author
Harry Best
1880–1971
A careful researcher of social policy, Harry Best wrote early, wide-ranging studies on deaf education, disability, crime, and public welfare. His work combines detailed documentation with a clear concern for how institutions serve people too often overlooked.
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About the author
Harry Best (1880–1971) was an American social researcher and author whose best-known work examined the lives and education of deaf people in the United States. His 1914 book, The Deaf: Their Position in Society and the Provision for Their Education in the United States, was submitted as part of the requirements for a doctorate in political science at Columbia University.
Best gathered information from census records, government reports, schools, charities, professional organizations, and personal correspondence. His other works addressed blindness, epilepsy, crime and criminal law, labor conditions, and the Soviet experiment, reflecting a sustained interest in social problems and public provision.
Although few personal details about his life are readily documented, his books remain valuable records of early twentieth-century debates about disability, education, and the responsibilities of society.