. But over a century ago, it was better known as a feeble-minded school — an institution more closely resembling an almshouse and reformatory.
The Ladd School Historical Society is a private organization dedicated to researching and recording the history of the Dr. Joseph H. Ladd Center. Our mission is to fascinate and inspire new generations with knowledge in the hope of informing a more compassionate society.
This collection of nearly 1,000 photographs provides a broad, candid, and intimate look at life behind and beyond the walls of the Ladd School.
More than 15 hours — over six miles — of reel-to-reel film of the Ladd School, recorded between about 1960 and 1972.
Professional photographs of public events at and about the Ladd School in the 1960s and 1970s.
