Original: Laurent Clerc ( born Louis Laurent Marie Clerc ) ( 26 December 1785 -- 18 July 1869 ) was called '' The Apostle of the deaf in America '' and '' The Father of the Deaf '' by generations of American deaf people .
Simplified: Laurent Clerc , born Louis Laurent Marie Clerc , ( December 26 , 1785 in France - July 18 , 1869 ) co-founded the first school for the deaf ( people who can not hear ) in the United States .