Black and white photograph of Ray Werner and the wheelchair basketball team, The Jersey Wheelers, during a game.

Disability History

Because the history of disability is the history of people, it is layered with objects, innovation, struggle, emotion, drama, and surprise. The group “People with Disabilities” has always been the largest “minority” group in America. This reality raises one of the most ignored questions in history is: Why is disability seldom a part of the story? This hub gathers together various aspects of the museum that place people who are different, atypical, non-normative, or diverse—and consequently tagged as disabled or impaired—in the story of America, where everyone belongs.

Photo above: Photograph of Ray Werner and The Jersey Wheelers during a game. (2016.3137.05)