Presentation of 'Poor Houses and Town Farms: The Hard Road for Paupers' at Gordon-Nash Library

NEW HAMPTON — The New Hampton Historical Society presents "Poor Houses and Town Farms: The Hard Road for Paupers," on Tuesday, Nov. 15, at 7 p.m. at the Gordon-Nash Library.

The early Northeastern colonies followed the lead of England’s 1601 Poor Law, imposing compulsory taxes for maintenance of the poor, making no distinction between “vagrant, vicious poor” and the helpless and honest poor. This confusion persisted for generations and led to the establishment of alms houses and poor farms and, later, county institutions that would collectively come to form a dark chapter in New Hampshire history.

Presenter Steve Taylor will examine how paupers were treated in these facilities and how reformers eventually succeeded in closing them down. Taylor is a farmer, writer and long time scholar of New Hampshire’s rural history and culture, and was the founding executive director of the NH Humanities to Go program. With his three sons, he operates a livestock and maple farm in Meriden Village, and served 25 years as the state’s commissioner of agriculture.

The Historical Society thanks New Hampshire Humanities for providing our 2022-2023 Presenters and Programs.

Programs are free and open to the public.

Gordon-Nash Library is located at 69 Main St.