Submission Type
Poster
Abstract
In 1824, New York State passed the County Poorhouse Act, mandating that each county in the state build a poorhouse to house people who could not financially provide for themselves. Monroe County erected its poorhouse in 1826. Throughout the nineteenth century, this institution housed the poor in Monroe County. The infrastructure of the poorhouse quickly became overwhelmed by Rochester’s growing poor population, and inadequate living conditions— like poor ventilation and overcrowding— made life there even more difficult. Using vital records and data from Mount Hope Cemetery’s death records (available through the University of Rochester’s Rush Rhees Library) and the Brighton Town Records (digitized by Richard Halsey for the NYGenWeb Project), this study will compare causes of death in the Monroe County Poorhouse against those of the general Rochester population for part of the nineteenth century. This comparison is predicted to shed light on how the devastating impact of diseases can discriminate based on social and environmental factors like socioeconomic status and living conditions.
Recommended Citation
Ryan, Audrey, "332-Poverty, Institutionalization, and Mortality in 19th-Century Rochester" (2024). GREAT Day Posters. 91.
https://knightscholar.geneseo.edu/great-day-symposium/great-day-2024/posters-2024/91
332-Poverty, Institutionalization, and Mortality in 19th-Century Rochester
In 1824, New York State passed the County Poorhouse Act, mandating that each county in the state build a poorhouse to house people who could not financially provide for themselves. Monroe County erected its poorhouse in 1826. Throughout the nineteenth century, this institution housed the poor in Monroe County. The infrastructure of the poorhouse quickly became overwhelmed by Rochester’s growing poor population, and inadequate living conditions— like poor ventilation and overcrowding— made life there even more difficult. Using vital records and data from Mount Hope Cemetery’s death records (available through the University of Rochester’s Rush Rhees Library) and the Brighton Town Records (digitized by Richard Halsey for the NYGenWeb Project), this study will compare causes of death in the Monroe County Poorhouse against those of the general Rochester population for part of the nineteenth century. This comparison is predicted to shed light on how the devastating impact of diseases can discriminate based on social and environmental factors like socioeconomic status and living conditions.