Editing Berks County Almshouse
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| name = Berks County Almshouse | | name = Berks County Almshouse | ||
| image = Berks almshouse 1880.jpg | | image = Berks almshouse 1880.jpg | ||
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| alt = | | alt = | ||
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In 1874 a new and modern hospital was constructed for the infirm, sick, disabled, and feeble-minded. The building measured 277 feet by 60 feet and stood at three stories with an attic and basement. The male and female patients were segregated on either side of the buildings main wing. The each floor of the building contained spacious rooms designed to be occupied by two patients, 10 foot wide hallways, and water closets. The central wing, which extended to the buildings rear contained the kitchen and dining hall on the first floor and the chapel on the second. | In 1874 a new and modern hospital was constructed for the infirm, sick, disabled, and feeble-minded. The building measured 277 feet by 60 feet and stood at three stories with an attic and basement. The male and female patients were segregated on either side of the buildings main wing. The each floor of the building contained spacious rooms designed to be occupied by two patients, 10 foot wide hallways, and water closets. The central wing, which extended to the buildings rear contained the kitchen and dining hall on the first floor and the chapel on the second. | ||
| β | The complex maintained an independent insane department, which by 1885 was housed in the two brick buildings which formerly served as the male and female hospitals. The capacity of these structures is 58 males and 28 females, for a total capacity of 86. In the report it was noted that the | + | The complex maintained an independent insane department, which by 1885 was housed in the two brick buildings which formerly served as the male and female hospitals. The capacity of these structures is 58 males and 28 females, for a total capacity of 86. In the report it was noted that the facitilies for the insane were not appropriate and the insane patients would be better served by a transfer to [[Harrisburg State Hospital]] or [[Danville State Hospital]]. |
As time went on the hospital became more focused on the infirm and aged than the poor and insane, as many almshouses did by the middle of the 20th century. In 1952 the complex on Lancaster Ave closed for good, being replaced with a new infirmary in Leesport called Berks Heim. Berks Heim remains in operation today as a county run nursing home. In 1957 the old almshouse complex was demolished and replaced with apartment housing, a shopping center, and the Governor Mifflin School. | As time went on the hospital became more focused on the infirm and aged than the poor and insane, as many almshouses did by the middle of the 20th century. In 1952 the complex on Lancaster Ave closed for good, being replaced with a new infirmary in Leesport called Berks Heim. Berks Heim remains in operation today as a county run nursing home. In 1957 the old almshouse complex was demolished and replaced with apartment housing, a shopping center, and the Governor Mifflin School. | ||
