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Jefferson County Illinois |
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Jefferson County Illinois |
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(ALMS HOUSE) |
THE JEFFERSON COUNTY POOR FARM (ALMS HOUSE)
Lucy Grothoff, widow of Fred Grothoff, who lives near Opdyke, loaned
me the old County Farm Ledger
(1887 - 1936) to look through. The old ledger is very fragile and has been
wet in places making it impossible
to read parts of it Fred and Lucy rented the farm for a few years before
purchasing it in 1943, by sealed bid,
from the county. They found the ledger in the attic of the house where
the supervisor of the farm always lived.
When they purchased the farm, Webb and Harris, Abstractors, said it was
one of the shortest abstracts they
had ever prepared. Colton Summers first owned the land and his wife and
child were buried there in what was
later to become the “Poor Farm Cemetery”. He purchased 40 acres in Sect.
27, Mt. Vernon Township in 1836
and in 1840 purchased 40 more adjoining it. Jefferson County purchased
it from him, and the Grothoff's
purchased it from the county. They in turn sold it to the Airport Authority
along with 80 more acres that they
owned, making a total of 160 acres.
Lucy said that the big brick building that housed the tenants was set
on fire and burned down by one of the
enants before they purchased it.
THE LEDGER
The ledger listed who the Superintendent or Sexton was in each year,
the name, address, reason for pauperism,
occupation, who to contact, reason for leaving, and a list of items each
tenant brought with him when he came.
For many the farm, was just a stopping off place before being transferred
to Anna or Lincoln State Hospitals or
to an orphanage. Many who came were mentally ill or retarded, and many
others just had no place else to go.
Many were widows with children. Some were very sick when they arrived and
after only a few clays there died
and were buried there on the farm, In those days
There were no nursing homes, few hospitals, no public aid or welfare,
no Social Security, and if something happened
that you couldn’t take care of yourself, you ended up at the Poor Farm.
This was especially a dreaded thing for old
people who didn’t have family to take care of them and for people who were
injured or became ill and couldn’t work.
In 1905 a deaf and dumb man was admitted, no name was listed, all the
spaces said “don’t know”, and “went with
it’s mother” listed as the reason f leaving. I found it very sad to think
they Listed him as an "it" rather than as a “he”.
One womans residence was listed “in a tent, near an oak tree, by the
creek". Her occupation “Camping”, and her
reason for pauperism “a disgrace to the county”
Some of the occupations listed were’ (spelled as in ledger)
| Bum
Pluming Carpentur Stone Cutire Farmer Gardner Housekeeper Don’t know Tramp Machinist Hired Girl Wash Woman Undertaker Everything Printer Shumaker |
Nothing
Dairy Man Traveler Camping Pauper Crazy Wood Choper Dress Maker Barber Preacher Junk Buyer Shoe Cobbler Miner Runabout Hotel Man Farm Wife |
Peddler
Stone Mason Minister Painter Plasterer Tinner Hobo Tinker Gas Worker Cigar Maker Lawn mower Brick Layer Railroader Fiddler Common Labor Poor Farm Charge |
Handle Horses
Shop Work Hustler Sexton Nothing Car Shops Ditcher Juglar Loafer Servant Girl Wire Worker Cook at Hotel Horse Thief Weaver Public Work Nothing much |
Most came with nothing, but some had a few things;
| Bedding
Some clothing A valice Body Lice A trunk One comforter One bed. Bedstid and covers Almost naked a fiddle |
A few rags
A gun, a fife, & some clothing A watch, a valice A tool Chest Rocking chair A sack and suitcase A trunk & a sewing machine Bed clothes & cooking vesels a load of overtakers??????? (wonder what that was?) |
Some of the reasons for pauperism listed; (spelled as in ledger)
| Husband in jail
Cripile Pairlized No place to stay Lage sprained, caint walk Soure eyes, can’t see Crazy Very sick To lazy to work Regular bummer Always a pauper Tramp No home or friends everything imaginable Fitafied Cortfindness No mind at all Drunkard Epilectic fits Crazy at times Children will not care In critical condition Her man in the Pen. Paralisis Measles and confinement feet frozen, no home Parents in Jale Unable to care for self To old to work (age 86) Broke Broken leg Sore rist, sprained Mother at Co. Farm Not able to wairk Mother sick Lost use of right side Feeble mortded Wanted to rest No home Mother in Jail Disgrace to the County Saint Vitas Dance Almost dead from camping Parellized Insane A little idiotic Had the itch, no place to go Turned outdoors by father Sick with filth Wife couldn’t keep him Syphalis |
Old age and childish
Brought here dead Salivation Sic and no place to stay Bad case of skin.trouble Old and broke down No home, to lazy to work Dropesey Idiotic Deaf Thrown out in Street Blind Tramping, wore out Too many children Idiotic and diseased Exposed to smallpox Cripple, bad weather Bad haith Ruptured Consumption Found on road, sick Thier mother dead Rumatiz Hurt Unable to work Broken back Wouldn’t work Shot by parties unknown Child, father unable to care for him Worthless father (grandma took him) |
Reasons for leaving
| Discharged
Got able to work Someone came and got him Runaway Sent to Anna State Hospital Sent to Lincoln State Hospital Went to her husband Mother taken home, took children Found a home Went to tramping Ran away with a woman Sent to Washington County Went camping Husband came and got her Went visiting Went to live in town Got his pension, went to the fair Tuck away by court order Went to see his folks Rundaway Died here To orphants home |
Went to Brothers
Got over his drunk Her son came and got her. Got mad and left Went to do for himself Went loafing Bumming again Sent to St Louis Went to get married Went South To orphans Home at DuQuoin Went back to Arkansas Went to peddling A friend took him Left by order of the board Run off after night Sent to Anna Gone to parts unknown Her Grandad took her by court order’ her parents in jail |
Superintendents were;
| 1890,91,92— Albert Schultz 1893,94 J.M. Purcell 1895,96- Albert Schultz 1897- (page had been wet 1898- Albert Schultz 1899-1902 W. A. Smith 1903,04,05 unknown 1906- W.P Ford 1907-1911 C.W.Ragan |
1913,14 W.A. Smith 1915-1918 John E. Hester 1919- 20 WA. Holland 1921,22, - C.F. Davis 1923- J.W. Osborn 1924-29 John E. Hester 1930-32 unknown 1933-36 John E. Hester |
Source: Prairie Historian
Submitted By:
Cindy Ford
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