In the mid-1800s, people who were found to be mentally ill or with intellectual disabilities often were outcast by their families, and shunned by society. Many were living in the streets or jailed. Dr. Alfred Elwyn sought to change the way society cared for these individuals by founding the Pennsylvania Training School for the Feeble-Minded in 1852 in Germantown. It later became known as Elwyn Institute and then simply Elwyn.

Dr. Elwyn was a Pennsylvania physician who was inspired by Dr. James Richards and his experimental classroom for children with disabilities at the South Boston Institute for the Blind. Beginning with only 26 children, Elwyn has grown into a large organization that serves over 12,000 people with a wide range of intellectual and physical disabilities.

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