#TIL: Wheelchairs were once a status symbol?
The wheelchair is perhaps the most celebrated assistive technology. For a person living with locomotor disability, it brings a sense of freedom and empowerment. A person on a wheelchair is the International Symbol of Access. Bud did you know, back in the day, wheelchair was actually a status symbol?
Image description: White line figure of a person sitting on the axis of a wheel. The image has a blue background
The Chinese were probably the first to conceptualize a wheelchair. A stone slate discovered in China carries an inscription of a chair on wheels. This slate dates between sixth and fifth century BC.
Wheelchairs may have been brought to Europe in the 12th century. In 1595 an unknown inventor made an elaborate wheelchair for King Phillip II of Spain. The chair was befitting for a European Monarch with its plush upholstery along with luxurious arm and foot rests. It had four small wheels and was conveniently pushed around by a servant.
In 1655, Stephan Farfler, a 22-year-old paraplegic clock maker from Nuremberg, Germany, made the first self-propelled wheelchair. It was constructed on a three –wheeled chassis with a front handle attached to the geared wheel in the front. It was operated with a system of cranks and cogwheels. This wheelchair was a major milestone in the modern vehicle design considering that the first bicycle would not be invented for another few hundred years.
Image description: A black & white picture of a young man sitting on a chair. Two rear and one front wheels are attached to it. There is a large box with a rotary handle. The box is placed on the axel of the front wheel with about a quarter of the wheel enveloped in it. The man has one hand on the handle to propel the vehicle.
James Heath, an English inventor, introduced the Bath Chair around 1750. The chair got its name from the spa town of Bath in England. Although the chair could be steered by the rider, it had to be pushed by an attendant. In addition to transporting the sick, the disabled and the ladies, variations of the Bath Chair were also used as a rickshaw for the wealthy.
Image description: A brown chair made with wicker and fitted with two large rear and one small front wheels. All the three wheels are metallic and have spokes. The front wheel is attached to a handle which can be used to steer the chair.
Around late 1800s, wheelchairs were brought to the Atlantic City in the USA. The tourists living with a disability could rent them to enjoy the Boardwalk. Very soon, the chair captured the fancy of the visiting public. Many healthy tourists also started renting the wheelchairs pushed around by servants as an indulgence and a show of luxury they could never experience at home.
Significant advancements have been made in the wheelchair design after 1930. A tubular chassis along with the use of aluminium and titanium for construction has made modern wheelchairs sturdy yet light and portable. Sports wheelchairs allow para-athletes to push the human potential on the field. The introduction of motorized wheelchairs has been instrumental in empowering persons living with severe forms of disability. The late Stephen Hawking, one of the greatest scientific minds of the recent times and a royalty in his own right, is arguably the most famous person sporting a motorized wheelchair.
Image description: Image of a man dressed in a suit sitting on a motorized wheelchair. A screen is attached to the wheelchair and is facing the man. The photograph is taken in a lab.
With such an illustrious history, is it any surprise that the wheelchair was once a status symbol?
Today I learnt (TIL) is a weekly series by OMI that brings you interesting nuggets of information that you didn’t know you needed.
