The State Reform School for Boys in Westborough, Massachusetts was a state institution for the reformation of juvenile offenders from 1848 to 1884. Originally conceived the facility was built to house up to 300 young boys but by 1852 an addition was added to house an additional 300 inmates. By 1857, there were 614 inmates at the reform school.
After a devastating fire in 1859, that consumed half of the building and was set by one of the inmates, the school created a nautical branch to house some of the older boys on school ships. The youngest boys were housed in an old mill in the nearby village while some remained in what was left of the Reform School.
By 1861 what was left of the Reform School was rebuilt and 3 "trust houses" were built, each holding approximately 30 boys. The "trust houses" as an experiment in juvenile reform in which boys were placed in a family setting known as the "cottage system". By 1872, the nautical branch was disbanded and in 1877 a "correctional" addition was added to the original building to house the older boys. After a riot broke out in 1877, information leaked to the media about cruel and unnecessarily severe punishment of the boys. Legislative hearings were held and the abuses uncovered were denounced by many in the public.
By 1880 the legislature, having deemed the Reform School a failed experiment in a congregate setting, and needing additional space for an overcrowded institutional system for the insane, used the land and the buildings to establish the Westborough Insane Hospital. By 1884, the State Reform School for Boys was relocated a couple of miles away, in Westborough, and renamed the Lyman School for Boys being established under the "cottage system".
It is widely written that the Reform School for Boys in Westborough was the first juvenile reform school to be built in the United States. This is somewhat misleading as there were several reform schools built before 1848 including; The Boston Farm School (1833) and the New York House of Refuge (1824) that were either private or corporate institutions. The State Reform School for Boys in Westborough is believed to be the oldest publicly funded reform school in the United States.
Juvenile reform school movement The reform movement for juveniles began in the United States in 1824 with the founding of the House of Refuge in New York City. In 1826, the Philadelphia House of Refuge was built, and in 1827 the House of Reformation for juvenile offenders in Boston was established. These early attempts at reforming child criminals were spawned from work previously done in England and of the Society for the Improvement of Prison Discipline and for the Reformation of Juvenile Offenders (1815). In New York, the Society for the Prevention of Pauperism was established in (1818) later reorganized as The Society for the Reformation of Juvenile Delinquents (1823).
These organizations were founded on the principals that children under the age of 17, convicted of a crime punishable by imprisonment, should not be put in jail among older hardened criminals. They should be reformed of their criminal ways by moral, religious, academic and vocational education in a setting more resembling a home environment than a prison environment.
Massachusetts vision 1846–47 Early in 1846, a petition from magistrates and citizens of the Commonwealth was brought before the General Court asking for the creation of a state institution for the reformation of juvenile offenders. A committee was appointed to consider the matter and on February 20, 1846, a circular was issued containing 9 questions regarding the formation of a reform school.The commissioners circular as it appeared in 1848 The answers received from the citizens convinced the committee of the need for such an institution. April 16, 1846, the governor was authorized to appoint 3 commissioners to purchase land, erect a building and establish a system of governance for the first public institution of its kind.
Theodore Lyman ll, former governor of Boston, answered the committees circular.Theodore Lyman's response to the commissions circular in 1848 Mr. Lyman was particularly interested in the subject of a State Reform School, having been president of the board of managers of the Farm School at Thompson's Island. Mr. Lyman donated $30,000 for the purposes of purchasing land and erecting a building for the purpose. Later in his will, he would donate an additional $20,000.Extracts from Theodore Lyman's Will
In 1847, the commissioners purchased the farm of Lovett Peters in Westborough containing 180 acres situated on the north side of Chauncy Lake for $9000. Soon after, the farm and land across the road was purchased by the Trustees for $3500. Shortly after opening the school and additional 23 acres was purchased, west of the main building from the Warren Farm for a total of 280 acres.
On June 15, 1847, the contract for the building was given to the lowest bidder, Mr Daniel Davies of Boston, for $52,000 with a stipulation that the contract completion date would be December 1848. On that same day, the commissioners selected the location, on the 180-acre old Peters Farm, where the building would be erected.
The institution was built to accommodate 300 students, with apartments for the superintendent and his family; rooms for other persons employed; a chapel; hospital, offices, 7 "solitaire dormitories" for disciplined, school rooms, workshops and sleeping dormitories. The foundations of the building were built with stones, the walls were brick and the roof was slated.The basement floor plans of the original buildingsThe 1st and 2nd Floor Plan of the original building
Governing structure Legislature The Legislature would appropriate yearly budgets for the institution, appropriate special budgets and pass general laws regarding the reform school based upon recommendations of the Trustees and Superintendent. Governor The Governor would appointment of Trustees and Board Members Board of State Charities The Board of State Charities would investigate and supervise the whole system of public charitable and correctional institutions of the State and make such recommendations, changes and additional provisions as they may deem necessary for the economical and efficient administration of those institutions.List of State Institutions under their supervision in 1864 Board of Trustees The 7 member volunteer board of trustees would hire superintendents and other officers, make monthly visits and hold monthly meetings to review the operations of the institutions. They would manage the Lyman and Mary Lamb funds for the betterment of the institution. Make recommendations to the legislature regarding funding and additional laws that may be warranted. Transfer inmates between charitable institutions and coordinate the selection of inmates and masters for the indentured servant program.List of Trustees that served from 1848 through 1883By Laws for the government and regulations of the State Reform School Superintendent The superintendent's responsibilities were the management of the facilities, inmates and all those employed within it.List of Superintendents that served from 1848 through 1883
Dedication On the December 7, 1848, Emory Washburn of Lowell gave an address to members of government and many other citizens assembled from the varies portions of the commonwealth at the new Reform School in Westborough.
Excerpts of the AddressThe experiment which is here begun is full of interest to every generous mind. It represents the state in her true relation, of a parent seeking out her erring children, and laying aside the stern severity of Justice while struggling for their reform. There is a fitness that this first experiment, in this country by an entire body politic, to reform the young by an institution for punitive discipline, should be made by Massachusetts.
It is proposed, by schools like this, to remove those from the reach of temptation, so far as may be, who have been led astray by the undisciplined passions of youth, or the more resistless power of corrupt associates, by educating and training them to useful trades and employment, and thereby giving them the means of acquiring personal independence. It is proposed, by the discipline which awaits them here, to quicken the torpid actions of conscience, by calling into play the moral sentiments which have been suffered to lie dormant.
The measures adopted by its trustees in, among other things, the selection of its superintendent - so vital to its success - form an additional guarantee to the public, that, if the experiment fails, it must be from causes intrinsically incident to such a work, and not from anyone of interest or capacity on the part of those to whom its concerns have been confided. May the work go prosperously on! May the priceless, immortal souls that are to be subjected to human discipline through this institution, be purified from the stains by which they have been polluted, and set free from the bondage of Vice in which they have been enslaved! We commend the school, with its officers and inmates, to a generous and grateful public, with the trust that the future lies of the Young who may be sent either for correction and reform, may prove the crowning glory of an enterprise so auspiciously begun. Early years 1848–59 Superintendents: William R. Lincoln (1848–53) James M. Talcott (1853–57) William E. Starr (1857–61) The early years were marked by rapid expansion and an ever-evolving inmate governance. The practical workings of the institution were founded on the daily participation of the inmates in education, industrious or agricultural work, religious teachings, and preparing them for an apprenticeship with minimal time for recreation or idle time. The washing, ironing, and cooking were done by the boys as well as making and mending their own clothes. The farm was to be a centerpiece of the work experience at the Reform School. It was thought that young boys would prosper from the knowledge and physical labor of working on the farm. Additionally, it was hoped that a well-managed farm with good soil and abundant free labor could help defray the cost of the Reform School.
At the time of admittance, the boys were classified by age, temperance, education level and physical abilities. This fundamental classification system would allow for grouping of boys in the dormitories by age, in the classroom by prior education levels, and for working in groups, temperance, and physical abilities would be considered. Additionally, a grading system for conduct was adopted consisting of 4 grades designated as 1 through 4. When a boy was admitted he was placed in the third grade and overtime if his conduct was bad he was degraded, as a punishment, to the 4th; if his conduct was good he was promoted to the second. The first grade had a subdivision called "truth and honor" which was the highest rank available. This system was applied to their conduct while in the schoolroom, in the shop, on the playground or on the farm. For punishment, they were degraded from a higher to lower rank and for encouragement promoted from a lower to higher rank. Many privileges were granted for good conduct including excursions on the lake in a boat in summer or sledding and skating in winter.