USA > New York > Oneida County > Utica > Memorial history of Utica, N.Y. : from its settlement to the present time > Part 59
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November 19, 1866, a charter was granted to an association under the name of " Home for the Homeless in the City of Utica," the object of which was and is the protection, assistance, and support, wholly or in part, of respectable, aged, indigent or infirm women, who are un-
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
able to support themselves without assistance. The Home was opened in a building on Whitesboro street, opposite the State Asylum grounds, in May, 1867, and during the first year received seven 'aged women. But it was clear that a suitable building must be erected in order to make the institution a permanent success. Mr. T. S. Faxton offered to give $20,000 toward the erection of a home, provided a like sum should be subscribed by January 1, 1869. Success so far attended the efforts of the ladies that $26,000 was subscribed by that time, and the founda- tion of an appropriate structure was laid upon the two acres of land do- nated by Mr. Faxton on Faxton street, where the Home now stands. In December, 1870, Mr. B. F. Jewett, aided by his sisters, donated four lots, each 40 feet front and 126 feet deep, adjoining the lots donated by Mr. Faxton. The Home was built of brick, three stories in height, at a cost of $30,000, and was opened to the public December 26, 1870. There were twenty-six inmates who occupied the new home during this first year of its existence. The Home at that time contained two front parlors, sixteen double and twenty single lodging-rooms, and dining- room, with closets and bath-rooms and kitchen. In December, 1872, an exhibition of allegorical tableaux was given for the benefit of the house, the proceeds of which amounted to $703.42, and were applied to the purchase of a lot in the cemetery. In 1879 a new building was added to the old one at a cost of $6,000, this having been found necessary ow- ing to the increased number of applications for admission. During the following year a public announcement was made of the bequest of $35,000 by Jason G. Coye to the Home, and, at the present writing, another extensive addition is being made to the institution to accommo- date the increasing number who have applied for admission. When the Home was first organized it was placed under a board of thirty-seven lady managers, and from this number its officers were chosen. The first officers were: Mrs. S. W. Fisher, president ; Mrs. P. V. Rogers, treasurer ; Mrs. A. Seward, corresponding secretary ; Mrs. James H. Williams, recording secretary ; and ten vice- presidents. Mrs. Daniel Crouse became president in 1870, and has since held that office. Mrs. Rogers was treasurer until October, 1882, since which time Mrs. Ed- ward Curran has held that office. The Home is still managed as it was at first, and has given refuge during its twenty-five years of existence to
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FAXTON HOSPITAL AND HOME.
over 200 women. The matrons who have successively managed the affairs of the home are : Mrs. Sarah Judson, Miss Ellen Jones, Miss Lucretia Spurr, Mrs. Mary E. Sharpe.
The Faxton Hospital was erected in 1874 and 1875 by Hon. Theo- dore S. Faxton, who not only gave the means for its entire construc- tion, but carefully supervised the execution of his plans. In June, 1875, he placed the institution in the hands of a Board of Trustees, created at his instance by act of the legislature two years previously. With these trustees its management vested until 1878. By them a medical and surgical staff was appointed, nurses were engaged, and the sick were received. The demands upon the Hospital for the accommodation of patients did not, however, meet the anticipations of its generous founder. A study of the reasons for this led the trustees, in 1878, to place the insti- tution under the care of a board of forty lady managers, with powers and duties similar to those given the lady managers of the Home for the Homeless. By them the second and third floors of the building were set apart for the shelter of aged men, the lower one being devoted to the care of the sick. The Faxton Hospital thus became not only a hospital, but a home-a shelter and permanent resting place for re- spectable men, who, at an advanced age, are left helpless and alone. Three were admitted that year, four the year following, and six in 1880.
In February, 1882, articles of incorporation of the Home for Aged Men were duly filed, the gifts at that time being $1,000 from the late A. J. Williamns, $500 from Miss Jane E. Kelly, and $1,000 from the estate of Mrs. George S. Green. It has recently been decided, on ac - count of numerous applications, to admit aged men, together with their wives, and three such have been received. In the early part of the year, 1890 efforts were put forth toward the erection of a building for this purpose. A lot on Sunset avenue was secured and a large and commo- dious structure has been placed thereon at a cost of $35,000. It was opened with appropriate ceremonies July 15, 1891. Since its incep- tion in 1878 the home has received and sheltered sixty-five inmates. As a hospital for the treatment of the sick, the building first erected is still maintained, there being two physicians in charge, one from both of the two principal schools of practice, and the patients having the
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
choice of their medical attendant. From thirty to forty patients are annually received. At present it is being remodeled.
St. Elizabeth's Hospital and Home was organized December 12, 1866, by Mother Bernardine, a member of the charitable Order of St. Francis. The first patient was received in a small wooden building on Columbia street, which was kindly given by the Franciscan Fathers, rent free, for the purpose. Through the generosity of Thomas B. Dev- ereux another building was added to the institution, and soon after- ward still another, all within two years. As the number of patients in- creased new nurses were obtained. The funds necessary to carry on the work at that time came entirely from the contributions of charitable citizens. In 1868 the old buildings were removed to make room for the new St. Joseph's Church, and a purchase was made of a house a few doors west of the former location. This building was repaired and put in order for the comfort of the sick, and was finally opened for pa- tients October 15, 1869. It was built of wood, two stories high, and would accommodate about thirty patients. A lying-in department was at once opened, and in 1871 a dispensary for the out-door poor. Med- icine is furnished free to those needing it. The design of the institution is to provide for the medical and surgical care of all persons who may apply for relief, without regard to age, sex, color, nativity, creed or ability to pay ; and to furnish a home for the aged and infirm of both sexes. Those who are able are expected to pay the cost of their sup- port ; and others what they can afford. By this plan the money of the charitable is applied directly to the benefit of the destitute poor. The hospital is under the supervision of the Sisters of the Order of St. Fran- cis, and is not connected with any parish or church. Several physi- cians and surgeons are on the staff of the hospital, and daily minister to its inmates. Dr. Hamilton S. Quin is the chief of staff.
St. Luke's Home was incorporated December 23, 1869. It grew out of the personal labors of Rev. E. M. Van Deusen, D.D., who preached a sermon in October, 1867, suggesting such a church home. Truman K. Butler, in the fall of 1869, offered the use of an unfurnished build- ing in course of erection for a factory boarding-house for eighteen months free of rent, with the condition that, if the establishment of such an institution could be proven practicable, after he had completed
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ST. LUKE'S HOSPITAL AND HOME.
it he would, at the expiration of that period, give a deed of the prop- erty. An informal service was held on St. Luke's day, October 18, 1869, and the home was called St. Luke's. The object of the institu - tion was, and is, "The establishing and maintaining in the city of Utica a refuge for the poor and friendless members of Grace Church parish in Utica, and such others as the Board of Managers may think entitled to its benefits." The corporators and managers for the first year were the rector, wardens and vestrymen of Grace Church. Its board of twelve almoners had as officers: Mrs. Van Deusen, president; Mrs. James S. Lynch, treasurer ; and Mrs. James F. Mann, secretary. Miss Mary Northrup was the first matron. On the 3d of January, 1870, a school was opened in the Home building, but was discontinued after about two years. It was now found that a hospital was necessary, and accordingly, September 1, 1870, a double two-story brick dwelling ad- joining the home was bought of Mr. Butler for $6,000, he contributing $1,000. In this the hospital was opened July 9, 1872, with Mrs. Sarah J. Brown, president, and Mrs. Louise G. Schantz, secretary and treas- urer. The first matron was Mrs. Butterworth, who was succeeded by a Mrs. Mallick for a short time. Miss De Lancey was the third matron. The present one is Mrs. Anna Stewart. On September 7, 1874, Grace Church, in consideration of the request of Mr. Butler, quit claimed to the corporation the hospital premises subject to the mortgage which was paid one-half by subscription, the rest, $1,500, by Mr. Butler. In 1875 a lot owned by the city west of the hospital was purchased for $1,500. On November 1, 1876, Mr. Butler purchased a lot in Forest Hill Ceme - tery and gave it to the Home. In 1880 a medical director was chosen for the hospital, and the custom has since continued. Dr. Willis E. Ford is the present medical director, and with him are associated a num- ber of other physicians and surgeons. The Helen Ledyard Seymour memorial fountain, which adorns the lawn in front of the house, was given September 6, 1881, and February 10, 1883, Mr. Butler conveyed to the corporation the vacant lot used as a lawn. In 1886 a new brick building was erected at a cost of $13,890. In June. 1887, the Board of Managers purchased the dwelling, No. 305 Whitesboro street, for $2,300, and all the indebtedness on the above property is at the present time cancelled. January 21, 1888, the name became St. Luke's Home
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
and Hospital in the city of Utica. During the same year the board fitted up the " Lancaster House " for the use of nurses and other hos- pital purposes. A school for nurses was established in 1889, and is proving a very successful feature of the work. Plans have already been drawn for another building, to be used for general hospital purposes. Three hundred and eighteen patients have been cared for during the year closing October 1, 1891. The Hospital and Home has eight male managers and twenty- four lady almoners.
The City Hospital was erected by commission in 1856 at the expense of the city, and was intended to be used as a work-house. Two years later it became a hospital under the superintendence of the poor- master, and when the Board of Charities superseded him it came under the care of the latter. Its cost was $12,000. The building was built of brick, three stories high. Two wings, before incomplete, have since been re- modeled and put in use, one designed to lodge court witnesses, and boys awaiting trial on criminal charges, the other for those sick with conta- gious diseases. There is room for about fifty patients, and the record shows that 3,300 patients have been treated during the past ten years. A physician appointed by the Board of Charities is in daily attendance. The successive keepers have been Frederick Sehn, Henry G. Neejer, Frederick Saul, David Dimbleby, and Richard R. Pritchard. The hos- pital is located at the corner of South and Mohawk streets, and has ex- tensive grounds about it. While under the direction of the Board of Charities it may be taken into control by the city at any time.
By act of the legislature there was created, in 1873, a Board of Char- ities of the city of Utica, the object of its creation being to sever the administration of these charities as much as possible from political in- fluence. This board consists of six commissioners, one- half of whom are elected by popular vote, and one-half appointed by the town auditors, one commissioner being thus elected and one appointed every year, and each holding his office for three years. To this board are entrusted the pow- ers and duties of a poor-master, but without pecuniary compensation. By it is appointed a clerk, who not only keeps a full record of all official proceedings, but acts as the paid and authorized agent of the board in administering the charities of the city, which include the care of the hospital and relieving the wants of the necessitous outside of it. By it
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THE BOARD OF CHARITIES.
are appointed the keeper and the physician of the hospital, and a phy- sician for each of the wards of the city. While the clerk is thus made the chief agent for carrying out the duties pertaining to their office, the board are themselves distributed into committees, who supervise and direct in such matters as the furnishing of supplies for the hospital, the care of its building and grounds, the examination of bills and accounts, the proper performance of their duties by the physicians, the keeper, etc .; and they meet once a month to examine and decide upon all af- fairs that relate to the public charities. Besides the foregoing functions they have the power to commit to the County House at Rome, to the State Hospital for the Insane, to the Idiot Asylum at Syracuse, and to the various orphan asylums of Utica, such members of the indigent por- tion of the community as are shown to be subjects suitable for these respective institutions. These services are of necessity mostly per- formed by the clerk, their executive officer, who is in daily attendance at his office to respond to numerous demands on his attention, and he is required to have personal,knowledge of every applicant for relief, and to examine into the character, habits, condition and necessities of each. He may grant relief to any indigent person needing only tem- porary assistance, may furnish plain single meals to such deserving transient persons as may apply for them, and likewise transportation, not exceeding twenty miles, to such deserving transients as are found in the city ; and he is, moreover, authorized to bury any deceased person whose friends are unable to bury him. Through the clerk the board reports annually to the public the number of persons assisted and the kind of such assistance rendered, together with the amount of expense incurred in each case. He is aided by a secretary on whom are largely devolved the registry of his multiplied acts The total expenses of the board during the year ending March 1, 1891, were $15,750.19. The average per year since the institution of the board has been $16,318.47, while the average of the seven years that preceded its institution was $32,895.13; which plainly shows the superiority of the present plan of administering the city's charities over that by a poor- master. The present Board of Commissioners are Joseph Faass and John Evans, three years; Joseph Joerissen and Edmund Richards, two years ; Charles N. White and Timothy Coakley, one year. The clerk has been for several years Lawrence Conrad.
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
July II, 1870, a number of Christian women, incited to do something toward bettering the condition of their own sex who were less favored than themselves, organized a Woman's Christian Association. Mrs. P. H. Fowler was the president, and there were six vice-presidents. The eighty- two original members had increased by the end of the year to 223. The object of the Association was, and is, to improve the phys ical, intellectual, moral, and religious condition of women dependent upon their own exertions for support. It was at once placed under a board of managers consisting of two ladies from each evangelical church, together with the officers of the association. One of the first considerations was the establishment of a boarding-house where young women, away from home and friends, could secure room and board at reasonable rates. The opportunity came in the spring of 1871, and the property at the corner of Court and Cornelia streets was purchased for $12,160. Two houses stood upon the property, and the one facing Cornelia was soon afterward sold. The other is the present "Industrial Home," built of brick and three stories high. A number of benevolent gentlemen made the first payment of $3,000, and the ladies have raised the rest. The "Home" was opened in April, 1871, equipped and ready for boarders, and was chartered May 6, 1871. June 8, 1891, the corner-stone of a new building, on ground just east of the old "Home," was laid, to be known as the." Georgia Porter Memorial " Building. It was given to the association by Mrs. E. M. Pike, in memory of her daughter, Mrs, Porter. It is of brick, three stories high, and cost $10.000. This building will be used for the work of the association. In the spring of 1886 an act of legislature allowed married women to hold property. The association was accordingly incorporated April 15, 1886, and the property transferred to them. The first trustees were : Mrs. M. W. Bussey, president ; Mrs. S. W. Crittenden, treasurer ; Mrs. C. C. Shaver, secretary ; Mrs. M. H. Merwin, Mrs. J. G. Brown, Mrs. C. C. Kellogg. The association is supported by voluntary contribu- tions from churches and private individuals, no benefit entertainments having been held since the first year of its organization. It has one source of revenue, The Christian Worker, a monthly edited by Mrs. S. W. Crittenden, which was started in 1875. Beyond that of publish- ing and distributing, there is no expense attending it. This paper is
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EXCHANGE FOR WOMEN'S WORK.
run by the association, and has netted to the treasury for general work over $2,500. There are numerous branches of work carried on, two of which we mention. (1). A young woman's class and reading-room was started some years ago by the association, and is now under a depart- ment by itself, and solicits for its own support. Rooms in the new building will be fitted up for this purpose. (2). Two visitors are ap- pointed for each ward who report to the association meetings each week for relief, and all relief given must be by a vote of the association. The present officers are : President, Mrs. M. W. Bussey ; vice-presidents, Miss S. E. Gilbert, Mrs. Jacob Hunt, Mrs. C. M. Green, Mrs. Clark Wood, Mrs. S. W. Crittenden, Mrs. Dr. W. E Ford ; recording secre- tary, Mrs. C. C. Shaver; corresponding secretary, Mrs. R. H. Wicks ; assistant secretary, Mrs. Dr. Glass ; treasurer, Mrs. George R. Thomas. These, with ladies from seventeen churches, make the present board of managers. The total money expenditure for the past year is $2,460, besides large contributions of clothing and other gifts. There were 1, 150 visits made.
In the spring of 1889 there was incorporated a society known as the Utica Exchange for Women's Work. Its object is " to provide a depot for the reception and sale of any marketable article made by a woman, or any valuable article which her necessity may oblige her to dispose of, and to assist a needy woman to turn to personal profit whatever useful talent she may possess." It is controlled by a board of twelve direc- tors elected annually from its body of upward of 100 managers, consti- tuted such by the payment of $5 a year. Besides its president, three vice-presidents, a corresponding and recording secretary, and a treas urer, it has the following committees, viz .: Executive, fancy and needle work, culinary, employment and entertainment. Each manager is en- titled to three tickets, which she may donate to persons willing to enter their handiwork at the depot of the Exchange. Work so entered is in- spected by the committees of the respective kinds of work, and if ac- cepted is placed on sale, the maker paying ten per cent. on the price that is realized, which she herself affixes. During the year 1890, 3, 188 articles were received, thirty three being rejected. Moreover, there is reported a steady improvement in the taste and skill of the consignors, as these artificers are called. Besides the sales daily made at the depot,
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
several other sales have been made in other and often distant parts of the country. Orders have been taken in during the year to the value of $590. Some kinds of cake are regarded as specialties of this exchange, being of a delicious quality and cheaper than can be made at home. The profits realized during the year from all sources, including the an- nual subscriptions, amount to over $7,000. Another feature of the work is the registering the names of women and girls seeking employ . ment and procuring their testimonials of character, etc. The president of the exchange is Miss A. Louise Lynch.
PART II.
BIOGRAPHICAL.
A
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PART II.
BIOGRAPHICAL.
S EYMOUR, HORATIO, came of an honored and patriotic ancestry. The family was among the earlier settlers of Hartford, Conn., and contributed not a little to the glory and development of that State. In the war of the Revolution his grandfather was captain of a troop of horse, in which capacity he served in some of its more im- portant struggles. Of his five sons one became distinguished as a financier and presi- dent ; two became high sheriff's of the county of Litchfield; one was a representative, senator, and canal commissioner in the State of New York; and one represented the State of Vermont for twelve years in the United States Senate. His maternal ancestry was none the less noted. His mother's father, Lieutenant-Colonel Forman, served in the Revolution with the New Jersey troops. In the early part of the century the father of Mr. Seymour removed from Connecticut and made his home in Pompey, On- ondaga County, N. Y. Though now living among strangers he soon won their affec- tions, and but a few years passed before he received from them a practical expression of their confidence in selecting him to represent the Western District in the State Senate for the years 1816-19. At this period, as the project of the Erie Canal was receiving considerable attention, he was appointed a commissioner for the same, which he re- tained until 1831, when he resigned. On his removal to Utica in 1820 he was imme- diately elected to the Assembly and two years later was returned again to the Senate. In 1833 he was elected mayor of his adopted city and subsequently discharged the duties of president of the Farmers Loan and Trust Company till 1837, when he died.
Horatio Seymour was born in Pompey, May 31, 1810. Though he had seen but ten summers when his father removed to Utica these early years were improved by attend- ing the academy of his native village. When Utica became his home he was sent to the Oxford Academy ; from there he entered what is now known as Hobart College, where, however, he remained only two years. He was neither rugged nor strong in youth and early manhood. His parents, believing, therefore, that an institution which had connected with it enforced drill and exercise might contribute to his strength, sent him to a military school at Middletown, Conn. This change proved highly beneficial, and led also to the door through which he was subsequently to pass to his many honors.
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MEMORIAL HISTORY OF UTICA.
The principal in this school, an officer in the army, was accustomed to take some of his pupils occasionally on a visit to Washington, and as young Seymour availed himself of this opportunity before he was sixteen years of age he became thus early acquainted with the capital and its historic associations, The academical curriculum completed he returned to Utica and after a little delay entered the law office of Greene C. Bronson and Samuel Beardsley, with whom he remained until admitted to the bar in 1832. It is questionable whether he ever possessed a natural fondness for the law or for that close application which success in the more learned professions plainly requires. Dur- ing the following year he was invited and became the private secretary of Governor Marcy, serving in that capacity seven years.' Albany was then the resort of the more influential in politics and many families of the officials made the city their temporary home. Mr. Seymour was not long in imbibing the atmosphere of his surroundings and receiving impulses which throughout his life never forsook him. From the strong personal friendship of Martin Van Buren and other Democratic leaders he became im- bued with those broad and patriotic sentiments which he subsequently illustrated. It was at this early period that he acquired his love for the constitution and Republican institutions. The more clearly he discovered their necessity and became acquainted with their benevolent purport the more firmly was he convinced that they should not only be maintained, but wisely developed and yield their legtimate and desired fruit.
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