The Poor Farm in Haverhill was right around the corner from my maternal gf's house. A 92 yo aunt lives on the old site, now elderly housing, named, IIRC, for Saint Jack.
The Poor Farm in Haverhill was right around the corner from my maternal gf's house. A 92 yo aunt lives on the old site, now elderly housing, named, IIRC, for Saint Jack.
Looks pretty nice. Imagine what the inmates would do to the asylum today.
I need to do more research into the history of American welfare. I read Olasky s The Tragedy of American Compassion. In the 19th century work was required to receive either food or money --I forget which. Men chopped wood. Women sewed. As much as anything, it separated the truly needy from the panhandlers.
Until the 1960s welfare in MA was administered through the towns. People kept an eye on their welfare-receiving neighbors to see if they were scamming. They also urged out-of-towners to move along, like you see in the old movies.
According to Howie Carr the system completely disintegrated when welfare was moved to the state level.