A Costly Palace for the Poor?
Walla Walla County commissioners face criticism over a proposal to replace the contract system with a twelve-thousand-dollar brick building.
The story, cleaned up
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County commissioners have decided to build a brick poorhouse on the county farm at an estimated cost of twelve thousand dollars. The Statesman questions the fiscal wisdom of this project, arguing that the contract system currently in place is more economical. The main justification offered by officials—that a new facility will better handle smallpox cases—is dismissed by the paper, which notes the epidemic has largely run its course. Critics fear that a permanent, elaborate structure will inevitably lead to inflated maintenance costs and political patronage, whereas the current contract system costs the county only $2,160 annually to support the few existing indigents.
“It is safe to say that under the new system proposed the cost would be at least twice as great and probably three times as great.”
This reflects the early 20th-century transition from decentralized 'outdoor relief' (contracting care to private individuals) to the professionalized, brick-and-mortar institutionalization of social services, a shift that drastically increased the tax burden on residents.
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