In southeast Milford Township, in the northern half of Sec 35, on top of a slight rise, there exists what remains of the Story County Care Facility. Set back from the road perhaps a hundred yards and at the furthest south portion of a semi-circle road stood a massive three story dusk colored brick chateau-like building with a lawn filled with stately elms and oaks. A goodly number of outbuildings, a big double corn crib, barns and sheds with the accompanying gravel drives, completed the setting. Also, down the slope and across a shallow drainage ditch to the northeast is the Knoll's Cemetery, one of three still recognized cemeteries in Milford Township. Many of the graves in Knoll's Cemetery are sadly unmarked. And down the road to the east just a half mile- on the northeast corner of that intersection stood the one room School Number 7. Now a lone pine tree and an old style concrete corner-post mark the vacant site. This location (school) is a quarter mile east of the start (or ending) of the diagonal road that ran to the northwest. This road is shown on the 1875 map on page 5.
This Story County Care Facility had its start in 1869 with the construction of a 15 person home on a smaller parcel of land and was known for decades as the Story County Poor Farm. By 1875 the farm had accumulated all the land (320 acres) in the northern half of Sec 35. It was, for years, a fully working farm and quite adequately self maintaining.
In mid Feb of 1917 the main dormitory house of the county home burned to the ground. The fire started upstairs in the residence of the steward, Mr. and Mrs McNew, and by the time of discovery was beyond control so effort was concentrated on getting the ten inmates to safety and then a small amount of the furniture was saved. “They, (the inmates) were mostly old people”. At the time there was a high wind blowing and luckily, the flames were not blowing toward any of the other buildings. The building was of frame construction and was two stories high. The loss was estimated to be $5000 with only a $2100 value on the insurance. The McNews lived upstairs and the inmates on the lower floor. The board of supervisors voted to construct a new, much larger, brick structure.
The impressive building that most people remember as the main residential hall had been constructed in 1918 with room for 120 people. It was torn down in 2002 after the surrounding land had been sold in 1992. At the closing of the main building in 1990 the SCCF encompassed 320 acres.
This area, with a few remaining buildings, is now used as a storage zone for the Story County Conservation and Dept. of Secondary Roads.
As a matter of interest- Mr Earl A McCord, who was the steward at the Home and Hospital beginning in July of 1935, was killed in a car crash seven miles south of Iowa Falls on the 14th of April of 1947. Mrs McCord, who also was in the car, was not seriously injured but was brought by ambulance to her home at the Story Co Home. Of the new facility built in 1918, Mr McCord was but one of six directors. First were the Mc News, Erslands and the McCords. Following McCord's death, Mr & Mrs Irwin and Alma Grindem were in charge and when they retired the Don Andersons, and then Larry Rohret.
An article in the Nevada paper in early Sept 1931 announced that an open house was to be observed at the Story County Home and Infirmary and the public was welcome to attend on Sunday 6 September.
“Visitors will be shown through the various parts of the modern home, through the yards and work areas, large kitchen, laundry room, vegetable cellar, refrigeration plant and other interesting parts in the basement.
“In the field this year are 150 acres of exceptionally good corn, including the tract on which the state husking contest will be held. Several acres of oats were harvested and the balance of the acreage is in grass.
“There is a garden of approximately 5 acres which furnishes a large portion of the vegetables consumed by the large number of people kept in the home. Over 1000 quarts of vegetables and fruits have already been canned for the garden.
“In the nearly 200 head of hogs on the farm there are 168 spring shoats that will average 175 pounds.
“A dozen dairy cows are milked on the farm to provide milk for the table and cooking and there are 32 head of yearlings on feed in the yards. Included in the 375 chickens on the farm are 185 White Rock pullets that Mr. Ersland bought early in the season and from which he is already gathering six dozen eggs daily.
“The work on the farm is done by 11 head of work horses and mares, and one pair of colts is being raised.
“Mr and Mrs Ersland are assisted on the farm by a house man and woman as well as an outside man, a cook and one other woman.
“The balance of the work on the farm and garden, as well as caring for the house and grounds is done by the inmates, part of them the incurable insane. A visit to this splendidly equipped and well kept institution will be a revelation to many people of the county who have no knowledge of how the unfortunates are cared for.”
For more about this facility, see Irene Hodgson's article about the closing of this facility in the Potpourri Chapter on pg 250.
By Alice Grindem`52 Petersen
Edit: Alice Grindem lived at the care facility with her parents and younger brother John'61R for a period of about six years when her folks were the care providers and administrative supervisors.