Boston Female Asylum
Encyclopedia
The Boston Female Asylum (1800-1910) was an orphanage
in Boston
, Massachusetts
, "for the care of indigent girls." Its mission was to "receive ... protect ... and instruct ... female orphans until the age of 10 years, when they are placed in respectable families."
, ... the Boston Humane Society, ... and the Boston Dispensary
. As late as 1886, some found notable that "the asylum is under the direction of a board of lady managers."
Early supporters included Robert Treat Paine, Jr.
Annual fundraising events raised substantial sums. For instance, the 1803 fundraiser at Trinity Church included a sermon by Samuel Parker
, "an ode written for the occasion, ... [and] the Franklin Musical Society [which] performed the musical part, to great satisfaction." After the event, local newspaper publishers Gilbert & Dean
wrote: "we have not learnt what collections the society made, but it must have been above five hundred dollars."
In 1807 the orphanage was located on South Street; in 1823 on Essex Street; and from the ca.1840s on Washington Street
. By 1873, "between 70 and 80 children are provided for in the Asylum. ... Annual expenses, which are between $11,000 and $12,000, are defrayed mostly by income from permanent funds, and to small extent by annual subscriptions."
"Beginning in 1902, the managers of the asylum came to feel strongly ... in favor of the use of the family home for the care of children, in preference to the institution. Gradually their work took on new form, until, in 1907, the asylum was finally closed, and family home care was entirely substituted."
In 1910 the organization changed its name to the Boston Society for the Care of Girls. Some years later, it "merged with the Boston Children's Aid Society in 1923 to form the Children's Aid Association." Then in 1960, Boston Children's Services "was formed through the merger of the Children’s Aid Association and the Boston Children’s Friend Society, an adoption agency with a history dating from 1883." In the 2000s Boston Children’s Services, New England Home for Little Wanderers, Parents’ and Children’s Services, and Charles River Health Management merged into The Home for Little Wanderers
, which provides a variety of services in Massachusetts.
Orphanage
An orphanage is a residential institution devoted to the care of orphans – children whose parents are deceased or otherwise unable or unwilling to care for them...
in Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
, Massachusetts
Massachusetts
The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
, "for the care of indigent girls." Its mission was to "receive ... protect ... and instruct ... female orphans until the age of 10 years, when they are placed in respectable families."
History
The Asylum incorporated in 1803. Hannah Stillman served as its first director. Founding board members included Sarah Bowdoin, Elizabeth Perkins, Elizabth Thurston, Mary Hubbard, Sarah Parkman, Hannah Smith, Mary Gray, Abigail May, Margaret Whitwell, Elizabeth Dorr, Mary Grew, Ann Green, Margaret Cooper and Elizabeth Goodwin. At the time, "the only public charities then existing in our good town of Boston, except the Almshouse, were the Boston Marine SocietyBoston Marine Society
The Boston Marine Society is a charitable organization in Boston, Massachusetts, formed "to 'make navigation more safe' and to relieve members and their families in poverty or other 'adverse accidents in life.'" Membership generally consists of current and former ship captains...
, ... the Boston Humane Society, ... and the Boston Dispensary
Boston Dispensary
The Boston Dispensary or Boston Medical Dispensary provided for "medical relief of the poor" in Boston, Massachusetts, from the late 18th century through the mid-20th century...
. As late as 1886, some found notable that "the asylum is under the direction of a board of lady managers."
Early supporters included Robert Treat Paine, Jr.
Robert Treat Paine, Jr.
Robert Treat Paine, Jr. was an American poet and editor. He was the second son of Robert Treat Paine, signer of the Declaration of Independence...
Annual fundraising events raised substantial sums. For instance, the 1803 fundraiser at Trinity Church included a sermon by Samuel Parker
Samuel Parker (Episcopal bishop)
Samuel Parker was the second bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts.-Education and Ordination:...
, "an ode written for the occasion, ... [and] the Franklin Musical Society [which] performed the musical part, to great satisfaction." After the event, local newspaper publishers Gilbert & Dean
Gilbert & Dean
Gilbert & Dean was a banking and publishing firm in Boston, Massachusetts, run by Samuel Gilbert and Thomas Dean in the early 19th-century...
wrote: "we have not learnt what collections the society made, but it must have been above five hundred dollars."
In 1807 the orphanage was located on South Street; in 1823 on Essex Street; and from the ca.1840s on Washington Street
Washington Street (Boston)
Washington Street is a street originating in downtown Boston, Massachusetts that extends southwestward to the Massachusetts-Rhode Island state line. The majority of it was built as the Norfolk and Bristol Turnpike in the early nineteenth century...
. By 1873, "between 70 and 80 children are provided for in the Asylum. ... Annual expenses, which are between $11,000 and $12,000, are defrayed mostly by income from permanent funds, and to small extent by annual subscriptions."
"Beginning in 1902, the managers of the asylum came to feel strongly ... in favor of the use of the family home for the care of children, in preference to the institution. Gradually their work took on new form, until, in 1907, the asylum was finally closed, and family home care was entirely substituted."
In 1910 the organization changed its name to the Boston Society for the Care of Girls. Some years later, it "merged with the Boston Children's Aid Society in 1923 to form the Children's Aid Association." Then in 1960, Boston Children's Services "was formed through the merger of the Children’s Aid Association and the Boston Children’s Friend Society, an adoption agency with a history dating from 1883." In the 2000s Boston Children’s Services, New England Home for Little Wanderers, Parents’ and Children’s Services, and Charles River Health Management merged into The Home for Little Wanderers
The Home for Little Wanderers
The Home for Little Wanderers is a private non-profit child and family service agency. It has been part of the Massachusetts landscape for more than 200 years, making it the oldest agency of its kind in the nation and one of the largest in New England...
, which provides a variety of services in Massachusetts.
Locations in Boston
- South Street (ca.1807)
- 62 Essex St. (ca.1823)
- Washington St., corner Asylum St. (ca.1844-1857); 750 Washington St. (ca.1873); 1008 Washington St. (ca.1904)
Variant names
- Asylum for Female Orphans
- Boston Female Asylum for Orphans
- Boston Female Society for Destitute Orphans
- Female Orphan Asylum
Further reading
- Robert Treat Paine, Jr. Communication on the Boston Female Asylum. Boston Gazette, April 1, 1802. Reprinted in: The works in verse and prose. 1812; p.344+
- Samuel ParkerSamuel Parker (Episcopal bishop)Samuel Parker was the second bishop of the Episcopal Diocese of Massachusetts.-Education and Ordination:...
. Sermon for the Benefit of the Boston Female Asylum. 1803. - An account of the rise, progress, and present state of the Boston Female Asylum. Together with the act of incorporation. Also, the bye-laws, and rules and regulations, adopted by the Board of Managers. 1810.
- F.W.P. GreenwoodF.W.P. GreenwoodFrancis William Pitt Greenwood was a Unitarian minister of King's Chapel in Boston, Massachusetts in the 19th-century.-Biography:...
. A Sermon delivered on the twenty-fifth anniversary of the Boston Female Asylum, Sept. 23, 1825. Boston: 1825 - An account of the Boston Female Asylum. 1833
- Jonathan Mayhew WainwrightJonathan Mayhew Wainwright IJonathan Mayhew Wainwright I was an Episcopal bishop.-Biography:He was born in England in 1792 to Peter Wainwright and Elizabeth Mayhew. His father Peter, was a tobacconist who emigrated from England to Boston before the American Revolution.His mother was the daughter of Rev...
. A sermon preached on the anniversary of the Boston Female Society for Destitute Orphans: September 25, 1835. Boston: Dutton and Wentworth, 1835 - Reminiscences of the Boston Female Asylum. 1844.
- Saved from the street. Our Boys and Girls, v.11, no.224, March 1872.