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Poor Houses
Westmoreland
Virginia |
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The term "glebe
school" is common in many localities
to-day and the fund is still intact in
some counties. In
Westmoreland
County a school revenue is still derived
from several "glebe farms." This fund
was originally disbursed by a
Poor
School
society incorporated in 1813. |
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Locally, the poor and orphaned were
attended to by the parish church, unless
family members came forward to help out
those in need. By 1912 there was
one poorhouse for the Northern Neck,
holding 32 people. |
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A solution which,
in Dr. Mastin's opinion, would help to
remedy conditions was the elimination,
wherever possible, of the small county
poorhouse in favor of a district
institution. In many places there were
less than a half a dozen inmates. The
poorhouses of the eight counties in the
Northern Neck and Rappahannock region of
Virginia (Caroline, Essex, King George,
Lancaster, Middlesex, Northumberland,
Richmond, and Westmoreland) housed a
total of only thirty-two inmates. It
would be much cheaper to keep them in
one institution and they would have the
benefit of immeasurably better care.
Dr. Mastin
discussed this idea with many different
people and succeeded in converting,
among others. Governor Mann. A bill
introduced in the General Assembly of
1912 authorized counties and cities to
pool their resources and to establish
jointly supported district almshouses.
The bill aroused stubborn opposition in
many quarters and was defeated. In fact,
neither Governor Mann nor Dr. Mastin
seriously expected it to pass. It was
intended largely as an educational
measure.
As curative and
preventive measures, the Board advocated
the establishment of a state colony for
feeble-minded, the enlargement of the
State Colony for Epileptics, established
in 1911, elimination of the almshouses
by the extension of outdoor relief or by
consolidation into regional
hospital-home type institutions, and
numerous other measures later to be
discussed.
A number of
counties and cities maintained no
almshouses and dispensed outdoor relief
only. In 1912, approximately $100,000
was spent by counties and cities for
outdoor relief and between two and three
times as much for the maintenance of
almshouses.
Much improvement
resulted from laws which forced parents
to support their children and husbands
to support their wives. Other
improvements came about with the general
development of public welfare
institutions and facilities. In the
course of years, better almshouses were
built, more mental defectives were
transferred from the almshouses to
suitable institutions and colonies,
community chests and other private
charities received increased support,
and the level of social welfare in
general was raised. |
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Colonel John Tayloe, of “Mt. Airy,"
making his will in 1744, and his son,
John, thirty years later made unusually
interesting bequests to the parish of
Lunenburgh, in Richmond County. The
father left to the vestry three hundred
pounds current money, part of which was
to be spent upon two young negro men and
four young negro women who were to be
placed upon the glebe to work for the
use of the parish, while the remainder
of the money was to be spent in tobacco
and corn "to clothe the naked and feed
the
poor
of the
parish, not intending to lessen the
usual parish allowance to the
poor.”
He also gave two sows and
pigs, ten young cows and a bull to be
placed upon the glebe. The son left to
the minister and vestry five hundred
pounds sterling, in trust, "for the use
of the poorest inhabitants of the
parish, being honest people, to be put
on interest and the profits to be
distributed every year at the door of
the lower church of said parish on
Restoration day," when the minister was
requested to "give them a prayer and
sermon, not mentioning this bequest.”
He directed that the legacy should
“continue forever." It does continue today
and the parish still uses a handsome
silver communion service presented to it
by one of these masters of beautiful old
“Mt. Airy." |
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In
1750 Griffin Fauntleroy, of
Northumberland County, left six cattle
"to the
poor house-keepers
of Cherry Point Neck," in 1762 Charles Carter, of
"Cleve," "twenty-five pounds a year for
eight years to be divided among the
needy families of King George County,"
and in 1760 John Newton, of
Westmoreland,
twenty pounds to the
poor
of Cople
parish. |
Compilation
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2006 - 2011, rivahresearch.com
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