Home > List of people with visual disabilities

1 Blind from birth

• David Blunkett - British cabinet minister
• Sidney Bradford
• Clarence Carter
• Jose Feliciano, (born 1945)
• Errol Garner
• Thomas Gore
• Al Hibbler
• Homer - said to have been blind, not known to have been blind from birth
• Blind Lemon Jefferson - Blues musician & singer
• Blind Willie McTell, (1901-1959)
• Ronnie Milsap
• Gilbert Montagné
• George ShearingGeorge Shearing (born 13 August 1919) is a well-known British jazz pianist. Shearing was born blind and started to learn piano at the age of three. After limited training and extensive listening to recorded jazz, he began playing at hotels, clubs and pubs
• Arnolt SchlickArnolt Schlick (c 1460 after 1521) was a German organist and composer of the Renaissance. Though records of his early life are sparse, most likely he was from the area around Heidelberg (based on linguistic evidence). Evidently he was blind throughout his - blind as an adult, no records of his childhood survive
• Alec Templeton

2 People who became blind later in life

• Rahsaan Roland KirkRahsaan Roland Kirk ( 1935- 1977) was a blind jazz saxophonist, perhaps best known for his ability to play more than one saxophone at once. Kirk was born Ronald Kirk, but felt compelled by a dream to transpose two letters in his first name to make Roland' (1935-1977) was a blind jazz saxophonist, perhaps best known for his ability to play more than one saxophone at once.
• Johann Sebastian BachJohann Sebastian Bach ( March 21, 1685 July 28, 1750) was a German composer and organist of the Baroque period, and is almost universally regarded as one of the greatest composers of all time. His works, noted for their intellectual depth, technical comma ( 1685Events February 6 James Stuart, Duke of York becomes King James II of England and Ireland and King James VII of Scotland. February 18 Fort St. Louis is established by a Frenchman at Matagorda Bay thus forming the basis for France's claim to Texas. June 20- 1750Events March 2 Small earthquake in London April 4 Small earthquake in Warrington, England August 23 Small earthquake in Spalding, England September 30 Small earthquake in Northampton, England November 16 Westminster Bridge officially opened Jonas Hanway i), became blind in later life.
• Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis Borges ( August 24, 1899 June 14, 1986) was an Argentine writer who is considered to be one of the foremost writers of the 20th century. A poet and an essayist, Borges is generally best-known for his short stories. Life Borges was born in Bueno, became blind in old age from a hereditary condition
• Louis BrailleLouis Braille ( January 4, 1809 January 6, 1852) was the inventor of the Braille writing system for the blind. Braille was born in Coupvray near Paris, France. His father, Simon-Rene Braille, was a harness/saddle maker, and at the age of three Louis injur, (1809-1852), became blind after an accident caused an eye infection at the age of 3.
• Andrea Bocelli - barely sighted at birth became completely blind at 12.
• Ray Charles, (1930-2004), blind from glaucoma since age 7.
• Frederick Delius, (1862-1934), became blind later in life after contracting syphilis
• W.C. Handy, (1873-1958), Blues composer, went blind in middle age
• Helen Keller, (1880-1968), blindness resulted from fever at age 19 months
• Esmond Knight - British actor
• Stalebread Lacombe - Jazz musician, went blind in middle age
• Francesco Landini - 14th century Italian composer; blind from childhood, from smallpox
• Fritz Lang, (1890-1976), nearly blind at the end of his life
• Mike May, (born 1954), regained partial vision due to stem cell research.
• John Milton, (1608-1674), became blind at the age of 42 (I waked, she fled, and day brought back my night).
• Claude Monet, (1840-1926), lost sight through cataracts in later life.
• William Prescott, historian, from childhood blind in one eye, severe visual impairment in other eye
• Joaquin Rodrigo, composer - from an illness at age three
• John Stanley, composer, became partially blind as the result of a domestic accident at age 2
• James Thurber - lost an eye as a child when his brother shot him with an arrow and as an adult lost the sight in the other eye.
• Sue Townsend - registered blind in mid 2001 due to a diabetic condition she has suffered from for 20 years.
• Doc Watson - folk guitarist, blinded by a childhood eye infection at the age of one.
• Stevie Wonder - blindness from retrolental fibroplasia caused by high oxygen concentrations in the incubator in which he was placed because of his premature birth.