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Jefferson County Insane Asylum and Poor Farm

"Potter's Field"

Jefferson County Home

Countryside Home

CROSS REFERENCES:

Video clip tour of Pottersfield

Jefferson County Insane Asylum &Poor House - Items recorded in local papers, index to the book, R_362.2_J35

1999 Potter's Field is on County Land

Jefferson — Looking closely at the concept plan unveiled Thursday which provides for development of the County Farm, there is an open space on the west central portion of what is to be the future residential area with more than 400 homes.

This space was planned, but not by this generation. Marked by a grove of trees located on the highest elevation of the parcel is the "potter's field" of what was formerly, and officially, known as the County Poor Farm. The graveyard of indigents, paupers and the destitute, it is the final resting place of former residents of the Poor Farm.

Incorporating politically correct terminology decades before its time, it became known as the Jefferson County Farm and now is the location of Countryside Home, County Human Services and a variety of additional county service agencies.

An early form of self-sustaining welfare, the County Poor Farm is officially listed in plat books that pre-date the Civil War. "It may go back even further, if we were to look up the deed histories," said Andy Erdman of the county Land Information Office.

According to the 1862 plat map, the original plat lists an 80 acre segment of land labeled Poor Farm outside the southwest corner of the designated area for the city of Jefferson. One eighth of a surveyed section, 80 acres was considered the amount of land that could have been farmed by one team of horses.

Since the mid 19th century the county farm has grown to more than 640 acres and has served many purposes. A tuberculosis sanitarium was built during the first half of this century to deal with one of the health scourges that was considered commonplace. Prior to the 1950's, TB patients had to be quarantined. The sanitarium was located near the end of Annex Road. That facility was razed in 1986, but the red brick Human Services administrative office buildings were formerly the nurses' dormitory for that TB facility.

Directly east of the administrative offices is a large field now planted with alfalfa. Near the center of the field on a rise of land is a group of trees indicating the location of the potter's field. "There are at least 40 markers still out there," said Terry Card, grounds manager for the County Farm. Card brought the existence of the cemetery to the attention of officials during a recent planning meeting. He noted that few markers have names, and most are only marked with a number for early county records.

In addition to the official county agency uses, the land is now leased to area farmers, and a portion of the County Farm has been annexed to the city of Jefferson.

- From Jefferson County Union 30 April 1999. Reproduced in “Out on a Limb” in August, 1999.

2005

It has been called several things in its 150 year history, but Jefferson County's Countryside Home has always existed to serve the people of the county.

Originally called the county "Poor Farm," officially established in 1854, some documents indicate that plans for a facility to care for infirmed or destitute people in the county existed before Wisconsin became a state.

Designed as a self-supporting farm to provide subsistence and give some residents an opportunity to work, the poor farm was a common institution in 19th century government to care for "paupers."

Documents list among the prevailing causes of "pauperism" in the early years as old age, sore eyes, blindness, asthma, friendlessness, vagrancy, dementia and consumption.

Over the decades the purpose and focus of the facility changed as did its name. The first half of the 20th century required that a sanitarium for polio patients fall under the umbrella of county services, in addition the Forest Lawn home for the Aged.

Medical progress closed the polio sanitarium in 1958. In 1978 the farm animals and equipment were sold at auction liquidating the last vestiges of the days it was considered the county farm.