The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I, Part 106

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co
Number of Pages: 1096

USA > Michigan > Wayne County > Detroit > The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I > Part 106

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One of the most efficient means of making the home known to the public, "The Home Messenger," was first issued on December 1, 1868, as a monthly paper. It was temporarily discontinued in Decem- ber, 1879, but was revived as a quarterly in March, 1882. The society derived some $2,200 revenue from the sale of two editions of the "Home Messen- ger Cook Book," first published in 1873. It was compiled by Mrs. Rev. George Duffield and her daughter, Mrs. Morse Stewart, and is regarded with great favor by those who have used it.

The average number of inmates in the home is sixty-five, and there are accommodations for eighty.

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CHARITABLE AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS.

General visitors are always welcome, and Thursday is especially set apart for the friends of inmates. Since 1875 a teacher for the children has been con- stantly employed. The principal officers have been : presidents : 1860-1862, Mrs. M. H. Webster; 1862- 1865, Mrs. Seth Reed; 1865-1867, Mrs. William A. Howard; 1867-1870, Mrs. David Preston ; 1870- 1875, Mrs. Morse Stewart; 1875, Mrs. W. M. John- son ; 1876- , Mrs. Morse Stewart. Treasurers: 1860-1867, Mrs. W. A. Howard; 1867- , Mrs. David Carter. Recording Secretaries : 1860-1864, Mrs. E. M. Gilman ; 1864-1866, Mrs. Morse Stew- art; 1866, Mrs. John H. Griffith; 1867-1870, Mrs. William Oakes; 1870-1883, Mrs. D. W. Brooks; 1883- , Mrs. W. C. Duncan.

Mrs. D. Preston and Mrs. Morse Stewart were elected special trustees in 1863, and were in office in 1888.

St. Anthony's Male Orphan Asylum.

This institution, a Roman Catholic asylum, for boys only, is located on the north side of the Gratiot Road, just outside of the city limits, and about four miles from the City Hall, on the so-called Church Farm. The grounds embrace ninety-six acres. The building was opened on May 26, 1867. The entire property is worth $50,000.

The land was deeded by Bishop Lefevere to a board of twelve trustees, consisting of two each from the following churches : Cathedral of St. Peter and St. Paul, St. Ann's, Holy Trinity, St. Patrick's, St. Vincent de Paul, and Our Lady of Help. The trustees became a corporate body on January 23, 1867.

While managed by the corporation, the asylum was conducted by four Sisters of the order of the Immaculate Heart of Mary, from Monroe. By arrangement with the Lady Superior, they received $100 a year each and board. Under the manage- ment of the trustees, annual collections were taken up in the six churches represented in the board, and they alone could send orphans to the asylum. Sub- scriptions were also obtained from individuals, and some moneys were received from the sale of farm produce. This arrangement did not prove a success, and on January 16, 1877, the corporation was dis- solved and the property deeded to Bishop Borgess, by whom the institution was placed in the care of lay members of the Franciscan order, and collections in the parishes then became voluntary. The average number of orphans in the asylum is about eighty. After the boys reach the age of thirteen they are either bound out or other homes are provided.

The officers of the corporation were: Presi- dents : 1868-1871, M. B. Kean ; 1871-1874, P. J. D. Van Dyke; 1874-1877, Jeremiah Calnon. Secre-

taries : 1867, Edward Brennan ; 1868-1870, P. J. D. Van Dyke; 1870-1875, W. B. Moran ; 1875, George H. Slater ; 1876, P. J. D. Van Dyke ; 1867-1873, William Buchanan ; 1873, A. Chapoton ; 1874-1877, H. F. Brownson.

Women's Hospital and Foundlings' Home.

It is a noteworthy fact that this institution, as well as the Home of the Friendless, grew out of organizations called Ladies' Christian Unions, one of which was established in 1860, and the other in 1868. These Unions were originally designed for rather different work than that afterwards pursued, but both soon found their appropriate sphere in the noble charities they now carry forward.

The Ladies' Christian Union, auxiliary to the City Mission Board, was organized at the Congrega- tional Church on January 29, 1868. The society held several meetings without agreeing definitely on a particular line of work, but finally, on October 19, a proposition was made to establish a Women's Hospital and Foundlings' Home. The plan met with favor, and on October 28 a society was organ- ized.

The building No. 40 Cass Avenue was rented, and on November 1 I Miss Eleanor E. Howe, M. D., was placed in charge. The incorporation of the society took place on June 5, 1869, and on Novem- ber 2 of the same year the City Mission Board transferred its property to this organization. This was sold and the proceeds used in the purchase of a house and lot No. 499 Beaubien Street, costing $2,000. A very successful fair, in the fall of 1870, enabled them to complete the payment in full.

In April, 1872, they sold the property and pur- chased five lots on Putnam Avenue, removing tem- porarily to one of the Harper Hospital buildings. In July following they sold the Putnam Avenue lots and bought a property on the west side of Thir- teenth between Linden and Mulberry Streets. The lots cost $3,000. Here their home was erected at a cost of $14,000, and formally opened on January 20, 1876.

The institution is designed to accommodate foundlings and women about to become mothers. Most of the patients are unmarried, and more than two thirds are from other States or from Canada.

All applications for admission are passed upon by an advisory committee, but no foundlings are sent away. The admission fee for patients is $20, and is reckoned as payment for board at the rate of from $3.00 to $10.00 per week, according to size and location of room. While these are the terms, residents of the State are never refused admission for want of means, but received without regard to creed, color, or nationality. The price of board for infants is from $1.00 to $3.00 per week. The so-

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CHARITABLE AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS.

ciety hope eventually to provide a home for sick poor, whether women or children.

The hospital can accommodate forty women and eighty children, and a yearly average of one hundred women and one hundred and twenty-five children are cared for. It is supported by membership dues,

THE WOMAN'S HOSPITAL AND FOUNDLING'S HOME.

subscriptions, donations, entertainments, and fees. The annual expenses, aside from the articles con- tributed, are about $2,500. Since April, 1877, religious services have been held every Sabbath by Mrs. J. E. Foster, librarian of the Young Men's Christian Association; and her ministrations, ren- dered not only at the Home, but afterwards, have proved a blessing to many unfortunate women,

One of the most unique features of this charity has been its Baby Receptions. The first of these was held June 10, 1874, when twenty-six little ones, dressed in their best and decorated with ribbons, received their friends. Attached to the breast of each child was a card bearing its name and age. It was a pretty sight, and one that appealed so strongly to compassionate hearts, that at the second recep- tion, in the following December, only one of the twenty-six remained.

The annual meeting is on the first Tuesday in January. The board is composed of two ladies from each of the Protestant churches. The prop- erty is held by eleven trustees. The chief officers have been: Presidents: 1868, Mrs. R. Hawley; 1869-1871, Mrs. L. L. Page; 1871-1876, Mrs. R. Hawley; 1876-1878, Mrs. J. F. Joy; 1878-1881, Mrs. J. J. Bagley; 1881- , Mrs. J. F. Joy. Recording secretaries : 1868-1871, Mrs. G. M. Lane; 1871, Mrs. M. J. E. Millar; 1872-1874, Mrs. F. B. Terry; 1874-1878, Mrs. G. M. Lane; 1878-

1881, Mrs. Richard Macauley ; 1881- , Mrs. J. S. Conklin. Treasurers : 1868, Mrs. Z. R. Brock- way ; 1869, Mrs. H. R. Andrews; 1870-1873, Mrs. H. Glover ; 1873, Mrs. W. H. Bronson ; 1874-1876, Mrs. J. P. Gilmore ; 1876, Mrs. G. N. Fletcher ; 1877- 1885, Mrs. A. W. Rice ; 1885- Mrs. C. E. Fox.

House of Providence.

This home for destitute and abandoned children, and lying-in hospital for unfortunate and destitute females, is conducted by the Sisters of Charity, with Sister Mary Stella in charge. It was organized in 1869, and incorporated in 1872. It cares for chil- dren until they are six years of age, after which time they are given for adoption or transferred to an orphan asylum. It has in its care a yearly aver- age of one hundred and ten children and seventy women.

The home, opened in August, 1869, was originally situated on Fourteenth Avenue, between Dalzelle and Marantette Streets. On March 24, 1876, it was moved to the Old Beaubien homestead, on the northwest corner of St. Antoine and Elizabeth Streets. The house is maintained by sums paid for board and by voluntary donations. The cost of maintenance, including probable value of contribu- tions of food, is about $4,000 per year. The prop- erty is worth $20,000.

The Evangelical Lutheran Orphan Aid Society.

Although not located in the city, this institution is practically one of the charities of Detroit. Rev. G. Speckhard was the founder and first teacher of the society, which was organized March 10, 1873,

HOUSE OF PROVIDENCE.

and incorporated on April 5 following. It was originally located at Royal Oak, where the society procured twenty-three acres of land. Subsequently it was removed to Norris, where it makes use of twenty acres of land donated by Colonel Norris. The building cost $13,500, and was dedicated July

CHARITABLE AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS.

663

25, 1875. The annual meeting is held on the second Thursday in March.

Any member of Trinity or St. Paul's Lutheran churches may be a member of this society. Its par- ticular object is to educate orphans and deaf mutes. The actually destitute are admitted free; others pay not more than $120 each per year. Sixty children can be accommodated, and the average attendance is thirty-three. The total yearly expenses are about $3,000. Contributions for its support are taken up in the churches. Rev. J. A. Huegli, the first pre- sident, served until March 14, 1878, when he was succeeded by Rev. C. H. Rohe, In 1883 Rev. J. A. Huegli was again ser- ving. C. H. Beyer, the first secretary, still remains in office.

Italian Benevolent Society.

This society was organized April 30, 1873, and incorpor- ated July 21, 1875. It holds regular meet- ings the second Mon- day of each month. . The officers are elec- ted quarterly. It numbers about thirty members, who pay yearly dues of $6.00 each. Its special ob- jects are to assist members in the case of sickness, provide for funerals in the event of death, and also to assist members in obtaining employment.

Officers .- Presidents: 1873, P. Palmieri; 1874- 1877, A. Dondero; 1877, V. Forni; 1878, P. Pal- mieri; 1879, W. De Tomaso; 1880, P. Poli; 1881, E. Bartley; 1882, A. Dondero; 1883, John Arcetti. Secretaries : 1873, A. Prussolino; 1874, P. Palmieri; 1875, G. Conti; 1876, P. Palmieri; 1877-1879, P. Poli; 1879-1881, P. Palmieri; 1881, J. Dondero; 1882, F. Pauli; 1883, G. Martello. Treasurers: 1873-1877, V. Forni; 1877, A. Dondero; 1878- 1880, V. Forni; 1880 and 1881, A. Dondero; 1882, P. Pauli; 1883, A. Dondero.

The Little Sisters' Home for the Aged Poor.

The Sisters in charge of this home were invited here by Bishop Borgess in 1872. Their first home, the old Piquette House, on the northwest corner of Fort Street and Fourteenth Avenue, was opened May 20, 1874, with twenty inmates; the use of the house was given by its owners. Their present loca-

tion, embracing the entire block bounded by Scott, Hale, Orleans, and Dequindre Streets, was donated by Bishop Borgess, and in 1881 was estimated to be worth $5,000. The house was erected at a cost of $22,000, and occupied on October 1, 1876. An additional building, costing $24,000, was con- structed, and opened on October 8, 1882. Two hundred and fifty persons can now be accommo- dated. The funds for these structures were ob- tained from the Catholic bishop and clergy and from other benevolent individuals.

The home is maintained without any regular revenue. The Little Sisters go about from day to day soliciting the means for its support. The poor of both sexes, and of any re- ligious faith, if old and destitute, are re- ceived on the recom- mendation of any of the Catholic clergy of the State. In 1882 there were one hun- dred and twenty in- mates, sixty-five men and fifty-five women.

LITTLE SISTERS' HOME FOR THE AGED POOR.

The society was in- corporated December 12, 1874. The prop- erty is vested in five trustees, members of the order, who are elected at the annual meeting on the second Monday in January, The home is conducted by a Mother Superior and eleven Sisters, who do their own work, keeping no servants. Sister Michael the Archangel, the first Superior and Superintendent, was succeeded by Sister Marie Claire. Visitors are admitted from II A. M. to 5 P. M. on week days, and from I to 5 P. M. on Sundays.

The Thompson Home for Old Ladies.

This organization, up to the time of the comple- tion of its own home, made use of part of the building owned by the Home of the Friendless Association on Warren Avenue. The institution owes its existence to the beneficence of Mrs. David Thompson, who in 1874 contributed the sum of $10,000 in cash as a fund for its establishment. This money was transferred to the Home of the Friendless for a mortgage of $3,500 and three lots on Warren Avenue; the loan was repaid and the lots redeemed in 1883. In December, 1882, Mrs. Thompson made a further donation, purchasing a

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CHARITABLE AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS.

lot for the home on the southeast corner of Cass and Hancock Avenues; the lot is one hundred and twenty-six feet on Cass by one hundred and fifty- four on Hancock Avenue, and cost $5,900. On this property, during 1884, she completed the erection of an elegant and substantial structure, sixty by ninety feet, containing forty rooms. The building has a tower eighty feet high and the entire cost reached fully $32,000, all provided by the generous donor. It was formally opened October 22, 1884,

A society for the management of the home was incorporated on April 10, 1875. The annual meet- ing is on the second Tuesday in January.

The object of the institution is to provide a home for aged women. In its original location it had accommoda- tions for only eleven persons, and many appli- cations were un- heeded for want of room. A

Committee on Application is annually elected. and no person is received into the home as an in- mate without re- commendation from this com- mittee, nor ex- cept on their order. No per- son is admitted who has not re- sided in Michi- gan during the ten years pre- ceding her application, unless by the unanimous vote of not less than sixteen of the managers pres- ent at a regular meeting. Persons under sixty years of age are not admitted either as boarders or pen- sioners, unless by a vote of two thirds of the whole number of managers. All candidates for admission must furnish satisfactory testimonials of the respec- tability of their character and the propriety of their conduct. Pending admission, each person is re- ceived on a probation of three months, after which time the Board of Managers acts definitely on the case, and if not confirmed as a permanent inmate, the admission fee, which is not less than $300, after deducting board at the rate of three dollars per week, is returned.

The business of the corporation is controlled and

managed by a board of thirty-two trustees, who, with the other officers, must in all cases be ladies belonging to or attending the Protestant churches of the city. The trustees elect the officers from their own number. The thirty-two trustees named in the articles of incorporation were divided into four classes of eight persons each, and one of these classes goes out of office every year.

The annual expenses are about $1,500, and the home is supported by donations and interest on the admission fees. The officers have been :

Presidents : 1875-1877, Mrs. David Preston; 1877- , Mrs. David Thompson. Secretaries: 1875- 1882, Miss E. P. Kirby; 1882, Mrs. J. S. New- berry; 1883, Miss E. P. Kir- by; 1884- ,

Mrs. J. S. New- berry. Treas- urers: 1875- 1880, Mrs. John S. Newberry ; 1880- , Mrs. R. G. Evans.

The Working Woman's Home.

THE THOMPSON HOME.

The begin- ning of this or- ganization dates from March 7, 1877, at which time the first meeting in re- gard to it was held in the hall of the Young Men's Christian Association. Its constitution was adopted April 26, officers were elected May 4, and the society was incorporated December 3, 1877.

The annual meeting is on the first Monday in April. Twenty lady trustees, who must be mem- bers of Protestant churches, elect the officers and also the executive committee of five ladies, who meet weekly. The home was opened on May 28, 1877, in a portion of the Haigh Block on Jefferson Avenue. It was afterwards moved to No. 41 Con- gress Street West ; then, on June 6, 1881, to No. 78, north side of the same street, and on April 25, 1883, to No. 120 Cass Street. In 1887 they purchased the lot on the northeast corner of Adams Avenue and Clifford Street, at a cost of $10,000, and during 1888 expect to complete a building of their own. It is designed to afford a safe and respectable boarding

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CHARITABLE AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS.

place for girls and women who are temporarily out of employment, and has an average of twenty-one boarders paying at the rate of $2.00 per week. Girls employed in stores and shops, whose homes are far from their places of business, find here a pleasant resting place and a good dinner for the small sum of fifteen cents. In connection with this work an intelligence office is maintained, which, from the first, has been wonderfully useful. Appli- cants for help pay fifty cents; those seeking places pay fees of twenty-five cents each, and these sums do much towards sustaining the institution. No recommendations are given or required other than such as ordinary good judgment would dictate. During the year 1886 over three hundred and fifty women were provided with steady employment, and a large number with occasional work.

In addition to supplying help in the city, hun- dreds of giris have been rescued from temptation by being sent to various parts of the State; when thus sent out of the city, both their character and that of the place to which they go are carefully in- vestigated.

The annual expenses of the home are about $2,000, and it is the aim of the society to make it self-sustaining.

The following officers have served : Presidents : 1877, Mrs. J. J. Bagley ; 1878, Mrs. D. M. Richard- son ; 1879, Mrs. L. B. Austin; 1880, Mrs. J. B. Mulliken ; 1881-1884, Mrs. W. F. Linn; 1884, Mrs. J. B. Mulliken; 1885, Mrs. W. F. Linn ; 1886- .

Mrs. J. K. Burnham. Corresponding Secretaries ; 1878, Mrs. M. J. E. Millar ; 1879, Mrs. L. B. Austin ; 1880, Mrs. W. F. Linn; 1881, Mrs. J. B. Mulliken ; 1882-1884, Mrs. M. H. Marsh; 1884, Mrs. H. Gard- ner; 1885 , Mrs. Belle W. Reynolds. Re- cording Secretaries : 1877, Mrs. J. N. Fuller ; 1878, Mrs. S. Nay; 1879-1882, Miss A. M. Harrah ; 1882, Mrs. H. N. P. Blodgett ; 1883, Mrs. H. A. Chaney ; 1884-1886, Miss Emma Hayward ; 1886- , Mrs. Lou Burt. Treasurers : 1877, J. B. H. Bratshaw ; 1878 and 1879, G. W. Hoffman : 1880, Mrs. Ira D. Bush ; 1881, Miss Gertrude Banks ; 1882, Mrs, M. H. Marsh ; 1883, Mrs. J. B. Bloss ; 1884-1886, Mrs. H. A. Chaney ; 1886- , Mrs. A. C. Bacon.

Zoar Asylum of Zion German Reformed Church.

This asylum was incorporated in 1880, and estab- lished in 1881, by the church above named. Its grounds consist of thirty lots in Springwells on Harvey Street, between the River Road and Fort Street. They cost $5,500; the building cost $2,336, and was opened April 1, 1882. In January, 1887, its inmates were thirty-six orphans and ten widows and six men.

The Detroit Day Nursery and Kindergarten Association.

This society was organized and incorporated November 21, 1881, chiefly through the efforts of Mrs. E. C. Preston. The object is to provide a place where children from infants up to six years old can be cared for and taught while their parents are at work, on payment of five cents a day for each child. Further amounts necessary to sustain the institution are obtained by membership fees of $2.00 per year and voluntary donations from those favoring this practical charity. Luther Beecher gave the society Lots 17 and 18 on the north side of Church Street, at head of Tenth, valued at about $2,500, and in 1882 a brick building costing $5,000 was erected thereon. It was formally opened on January 18, 1883.

The first trustees were Mrs. Newell Avery, Mrs. Z. Eddy, Mrs. Jefferson Wiley, Mrs. D. M. Richard- son, Mrs. D. V. Bell, Mrs. C. H. Buhl, Mrs. W. N. Hailmann, Mrs. H. E. Champion, Mrs. William Keavey, Mrs. M. H. Marsh, Mrs. E. C. Preston, and Mr. Hoyt Post.

The first officers of the society were : President, Mrs. E. C. Preston ; Vice-President, Mrs. George H. Hammond ; Secretary, Mrs. W. E. Anthony ; Treas- urer, Mrs. H. E. Champion. In 1883, Mrs. S. W. Itsell became Secretary and Mrs. M. E. Gibbs Treasurer.

Convent of the Good Shepherd.

This institution was inaugurated on November 22, 1883, by five Sisters of the Order of the Good Shepherd, who arrived here from St. Louis on that day. In anticipation of their arrival the property known as the Ward residence at No. 792 Fort Street West, near Nineteenth Street, was purchased at a cost of $24,000. The object of the institution is to reclaim fallen women and to rescue those in danger of going astray.

Grace Hospital.

This institution, now in process of erection, is located on the northeast corner of Willis Avenue and John R. Street. The lot has a frontage of 370 feet on Willis Avenue and of 161 feet on John R. Street, and is worth fully $30,000. It was given, in 1869, by Amos Chaffee, an old and well-known citizen, as a site for a Homœopathic Hospital, but at the time there seemed to be no one with suffi- cient time or ability to secure the utilization of the gift, and Mr. Chaffee was left to even pay the taxes on his munificent donation. During 1879 a society called The Detroit Homoeopathic Association was incorporated, but no definite steps were taken to secure the gift or proceed with the work of securing

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CHARITABLE AND BENEVOLENT SOCIETIES AND INSTITUTIONS.

a hospital until August 22, 1886, when, in course of a conversation upon the subject, James McMillan said to Dr. C. A. Walsh, "I wish you would have Mr. Lloyd prepare plans for a hospital building to cost $100,000, and I will pay for its erection." Soon afterwards, John S. Newberry engaged to give $100,000 as an endowment to provide for the run- ning expenses.

After these gifts were made known, Mr. Chaffee very generously conveyed the title to the land, which had reverted to him. The only condition made to the gifts was that the hospital be main- tained forever free to all needing its offices and unable to pay for its benefits.

The building is intended to be a model structure, and when completed will be turned over to the care of the following trustees : James McMillan, H. R. Newberry, Don M. Dickinson, D. M. Ferry, Ransom Gillis, J. B. Mulliken, M. S. Smith and Dr. C. A. Walsh.

Detroit Emergency Hospital.

This hospital, located at the junction of Michigan Avenue, Porter and Second Streets, is a thoroughly practical humane institution. The building cost about $30,000, and was opened March 1, 1888. The design is to treat immediately all cases of acci- dent or sudden ailment, and the services rendered are entirely free. Its ambulance is the most com- plete of any in the city, and is fitted with a variety of appliances for the benefit of patients, to be used if needed while the patients are being conveyed to the hospital or their homes. A free dispensary is also maintained. It is under the management of the Michigan College of Medicine and Surgery.

Detroit Association of Charities.

The list of charitable institutions may well be concluded with this society, which co-operates with and seeks to make more effective the work of all the others. In 1883 fifty-two different churches and charities availed themselves of its knowledge and its methods.

The special object of the association is to prevent imposition, repress street begging, and to better the condition of the honest and deserving poor. It seeks to assist charitable societies and the public generally to direct their benevolence into channels where it will do good rather than harm. To this end the association investigates the cases of all applicants for relief who may appeal to citizens, church societies, charitable institutions, or city offi- cers. The city is divided into convenient districts for investigation, with an office and committee for each district, and a central office at 10 Merrill Block. The association undertakes to furnish suitable em- ployment to those in need of work, and gives orders

for meals and lodgings, which are good only when endorsed by the police officer in charge of the central station. Professional beggars and those unworthy of aid are thus detected, as all applicants are brought under the eye of this one officer.

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The history of Detroit and Michigan; or, The metropolis illustrated; a chronological cyclopedia of the past and present, Vol I, Part 106

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902 Publication date: 1889 Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co Number of Pages: 1096

Author: Farmer, Silas, 1839-1902
Publication date: 1889
Publisher: Detroit, S. Farmer & co
Number of Pages: 1096