1914 History of the County Asylum,
Lawrence County, Indiana

Transcribed by Treva E. Peckham 2003, from
History of Lawrence and Monroe Counties, Indiana, 1914, B.F. Bowen & Co., Inc.

THE COUNTY ASYLUM

"The poor ye always have with you," is as true today as when spoken by the master nearly two thousand years ago. The care given the unfortunate poor in any community bespeaks the true character of the people of such community. Here in Lawrence County the records show that a year after the organization of the county, 1819, there was an order issued by the authorities to pay to James H. Johnson, of Bono Township, who furnished the first relief to the poor of this county. The order called for thirty dollars. The pauper was Matthew Rose who continued upon the county for several years. The same year Mr. Johnson recieved twenty-nine dollars more for such relief and Dr. Winthrop Foote received five dollars for medical attendance upon this poor person. Soon afterwards each township had a person appointed and known as the overseer of the poor. He hunted out the poor persons within his township and farmed them out to the lowest responsible bidders, received and audited the expense accounts of the keeper, and sent the bills to the county board for final allowance. In 1820 there was spent for paupers $73.20 and 1822, $103. In 1825 the amount was $122; 1827, $130; 1830, $157; 1833 $187, and in 1835, $467. By this time the poor had become a burden to the taxpayers of the young county. Dr. John C. Cavins was appointed county physician at about this date.

The first poor asylum was provided for in June, 1842, when William Newland was appointed agent to purchase a site for a poor asylum, in amount not to exceed a quarter section of Land, nor not less than eighty acres, and to be within eight miles of Bedford. By the fall of that year he had purchased a hundred and sixty acre tract of Greenbury Owens, for eight hundred dollars. There was on this farm an ordinary dwelling, which was at once refitted and new floors provided for the rooms, and Mr. Owens appointed superintendent of the poor, he being provided with all needful articles by the county board. Dr. Winthrop Foote was engaged as county physician at one dollar per visit, medicines to be paid for extra. In March, 1843, there were seven inmates in this institution for the keeping of the county's poor. Owens filed his bills, which were paid by the board, the bill of March 1843 being ninety seven dollars and thirty five cents for the quarter for pork, lard, corn, coffee, sugar, dressed deer-skins etc. One cold night, James Bird, an inmate, wandered away from the asylum and was found frozen to death later. In 1846 new and improved arrangements were enacted for the caring for the paupers at this place. In 1845-46 the expense was greatly reduced and only amounted to about one hundred and sixty five dollars. Messrs, Fredman, Malott and Owens were then superintendents. In 1847 an apple and peach orchard, also cherry trees were planted out on the poor farm. There were only seven inmates in the asylum in 1847. In 1849 a new roof was put on the poor farm, or asylum as it is now styled. In 1851 there was a new building erected on the farm by Levi Overman costing $790 and was moved into in November of that year. At that date a visiting committee has charge of the asylum and farm. The expense of the place in 1855-56 was $1,619. Each permanent pauper cost the county $80 per year in those times. The rules of maintaining this institution remained the same from 1855 until about 1869... In 1873 there were eighteen paupers in the asylum. Early in the seventies Archibald Anderson was paid $1700 to erect a new frame poor house. It was two stories high. In 1884 there were thirty inmates in the asylum.

Among the superintendents of this institution may be recalled the following: Greenbury Owens 1842 on for a number of years; James W Freeman, John Colwell and Owens served jointly for some time. In 1846 M A Malott was superintendent. In 1847 came J T Woodward; Jonathon Loveall was superintendent three years in the forties. In 1857-58 Daniel Baker was superintendent; then came John Henderson, 1859-60; W C Mitchell 1861-70; William Day from 1870 on into the eighties.

The present superintendent (1914) is Clay Tirey, who is paid a salary and all supplies purchased for the asylum are by bidders among the merchants in the county. The same old asylum buildings that were named above are still in use by the county.