page_title: State Reform School for Boys
section_title: Reorganization to the cottage system 1860–72
hierarchical_section_title: State Reform School for Boys / Reorganization to the cottage system 1860–72
caption_attribution_description: English: Exercise Yard
context_page_description: 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.
context_section_description: Superintendents:
  William E. Starr (1857–61)
  Joseph A. Allen (1861–67)
  Orville K. Hutchinson (1867–68)
  Benjamin Evans (1868–73)
  Allen G. Shepard (1874–78)
  With the destruction of three-quarters of the building by fire in 1859, the legislature had the task of deciding what to do with the reform school. With the recommendations of the Governor and of a committee formed, the legislature in 1860 appropriated money to build 3 houses and make renovations to the remaining structure as deemed necessary for a new classification system. Additionally, some laws were added to address better governance of the institution as requested by the Trustees.
  In the spring of 1860, the legislature approved $30,000 to renovate two existing farmhouses and build one new house, rebuild the chapel and to alter the old building to provide cautions against fire. On October 11, 1860, a dedication ceremony was held in the chapel with 333 boys in attendance. After a dedicatory prayer by the Reverend A.A. Arnold of Westborough, President Felton spoke.
  The new system would have all boys, upon committal to the reform school, housed in the old building. Using a credit system for good behavior a boy could earn his way into one of the trust houses. In this way boys that were good candidates for reforming, in a family setting, were transferred to the trust houses and the older more harden boys were kept in the older building and separated according to class.
  In that same year, the Legislature authorized the formation of the Nautical Branch of the reform school with the purchase of a school ship. It was thought that the older incorrigible juveniles, that were prone to violence, could be completely separated from the reform school but not be committed to the prison system. Additionally, it was thought that this class of boys would make good seamen for commercial and naval sailing vessels.
  
  The Legislature also passed a law that year reducing the maximum commitment age from 16 to 14 years old. This was in keeping with the general thought that boys over the age of 14 were less likely to be reformed. They also abolishment of the alternative sentence. The alternative sentence was handed down by the judge at the time of sentencing and was designed to specify a sentence to prison if the boy was incorrigible at the reform school. In practice, however, it was found that in most cases the alternative sentence to prison was of a lesser duration than the reform school, sometimes amounting to only days. Because of this, some boys would act out at the reform school hoping for their alternative sentence to be enacted and for their sentence to be carried out in prison for a few days or weeks instead of the sentence to the reform school throughout their childhood.
  Also enacted was an order that every sentence, to the reform school would be until the age of 18; previously it was 21. At the time, it was thought that the reform process should take upwards to 4 years to thoroughly educate the boys in character, schooling, industry, and labor. Additionally the power to commit inmates was restricted to judges of the Superior and probate courts, and all boys should have legal representation in court provided by the state. It was thought that by limiting the number of judges able to commit boys to the state reform school the number of boys committed for minor offenses would be reduced.
  In 1864, the legislature created an agency which they named the Board of State Charities. Its purpose was to make recommendations regarding the management of all of the State prisons, Reform Schools and Almshouses in the State. It was also charged with coordinating transfers between institutions and also managing the indenture of youth in the system. In 1866 and Visiting Agency was incorporated into the Board of State Charities to follow up and visit the indentured. Prior to the establishment of the Visiting Agency, very little information was gathered and kept on those indentured. The children indentured from the State Reform School from 1848 to 1863 was 1283. Approximately half of that number, the mast
caption: Group of boys in yard (1871)
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