Indiana Soldiers and Sailors Orphans High School - Retrospect Yearbook (Knightstown, IN)

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Q -,N fi 'N ADMINISTRATION BUII DING HISTORILAL SKETCH OF THE INDIANA SOI DIERS AND SAILORS ORPHANS HOME HE site of this Institution was known for many years before the war as tne Knlghtstown 'iprlngs and was vis lted as a health resort by many The spot now known as bprrng Valley was dotted with tents during the summer months and the occupants made a business of drinking the water bathing init and believing themselves greatly benefited Bath house were fmallv erected and so well were these patronwed that slde of the road and directly above the llrge spring This afforded new and substantial conveniences for health seekers and the place began to enjoy a general reputation But greater and grander history than all this could make was destined to be written of the Kmghtstown Springs The fame the place then boasted only served to attraet the public attention when its healthful loeatron and its springs of pure water were wanted for a higher and nobler purpose Early IH the summer of 1861 a meetmgw rs called in the ofiice of Qove rnor Olly er P Morton to devise ways and means to establish a State Soldiers Home About fifty gentle men responded to the call At the suggestron of the Governor a Board of Directors Nas appointed and incorporated with this end ID VICW At first the Cnty Hospital Building at Indianapolis was used hut early in 18061 the Ixnrghtstown Springs with fifty four acres of ground Including the aforesaid hotcl and seyeral other buildings was purchased as a Soldiers Home The money to efl'e ct this purchase C58 'JOIU was raised by private gifts and many patriotic hearts went into all parts of the State asking for donations Among these persons may be mentioned Rex Arm strong and Qhaplarn John Hogarth I oner rely upon voluntary contributions to meet all the necessary expenses and the propertv passed into the hands of the State and was placed under officers appointed by the I egis lature On the first day of March 1867 the Home for Disabled Soldiers became one ot the rnstltutlons of the State for the malntenanee not only of' sick and disabled soldiers and sea men but also of their widows and orphans It was formally opened Iune Io 1864 Now to return to the meeting in the Gov ernor s ofllceln 1?-Sh: One of the patriots attending tlat meeting was George Merritt recently deceased He stood a the first adxocate of a home for soldiers orphans Before any decision was reached he addressed the meeting in behalf of the orphans of the soldrers who had given therr lives for their eountry Ile re lated to the meeting some of his ereperrenees during the war rn hospitals and on the battlefields where rt was his prrvr lege and duty to care for the wounded and dying Ile pretured to them the one unsatrs fred and oxermasterrng anxiety of the dying soldier for his children when he was gone He declared to the meeting that he had always guy en assurance ID such cases that the countrv would provide for the children and to make good tnat ple lge he offered lf the meeting would include the soldiers orphans rn their seheme to gut five thousand dollars 1355 0005 for their benefit After a long discussion rt was thought that to combine the two would be so gre at an un dertaklng as to end rnger the succe ss of the enterprise and that at was best to undertake This decision left Mr Merritt free to fulfill at least his share of the country s obligation and promises Hrs wish was that the orphans might be divided into families of ten each to he given to the care of one woman to whom a fixed monthly allowance should be given IH monev to be expended as rn her Judgment would best promote the welfare of the ehlld ren Ile expected to find these foster mothers among the soldiers rdows and maiden ladies whom the war had left alone and thus he thought to provide rn a measure for both classes In Miss Susan Fussell he founda woman well qualified and willing to undertake the care of ten orphans in the manner indicated On the 14th dav of November 18611 she com menced her work in two roomsln the Military Hospital at Indianapolis with tour soldiers N . .- Ir' 1-' MQ , X tu V , D , J 4,Av .y ,Je QL -ffl.-. , - N N w ' - - D 1 - 1 1 1 ' I , . , . . 9 7 9 J 1 . 7. I ' A D I L .K - ' j 1 v 1 w . 1 . D 1 x 3 ' 1 . ' '-1 -1 ' ' 1. .1 V '1 1 1 -1 51? Y I ' ' ' 1 5, T' , x , Vx, , l ' L, , H L, xi, , 1 1 1 1 1 1 ' , H ' ' 1 ' 1' 1 'V ' ' ' - ' 1 1 1 , 1 I - I i I 1 D ne ' ' , vr , ' . ' ' ' , ' , , V . - e ., , - U , . - 1 1 - 4 1 y - I '. ' 1 ' ' ' ' I ' .', ' .' ' f ' .' ' 1 ' v ' 1 1 1 L- ' 1 3' K ' ' 1 1 B- 1 K' ' 1 -A-I 1. 1 1 1 ' ,' . , X ' 1 , ' 1 Y n 1 w I y' 1 1 : 4 ,-' K ' ' ' ' ' , ' ' 1 ' ' K 1 ' 1 - 3 '1 1' ' , . . ' , . ' 1 . I ' 1' I 'l I .'. - ' 1 bw 1 . y - .1 S I - . I 51 A1 A 1 , ' 1- - , ' , L, 1 2 S , , l K , ' 1 ' . I - 4 '11 . 'i ' - ' ' ' . , . . a Mr. Aaron Aldrick built a hotel on the west The Directors soon found they could not first the Soldiers' Home. ' ' 1 1 1 y t - 1 r 1 ' ' I- 1 1 '51 V.'A1' , . ' ' ' 8 51' 71 1 1 .13 ' I K' 1 V 1 1 F . K I 'L1 'L ' 1 ' 1 1 -1 1 I 1 51, ' ' ' , ' ' ' I , 'A' Y I I I 1' 1 i V 1 I1 5 . . , , , . , H . , ,, 1 I A , ,, . I . A 1 . . .. . . . . N , ., , K -1 1 11 . , ' . ' ' 1 , L' ' , 1 1 1 1 , , , ' - ' ' ' if 11 .1 ' 1 1 'B11 1 5- ' 5' - sf 1 , 1 , D , , ' B1 '1 , , ' ' 1 1 ' ' 1 1 ' I 111' ' ' . va 1 T In I 1 . . . A 1 . , . , . K ' Y L 1 A I ' , 1 , ' ' 1 I , ' 1 , 1 1' 1 ' 1 ' '7 ' 1 1 1 1 , 1 ' 1- 1 -1 .1 1 ' I1 ' 1 1 ' ' S L B B I 1 ' . ' I ' 1 y 1 1 . 1 5 , . A 5 ' b , 1 ' ' , 1' ' 1 . ' 1 1 . , ' 1 1 ' 11' 1 1 1 , ' 1 51 ' , ' ' 1 ' F ' J ' 'F' ' S ' L . 1 7. - 1 . . , ,

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TI-IE HO E JOURN WUI XXNIII ll llfmn lllldlld, Ihurscaw as ll I' Nc 9 BIRllShXh VIEW UI' THE HOME I'uIrIisIn-cl ul Ihr I I'a z .'1II s' z I .': 'I H' ' Q -. ' . ' . lg.',1l.S ,1 r- 1 M- , nn. f.. F V ? G 1 V b ITN! , . ,441 .1 'nA .A -, .h . U F

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,Mi v- orphans taken from the Orphans Asylum of that exty Ina short txme she had the full number ttenj from different part of the State all wlthout frxends to care for th4 m In Apxll 18641 Mlss Fussell moyed to the Ixnlghtstown Sprlngs and wlth het lxttle famlly occupied a llttle cottage on tne hlll on the east slde of the road tnear the pre ent I lncoln Halll and here we fmd the hrst Soldlexs Orphans Home at this place whlle the Soldlers Home had just been located by prly ate enterpllse 111 the hotel on the opposlte slde of the load When the State assumed control of the Home m March 1864 theI egnslature appomt ed Henry B Hull Charles S Hubbard and Wxlllam Hannaman Trustees and the follow Ing classes were admitted to the Home 1 Totally dlsabled soldlers and seamen Z Partially dlsabled soldlers and seamen 2 Orphans under lifteen years of age of deceased soldners tnelther father nor mother hvmgj Orphans f the same elass woe mothers are llylng Wldows of deceased soldners The Trustees appointed Dr M M W1ShHlll long ldentlhed wlth this Home the tnst Superintendent Here hoveeyer Mlss Fussell llved for ten years wlth her charge of ten orphans Independent of the State Home x cept that they attended the schools estab lished by the State They mamtamed a se p arate famlly hfe whe rem they '-0 nearly for got that they were orphans that they often spoke of the others 'ts theorphans Mlss Fussell has passed over the rlver to he r rest and reward but she llye d long enough to see SLHOOI BUII DINQ most of her chlldren happlly marrled and ln homesof thelr own all blessmg her forthe care and helpful mfluence she had exerted on thexr Voung llves Mr Merrltt who IS rellable authorlty fol these statements bore wltness to the falth fulness and unselhshne s of that noble band of men and women who during the time he was an observe r of the worle had charge of the Soldiers Orphans Home In a short tlme the number of admxssmons was so great that more room was re qulred md fue acres of ground east of the road and dlrectly opposite the hotel Home were pur fhased and a new bulldlng erected thereon at a Lost of nfty QIX thousand dollars Him 0003 To this new bulldxng the old soldners were transferred and the ehlldren were left ln the hotel In 1870 however the chnldren so far out numbered the old soldlers that they ex change d quarters the chlldren takmg the new Home and the soldlers returrlng to the Hotel lfazly onthrlstmas mormng 1841 the old hotel was burned and soon thereafter the soldlers were remoyed to the Natlonal M111 tatv Home at Dayton Ohlo Th1s left the orphans m full possessxon of the Home untxl ln 1849 an asylum for feeble mmded chlldren was attached to the lnstxtutlon This contln UtKlUY1tll the Ieglslature of 1884 separated them sendmg the feeble mmded tMay 141 to Rlchmond leaymg the orphans sole pos ess ors of the ground agam whlch arrangement stlll contlnues The Home has been twice burned rust on the Nth of September ls 4 t ab t 11 1 eloele p m the building was dlseoveled to J be on the Although nearly all were sleeping soundly when the alarm was glven those m charge gave themselves so energetlcally to the worle ot savmg the chlldren that no one was lost Wlth commendable zeal the Trus tees began to bulld at onee and ln Septem ber 1848 the new bulldmg was agam occu pled The second fire occurred on July 21 18861 at P o eloele p m There was no loss of hfe but the bulldmg and most of Its contents were eonsumed Temporary shelter was lm medlately provlded for the chlldren maklng them as comfortable as posslble under the clr cuvnstanees ln beptember the Trustees rented the Valley House ln Kmghtstown orphans were removed there while the feeble mmded chxldren were assigned the frame school bulldmg upon the Home grounds The contract for rebunldmg was let at once and wlth characterlstlc promptness the Trus tees pushed the work to completlon The eorne rstone was lald on the 17th day of Noy ember 188b and June 28 1887 the south wlng was completed and occupled The re mammg part of the Admlmstratlon Bulldmg was oceupled as rapldlv as the halls and rooms were hmshed The new school bulldlng was completed m Ianuary and on the 6th day of February 1?ss8 the chlldren took possesslon The older of the two 1ndustr1alBulld1ngs was erected ln the year 1'Nts The three cottages on the east lde of L ottage Park were bullt In the ye n lsrsfb md three on the south snde were added mn the year 1891 lmeoln Hall was begun ln October 1891 The eonnnstone was lald on November 3rd and the soldlers temporarlly to .II,I EK I, , . 5 V X ,I I V as ' - L 31 V .sz , '-A. , ' e -.. 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