A twentieth century history of Marshall County, Indiana, Volume I, Part 46

Author: McDonald, Daniel, 1833-1916
Publication date: 1908
Publisher: Chicago : Lewis Pub. Co.
Number of Pages: 380


USA > Indiana > Marshall County > A twentieth century history of Marshall County, Indiana, Volume I > Part 46


Note: The text from this book was generated using artificial intelligence so there may be some errors. The full pages can be found on Archive.org (link on the Part 1 page).


Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46


The First County Jail.


The first county jail was built of hewn logs, and was completed August 1, 1838. From the plans and specifications it appears that the building was "to be sixteen by twenty, of white or burr oak timber, to be well hewed, and counter-hewn, twelve inches square; the foundations to be three sills, twelve by twenty inches, let into the ground twelve inches ; the lower floor to be laid with timbers hewn as above, twelve inches square, to be well laid and perfectly level; the walls of the first story to be made of timbers twelve inches square and hewed as above, to be built seven and a half feet high; then the second floor to be laid with timbers hewn as


343


HISTORY OF MARSHALL COUNTY.


above, twelve inches square, to be laid in a complete, workmanlike manner ; the above-said wall to be raised with a half 'duff-tail,' so as to fit down close and tite! to be two windows, twelve inches square and eighteen inches long; the grates to be let in the centers of the timbers at equal distance ; the said lower floor to be covered with inch boards, well seasoned and well matched, and spiked down with spikes two inches in length, and the spikes to be two feet apart one way and six inches the other; the said walls to be well lined with good white oak plank, well seasoned and matched together, two inches thick, spiked on with four inch spikes, twelve inches apart one way and four inches the other, the whole building to be weather boarded with good half-inch boards; the door of entrance to be five feet high and two and a half wide; said door frame not less than two inches thick, to be made of good timber, well seasoned, and hung with good strong hinges in the upper story of the north side, near the east end; one trap door, made of good oak timber, five inches thick, two and a half feet square, to be hung with good iron hinges, made for the purpose; the said door to be let down even with the floor, in a place cut through the floor for the purpose, to rest on two iron bars, three feet long, one inch square, with a good and sufficient hasp and staple, lock and key, to be placed three feet from the wall of the west end."


The contract for erecting this magnificent building was let, in 1837, to Oliver Rose and James Currier, for the sum of $399. The building was completed according to contract, and many who read this will remember the trap-door aforesaid, through which prisoners were let down to the "bottomless pit" in the regions below. This structure was used until the completion of our present (1879) old brick jail, which in time has given place to our elegant brick and stone jail, and sheriff's residence, completed as stated further on.


Second County Jail.


The plans for the second county jail, which stood in the southwest corner of the public square, were drawn by William M. Dunham. The contract for its erection was let, through a mistake in reading the bids, in 1849, to A. M. La Peere, E. Compton and W. G. Norris. This was after- ward corrected, and the contract let to Albert Bass for $2,380. The build- ing was completed according to contract and delivered over to the county June 1, 1851. The building proved to be a very poor one, and of late years it has been almost impossible to keep an expert thief from escaping through the tumble-down walls. Some five or six holes, or places where holes were made through the walls, could be seen on the east, north and west sides. Several years ago one end was knocked out by a stroke of lightning, but no serious damage resulted. It was recently demolished by Enoch Belangee.


Third Jail.


In the early part of 1879 the board of commissioners resolved to build a new jail, secured plans and advertised for bids. The plans adopted were drawn by J. C. Johnson, of Fremont, Ohio, and the contract let to William H. Myers, Fort Wayne, for the sum of $16,970. The heating apparatus,


344


HISTORY OF MARSHALL COUNTY.


furnishing, painting, fencing, etc., will probably bring the total cost to $22,000.


County Infirmaries.


The first county asylum, or "poor farm," as it was then known and called, was purchased in 1849, of John Murphy, for the sum of $1,671.II. It was situated on the Plymouth and La Porte road, then known as the "Yellow river road," about three miles west of Plymouth. For some cause which does not appear of record it was ordered sold June 19, 1853, for not less than $1,350, and the auditor was ordered or authorized to sell the same to Joseph Evans for $900 in Fort Wayne & Chicago railroad stock, and $450 in two equal annual payments. Why the county should have wanted to invest $900 in Fort Wayne & Chicago railroad stock, the road at that time not being built, or even in the course of construction, is one of the historical facts we have been unable to find out. Practically the stock was worthless, and whatever became of it is not known. The record of the sale of the "poor farm" does not appear, but the offer of Mr. Evans was probably accepted, as he afterwards owned the land.


Second Poor Farm.


After the sale of the "poor farm" as above related, the commissioners purchased a tract of land about one mile northeast of Tyner, on which was erected a two-story frame building, thirty-six by thirty-four. This was in 1862. The building was a frame structure, not very substantially built, but answered the purpose until the erection of the present buildings. The first superintendent was Minard Taplin, who was appointed in 1862. Prior to that time the poor of the county were taken care of by contract among the farmers and people. This building was sold by the county about 1890.


The Present Infirmary.


About 1890 the board of commissioners decided to purchase land and build a more modern and commodious asylum, and therefore arranged to sell the farm and house near Tyner and purchase ground elsewhere, and therefore purchased of Henry Humrickhouser, two miles east of Plymouth, 1951/2 acres for the sum of $20,000, for which bonds were issued. Con- tracts were then let for the erection of the asylum and other buildings, and the work was completed and accepted by the commissioners June 12, 1893. The total cost of the building is set forth in the following statement :


J. D. Wilson & Son, for work and material .$24,882.22


J. D. Wilson & Son, for windmill. 140.00


J. D. Wilson & Son, for well. 127.75


J. D. Wilson & Son, extra briek, stone and ceiling. 383.70


Hattersly & Son, plumbing and heating. 4,692.94


Hattersly & Son, gas pipe, closets 70.00


W. & J. J. Geik, contract stone. 398.25


Wing & Mahuran, architects, 5 per cent on coast of building. 1,551.50


Wing & Mahuran, trips to make estimates. 158.35


Matthews Gas Company, contract for lighting. 430.00


Matthews Gas Company, contract for oil, etc. 195.12


Henry Humrickhouser, 19512 acres land. 20,000.00


Total cost of infirmary $53,365.83


344*


HISTORY OF MARSHALL COUNTY.


The following are the names of those who have been appointed super- intendents of the county farm and infirmary since that part of the public . service of the county was organized: Minard Taplin, George W. Boyd. Henry W. Steckman, Sanford E. Jacox, William B. Kyle, Jonas Haag, Nathan E. Bunch, Prosper N. Mickey, Peter J. Kruyer.


LXV. "BRIGHTSIDE," THE JULIA E. WORK TRAINING SCHOOL.


Brightside, the Julia E. Work training school, was established at Plymouth, February 1, 1899, on Mrs. Work's farm, formerly owned by John Ellis, one and one-quarter miles north of Plymouth on the Michigan road. The object of the school is the care and training of dependent, delinquent and physically defective children. At the time of the transfer from La Porte to Plymouth the number of children was seventy, and the buildings completed for their accommodation included the new building now known as No. I, and the farm house. The rapid increase of patronage made it necessary in 1900 to erect a second building, and thereafter for a period of four years a building was completed each year until the present capacity-280 children-was reached. The institution equipment now includes a 270-acre farm, five large buildings for the care of the children, and all necessary out-buildings for the use of stock and the farm implements used on a big farm.


The children are classified as follows: Normal dependent, defective dependent, delinquent and difficult, and private pupils. Complete sex sepa- ration is maintained, and the ages range from six to eighteen. A township school employing four teachers is maintained on the place a few rods from the main building. This school is supported by the enumeration and trans- fers provided by law. The industrial training given the boys includes all kinds of farm work, the care of stock and gardening. The equipment for teaching these fundamentals is firstclass in every respect. No expense is spared in the purchase of suitable farm machinery or the employment of a farm superintendent who is an expert in his line. The girls are all under the supervision of ladies who understand the several branches of house- work, including laundry and dairy work, and the girls are thoroughly grounded in the essentials for good housekeeping and good homemaking. No attempt is made to give manual training in the general acceptance of the term, but the aim is "foundation building"-giving the boy or girl a fair chance to start in life with a rudimentary knowledge that will enable him or her to make a living.


As a result of this training numerous boys and girls past the age of eighteen are now supporting themselves along the lines taught in the institution.


"Brightside" is maintained by the legal per diem, the amounts paid for private pupils and the products of the farm. It has no bequests, no endow- ment, and solicits no funds for current expenses. The management is vested solely in Mrs. Work as superintendent and Annie A. Barr as assistant superintendent and secretary. The property is owned and managed by


344+


HISTORY OF MARSHALL COUNTY.


Mrs. Work, and the institutional work is under the supervision of the board of state charities and the several child-saving organizations patronizing it. The legal per diem, which is inadequate for the maintenance of a child except under very favorable circumstances, is in this case supplemented by the products of the farm. A sufficient supply of potatoes, cabbage, navy beans, turnips and all kinds of garden truck is raised and used in the insti- tution, besides all the grain, hay, etc., consumed by the cattle, hogs, sheep and horses. A herd of firstclass cows supplies all the milk and butter used. Special attention is paid to the raising of hogs for market, and the fund from these sales and the sales of surplus grain goes into the general maintenance fund.


6385





Need help finding more records? Try our genealogical records directory which has more than 1 million sources to help you more easily locate the available records.