Juvenile Reformatories

History

The first public reformatory, the New York House of Refuge, was opened in New York City in 1825 by the Society for the Prevention of Pauperism. It was soon followed by institutions in Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, and other cities. These first reformatories varied in size, holding anywhere from 90 to 1,000 children. They were designed to maintain complete control and were often built with locked cells in order to hold the young people securely.

The New York House of Refuge was meant to be an alternative to the penitentiary for delinquent youths. In practice, however, it was not all that different from the prisons and jails of the time. Juveniles who had committed crimes were confined alongside orphans and poor or incorrigible children, without the benefit of a trial or concern for due process. The New York House of Refuge was used to house, school, and train poor children in an attempt to help them avoid becoming paupers as adults. Eventually, houses of refuges became clearing centers of sorts, collecting poor and delinquent children from the city streets and sending them to the west to work on farms as indentured servants. Boys were often sent there until their 21st birthday; girls were committed until their 18th birthday.

State reformatories or training schools were essentially a continuation of these houses of refuge, with slightly more focus on education. Massachusetts led the way, opening the Lyman School for Boys in 1847 and the Lancaster School for Girls in 1855. By the end of the century, all states had adopted the idea and opened their own reformatories. These institutions, whether in Massachusetts, New York, or elsewhere, were based on the guiding principle that strict discipline and vocational training could counteract the forces of poverty, unstable family lives, and an unhealthy, dangerous environment.

Reformatories were generally built in rural settings in order to remove children from the temptations of the city. The youths sent to them were closely supervised and expected to work and to learn vocational skills. Most reformatories were designed around a cottage system, with juveniles separated into a number of small living units. In these more intimate settings, house “parents” were able to focus on and supervise the youths in their care and to attempt to model conforming behavior and values. While many juvenile correctional facilities continue to use the cottage system, juvenile institutions also took on additional forms in the 20th century. Forestry camps and ranches became popular alternatives, and a number of larger training schools moved their populations under one roof and into a more custodial model.

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