Jack Gannon was born in Southern Missouri in 1936 and became deaf at age eight due to spinal meningitis. He graduated from the Missouri School for the Deaf in 1954. In 1959, Gannon graduated from Gallaudet and shortly after started his career at the Nebraska School for the Deaf as a football coach and graphic arts teacher. Eventually, in 1968, Gannon joined the staff at Gallaudet and retired as a Special Assistant to the President for Advocacy in 1996. During his years as an educator, he also gave numerous speeches at conferences for several organizations and schools, such as the Annual Iowa Conference on Deaf and Hard of Hearing, Pennsylvania School for the Deaf, University of Virginia, Maryland School Deaf. There is a house named after him on the campus of Missouri School for the Deaf. He is married to Rosalyn, who is also deaf, and they have two children together. Gannon is best known for his book, Deaf Heritage: A Narrative History of Deaf America, which was published in 1981. He also authored the book, The Week the World Heard Gallaudet based on the 1988 Gallaudet University protests demanding a Deaf president. One of his many projects consists of compiling information to form a comprehensive history about the World Federation of the Deaf. Jack Gannon, not only as a historian but also as an advocate, has contributed enormously to deaf history and deaf studies. He passed away in 2022.