Daily AncestorPoorhouse
A poorhouse was a public home run by a town or county where destitute, elderly, sick or disabled people lived at public expense.
Poorhouses spread across the United States from the 1820s, when reformers such as Josiah Quincy in Massachusetts and John Yates in New York urged towns and counties to build them. New York passed its act for county poorhouses in 1824. The aim was to save money and to discourage people from asking for help.
Over the 1800s, reformers moved children, the mentally ill and others into separate institutions, and most of those left were elderly. Residents were called inmates. Almshouse, poor farm and county home are other names for much the same place.
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Poorhouse." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/poor-relief/poorhouse. Last checked 2026-10-03.