| FORSYTH COUNTY HISTORICAL ASSOCIATION FCHA Homepage |
1892-The Home is three miles west of Winston, well located on nice level ground, well drained; has six small, one story houses, two of brick; 18 rooms in all. The
houses and general surroundings look well. Water supply is from a well and heat is open fires, except for one building which has a coal-stove. Can accommodate 25,
with 22 inmates now in charge. Five can work at times; eight are helpless; three are insane and confined. There are two children in the Home, both in bad health, and
their parents are dead. From December 1, 1890 to September 1, 1891 seven inmates died, and four or five inmates were discharged. The diet is good and
sufficient—of wheat and corn bread, bacon, vegetables, eggs, milk, butter, etc. The keeper is O. G. Grubbs (Winston), at $300 per annum, board and rooms for self
and family. He gives his own and his wife’s services and furnishes two horses; is a satisfactory officer. Dr. D. W. Dalton (Winston) is physician; paid by fees, former
amount $2 reduced by Commissioners to $1 per visit. There are 200 acres of land, with 25 in cultivation. Crops are wheat, corn, oats, hay and vegetables for the
Home. There are two horses, two cows, and poultry. Religious services are held once or twice a month. Superintendent has inflicted corporal punishment on one
inmate with a strap or switch; one other inmate occasionally locked up. Some poor people, at the direction if county Commissioners, are allowed small sums of money,
if in urgent need. REMARKS: Our Home for the Aged and Infirm is a disgrace to the county. While not exactly let out to the lowest bidder, the Superintendent is
required to keep expenses at very near the lowest. Inmates who take care of themselves fare pretty well, but those who cannot wait upon themselves are in a pitiable
condition, not so much from a lack of food as want of proper nursing. The Superintendent probably does the best he can under the circumstances.
1893-The building of home described heretofore (1892). Houses are old and in tolerable good condition, but needs new floors; Buildings inadequate to the increasing
demands of the county. Can accommodate 25 inmates, with 25 now in charge. There are eleven inmates who are able to work (7 women and 4 men); eight inmates
are helpless, five are confused (of these, two insane, one idiot, and one imbecile). From December 1, 1891 to March 1, 1893, five or six inmates have died of old age
or debility, and six have been discharged. All of the food that they desire is given: cabbage, kraut, meat, bread, milk, vegetables, eggs, molasses, sugar, coffee, pork,
beef, mutton and chickens occasionally. The cost per capita is about $8.33 per month. Peas and clover turned under for improving the land. Voluntary religious
services are held once a month. One person was punished by switch for disobediences. The poor are allowed some outdoor relief, but not complete support.
REMARKS: There have been no repairs or improvements since the last report. The helpless, sick and insane suffer for want of proper nursing and care. The keeper
of the home is often absent or out on the farm, when the attention of someone is needed on the premises. There seems to be no provision for furnishing the sick with
medicine, except what the county physician, at his own cost, leaves with them. The County Commissioners are taking steps to build a small one-story addition to the
home, which will add somewhat to the comfort of the inmates. The insane are kept in confinement no better than the usual cell of criminals, with humble beds, and
some of them shivering with cold on the day of our visit.
SECOND REPORT: The premises are rather old and shabby, but fairly convenient and comfortable. The Home can accommodate 20 to 25 inmates, with 30 now in
charge. None of the inmates are really able to work, but 10 or 12 do something. There are 15 helpless inmates and four confined (insane). One child, said to be
weak minded, is at the home. From March 1, 1893 to September 1, 1893, there were four or five deaths, chiefly from syphilis; two inmates were discharged. The food
is good and weekly cost per capita is $1.50 to $1.75. There are 180 acres, of which 25 to 30 are in cultivation. The crops raised, 125 bushels of wheat, 150 bushels
of corn, nine stacks of hay, 75 bushels of Irish potatoes, 75 bushels of sweet potatoes, and other vegetables, are also used at the home. There are two mules, two
cows, 15 hogs and poultry. The superintendent is O. E. Grubbs (Winston), at $300 a year, and family expenses. Dr. D. H. Dalton (Winston) is the physician, at $2 a
trip. One man was punished with a whip, for improper conduct with a female. REMARKS: More room is needed and a good nurse is indispensable to the comfort of
the inmates. The beds are unspeakably shabby and filthy; in one case we were told that the sheets have been changed but twice in 13 months. One small room has
a crazy white man and two Negro women in it. One of these women has borne a child or two since she has been there, and we hear of acts of criminal intimacy
between them, and most scandalous indecency. The house for the insane needs better ventilation, while holes in the roof of some of the cabins need stopping.
Better arrangements for bathing should be made, and the inmates should be made to eat in a dining room together, instead of in their rooms as they do now, One
paralyzed man told us that his pantaloons had not been off for several months because he was unable to take them off and had no help. We think the keeper of the
home does as well as he is able to do with the means at hand. He has to cultivate the farm, which is all that one man can do successfully; this necessarily leaves 30
inmates to take care of themselves. The more able ones fare very well, and the helpless ones needs suffer. Forsyth is a wealthy county, and is free of debt, and we
think it owes its unfortunate people better treatment than they are receiving.
August 5, 1897- UNION REPUBLICAN--The County Commissioners elect W.W. Watson, Keeper of the County Home for the next 12 months, to succeed
O.E. Grubbs. Mr. Watson furnishes a 2-horse team and receives a salary of $200.
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This photograph is believed to show the gallows that
was built near the Forysth County Poorhouse, which
was located on Liberty Street. The gallows was
supposedly erected for the execution of Peter
DeGraff on February 8, 1894.
was built near the Forysth County Poorhouse, which
was located on Liberty Street. The gallows was
supposedly erected for the execution of Peter
DeGraff on February 8, 1894.