Letchworth Village in Thiells, New York.
(photo by litmusound)
In 1907, the New York State Board of Charities cited the need for the establishment of a facility in the southeastern part of the state to care for people who were then referred to as “feeble-minded and epileptics.” The appointed commission selected rural Rockland County as the site for the facility, which was named the Eastern N.Y. State Custodial Asylum. In 1908, the state legislature and Governor Hughes approved the appropriation of $188,575 to purchase 2,000 acres of “rolling farm country” in Thiells. In 1909, the facility was renamed Letchworth Village in honor of William Pryor Letchworth, a noted philanthropist, humanitarian and advocate for the creation of the village.
Mr. Letchworth’s plan for the facility was a departure from the normal custodial institution, and he instead created a small “village.” Children and adults who lived there received education, training and vocational instruction. In the 1930’s a farm was created on the grounds, and the acreage was worked by the residents, who were able to learn the trade of farming. The crops, poultry, dairy and pigs that were raised there sustained village residents as well as the live-in staff. The developmental center closed in 1996.
Submission by litmusound.
Letchworth Village has been featured before.
