Quote:
Originally Posted by fatlazyless
If you google "poor farm, social security act," the Wikipedia reference informs the reader that the Social Security Act was signed into law by President Franklin Roosevelt on August 14 1935, at about 3:30-pm. It took about fifteen years for social security to eliminate the need for the local poor farm, as most all poor farms had disappeared by about 1950.
There was probably plenty of Wolfeboro residents who were very unhappy with Roosevelt being the president at that time in 1935. 'Like, without that old poor farm, where do we go for our cheap labor when it's time to harvest the hay fields?'
Wonder what it was like.....living on the Wolfeboro poor farm....and did it have a good, hilltop view of Lake Winnipesaukee?
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The one in Alton was sold to a private party, Charles Rines, in 1876. I believe that was the end of the poor farm setup here in Alton. I'm not sure if there was a second one somewhere else, but to the best of my knowledge, this one was the only one. I've read that post-Civil War, many of the towns stopped having a poor house but just had an overseer of the poor or a welfare officer for the town.