White County Poor Asylum
| White County Poor Asylum | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Established | 1857 |
| Construction Began | 1907 |
| Opened | 1908 (Second Location) |
| Closed | 2009 |
| Demolished | 2017 |
| Current Status | Demolished |
| Building Style | Single Building |
| Architect(s) | Samuel Young |
| Location | Monticello, IN |
| Architecture Style | Queen Anne |
| Alternate Names |
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History[edit]
The first system for the care of the county's poor & mentally ill was for them to be placed with "reliable families". They were paid by the county for expenses & boarding. The first county home was built on a 200 acre farm in 1857. A second wood frame building was constructed in 1875 to accommodate more inmate, but by 1907 was deemed "unsanitary and dangerous" to the inmates.
Construction on the new building in 1907 at a new location, 3 miles north of Monticello on the Tippecanoe River. It opened December of 1908 despite complaints of some of the locals about it's location. In 1911 there were 27 inmates, 15 of them over the age of 60. Eight years later they had 31 inmates. The 1927 state report on the asylum reported concern that there was no care for inmates that were insane, and in 1938 it had not been addressed, also 10 inmates were sleeping on the floor.
By 1941 the asylum had 42 inmates. It was reported at that time that an additional 6 inmates were housed in "detention housing", segregated cages in the 1-story annex at the rear of the building. There was also concern about locked doors and lack of fire escapes. 1950 brought about improvements, including tubular fire escapes. Water supply had been improved and several other upgrades to the building & farm.
Later years the population began to decline steadily, mentally ill people from the county were sent to Logansport State Hospital for treatment. By 1998, there were only 15 inmates & in 2009 the county decided to close the facility for budgetary reasons. In May-June 2017, the building was torn down.
