Buffalo Orphan Asylum
The beginning of the Buffalo Orphan Asylum is credited to a group of just six women who formed an association to establish an orphan asylum in Buffalo. The Buffalo Orphan Asylum was incorporated in 1837 and it was the first refuges for the city's dependent children. The Buffalo Orphan Asylum was the only orphanage in Buffalo not under the auspices of religious organizations.
The first few locations of the orphanage were literally rented houses. For the first two years, the orphanage was operated out of a rented residence owned by Dennison Lathrop. It was located on Franklin Street below Mohawk. The site is now a parking garage. From 1838-1840, the orphanage was located by a residence owned by H.R. Seymour and Company on Seneca Street, below Michigan Street. From 1840-1845, the third rented location was at the corner of Niagara and Maryland Streets. This residence was a home owned by Thomas Day.
Finally, in 1845, the association located an independent site on the corner of Main and Virginia Streets. This site formerly housed the Buffalo Literary and Scientific Academy. By the early 1850s, this site became overcrowded and plans to erect a building of their own was needed. The site of the new building had already been decided . Louis LeCouteuix bequeathed a plot of land to the orphanage in 1838. Money was still needed to erect a building. A State Legislature granted the asylum $20,000, individual donations, and the sale of the Academy property allowed for building to commence. The Asylum moved to 403 Virginia Street, corner of Morgan Street (now South Elmwood Avenue) and was occupied in 1852. In 1878, an infant's ward was built from a gift of $10,000 from Mrs. Stephen G. Austin.
When first built, the site on Virginia was two stories and made of brick. Lighting was supplied by gas and heated by steam. The water was supplied from the city with connections to the city sewage system. Children were separated by gender with a separate government to provide oversight. The infant ward was under the charge of a head nurse and six assistants and served infants up to the age of three. A nursery department had one nurse and one assistant and their charges were children from ages three to six. Education was provided for the children. The children in the nursery department had two hours of Kindergarten instruction on-site from a trained teacher. The older children attended the public school on the adjacent lot.
During the 1890s, the majority of the children were under the age of ten and remained in the home for one year. children were often placed out with a family for adoption. If a child remained in the home for over one year, the county provided $1.00 per week towards the child's board. One third of the children were admitted from the superintendent of the poor. The remainder of the children were placed by family or friends who agreed to pay some sort of stipend towards their care. If funds were not available from the family or friends, the child became a charity case and were supported entirely by the asylum.
The county assisted with the placing out of children and the asylum also had an agent who provided the same service. The process was as follows: An interested family had to provide testimonials from a responsible community member, such as a pastor or physician from the locality of the applicant. After the testimony was investigated and the applicant was found to be commendable, a child would be placed in the home for a period of three months. During the adjustment period, the asylum agent conducted home visits to ensure the parents and children were adapting to each other. If the child was not treated appropriately, he or she was taken back to the asylum.
The institution faced serious overcrowding and sanitary regulations could not be met. As a result, children were turned away. Boys were often referred to the St. Joseph's Orphan Asylum (part of the Limestone Institutions) and girls were placed in the various Catholic orphanages in the area. The structure of the building was too weak to support additional floors, and the plot of land was small to allow for expansion. The playground for the children was merely a pad of earth covered with gravel. During inclement weather, the basement served as a playroom allowing for "outside" activities.
The search for a larger plot land was underway. By August 18, 1905, site selections were narrowed down to four from the twenty offered. These site locations were near Delaware Park, near Kensington Avenue, three miles north of the city limits on Main Street, and on Delavan Avenue. The final selection rested on the decision of the Board of Trustees. The Board's final decision was to purchase the land near Delaware Park at 1500 Elmwood Avenue (now McKinley High Vocational High School) almost directly across from the Buffalo Historical Society. The ten-acre plot allowed for the buildings to be spread out and to have access for children to play. The asylum funds only allowed for the purchase of land, but none left over to erect any buildings.
The Board was faced with controversy of their decision from members of the Fine Arts Society, the Buffalo Historical Society, and the Society of Natural Sciences. The societies' members felt an institution would not be aesthetically pleasing to the atmosphere of the area. The Board rebutted with the structure would be set off the road with a series of connectors to individual buildings. The Board also planned on maintaining gardens throughout the land.
The first goal was to erect a quarantine hospital to separate those with contagious diseases and new admissions. The site on Virginia was not allowed this luxury, leading to the quarantine of the entire building. In 1908, the Board finally raised enough money to begin building the hospital. The cornerstone of the asylum was laid on July 2, 1911. The first buildings erected were the administration building, vestibule, gender separated wards which were interconnected. An free-standing infant ward was also erected. Future plans called for the erection of a gymnasium.
The site opened in 1912 with the capacity of 250 to 300 children. The older children attended public schools, while the younger children received Kindergarten exercises at the asylum. The building on Virginia was purchased by the city and razed in 1915 to make way for a new public school. By 1915, population of the asylum rose to 240 with overwhelming operating costs. It became necessary to reach out to the public for financial assistance.
In 1922, the asylum ceased it operation at 1500 Elmwood Avenue, population decreased to 80, and the building was sold to the Buffalo School District for the creation of a vocational school. The children were placed in other organizations. The assets of the sale were placed in a treasure fund and then turned over to the Children's Aid Society. The treasury was held to the responsibility of furthering the interests of the asylum.
The sale was finalized in July 1922 for $250,000, and they were provided with an intermediate site at the corner of Minnesota and Bailey Avenues. The plan was to build another institution utilizing the cottage plan. From 1923 to 1927, the asylum operated a sit at 2772 Main Street and served only infants to the age of two. The capacity at any one time could accommodate up to sixteen infants. This home was abandoned in in the 1930s due to the few referrals.
In July 1925, a plot of land was purchased at the intersection of Jefferson Avenue and Florida Streets.
The final location for the Buffalo Orphan Asylum was at 538 Linwood Avenue, the former Hoeffler residence and that is where the Asylum celebrated its 100th anniversary. The asylum continued to be privately endowed and financed with a maximum capacity of thirty-four infants. This home had indoor facilities, bathing rooms, and an outdoor playground. Most of the infants admitted were referred by hospitals and other charitable institutions. The institution was discontinued in 1940.
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