Proposed Historical Marker No. 1: The County Poorhouse in Cairo Now located in Angelo Canna Park, and used as a County office building, the Cairo Almshouse served an important role in the history of Greene County. The Town of Cairo was chosen as the site of the county poorhouse due to its centralized location. From Beers History of Greene County, published in 1884 we have this description: The entire building is of brick, two stories and basement, on a stone foundation, 140 feet front, with a center pavilion 56 feet deep by 40 feet front, three stories high. There are two wings, each 42X50 feet. The basement is eight feet high under the entire building, the wall being of masonry two feet thick. On the first floor the center or pavilion will be occupied mostly by the keeper and family. The rooms in this part include a general office, doctor’s office, reception room, dining room, kitchen and three bedrooms, large clothes presses, pantries, etc. The southern wing will be devoted exclusively to males. It has corridors seven feet wide running the entire length. Platform staircases five feet wide, at right angles, lead from the corridor to the second story. The rooms in this wing are dining-room, sitting-room, bath and wash-room. The north wing will be occupied by females, and is similar in every respect to the south wing. On the second floor of the wings are large dormitories and small rooms, wash-room and infirmary. The third floor (in Mansard roof) of the pavilion is a very large and pleasant room that can be utilized for various purposes. The current building was completed in 1883. If you would like to see this site honored by a historic marker in 2015, click the like button. But first check out the other two potential historic marker choices.
Posted on: Sun, 13 Jul 2014 13:38:26 +0000
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