MOUNT PLEASANT HOME

Mount Pleasant Home

MOUNT PLEASANT HOME. Non-sectarian home originally founded to care for women and children, Mount Pleasant Home was originally called the Iowa Home for the Friendless. The institution was chartered in December 1874 by a local group of women.

The charter of the organization was signed by fifty-three ladies each representing two shares of stock. Officers were elected and rules established. The bylaws of the Home provided for a Committee of Ways and Means whose duty was to provide entertainment for the benefit of the Home. A Committee on Home had the duty of keeping the building in good repair. The decision of who would be admitted was the responsibility of the Committee on Applicants. A Committee on Homes for Children looked for permanent homes for the orphans. The Visiting Committee was chosen to visit the Home at least once a week and report to the Board on the condition of the clients.

The organizers in 1874 hired women for managing the entire operation. It was not until 1891 that it was determined that a "necessity of having a man on the premises to take charge of the furnace, cows, and all out of doors work" existed. The position was called "house man." (1)

All persons able to contribute to their own support were charged half of their earnings. Orphans left to the care of the Home were charged one dollar and fifty cents per week. Those unable to pay the set charge could still be admitted at the discretion of the board president. The first home occupied a small building known as the Graham House on Hill Street. The first residents were welcomed on New Year's Day 1875. During the first year, fifty-one people came to live in the Home including thirty-nine children. The Graham House soon proved inadequate in terms of space.

In November 1877, Mr. and Mrs. Jeffrey M. GRIFFITH donated their large mansion and two acres of ground for the Home. The mansion had originally had been built in the 1850s for William Lovell, a judge in Dubuque, as well as a miner, railroad promoter and land speculator. (2) It is believed he was one of many to be left bankrupt by the economic panic of 1857. (2) The residents of the Home moved into the Griffith house on November 22, 1877. On March 15, 1876, the Iowa House of Representatives appropriated $5,000 to the Home of the Friendless on a vote of 58 to 22.

The site, known as Mount Pleasant Home after 1913, was managed by a board of directors composed of Dubuque women. In 1898 the Board introduced the requirement that any new members of the Board were to be Protestant. This was dropped in 1972. (3) Other changes included a request from a maid to be permitted not to wear stockings. This was granted if she wore closed shoes. (4) Cost-savings was always important, but when the laundry department was found to be repairing sheets with patch after patch, the superintendent was asked to use new sheets and discard the old ones. (5) In 1972 air conditioning was suggested for one of the rooms in the future. (6)

The original home was increased in size in 1800s, 1939, 1988, and 1995. (7)

In 1954 Cub Scout Den No. 5 of Pack 3 donated, bought, or refinished toys to the children. A theater-shopping party for fifty-two children from Mount Pleasant and St. Mary's homes was hosted by the Junior Chamber of Commerce and RADIO station KDTH. A committee of three faiths hosted a party for children from HILLCREST BABY FOLD, Mount Pleasant Home and St. Mary's home where the event was held. It was believed this was the first time children from the three homes were brought together for such an event. (8)

Beginning on January 10, 1957, the home no longer sheltered homeless or needy children. The courts and policies of child welfare workers preferred to place children in foster homes or state institutions more experienced in their special care. The Home became exclusively a residence for women sixty-five years of age or older. In 1986 men were first allowed to live in the home. This occurred after the Board of Directors found that several rooms had been difficult to keep occupied because they had smaller closets and were more isolated. It was determined that these issues were important to ladies, but were less likely to bother men." (9)

In 1976 Mt. Pleasant Home clarified its position with the State of Iowa. It was not a health care facility and did not require a license from the state health department. In 2015, residents could choose to receive home health care from an agency of their choice. (10)

The raising of food on the premises ended around 1979 when no one wanted the responsibility of the garden. In the past, the grounds had seen milk cows, chickens, orchards, grapevines and acres of corn and tomatoes that yielded thousands of quarts of canned produce. (11)

In 1984 Mt. Pleasant's first male administrator was hired. Men joined the Board of Directors in 1990 and the first male president of the board was elected in 2001. (12)

Financial support began in the 1800s with aid from the Iowa Legislature. Later charity balls were held at the HOTEL JULIEN DUBUQUE. The Community Chest helped the home through the GREAT DEPRESSION. In recent years, revenue has come from charitable grants from foundation and the DUBUQUE RACING ASSOCIATION. A sale of the home's green space to HABITAT FOR HUMANITY paid for the repair to a chimney, acquisition of a new van, and increasing the home's endowment. (13) ---

Source:

1. "Glimpses of History from Mt. Pleasant Homes 140 Years," "The Golden View," March 2015, p. 18

2. Swenson, Jim. "140 Years Late, Mt. Pleasant Homne Still 'A Haven," Telegraph Herald, October 7, 2015, p. 5A

3. "Dubuque History Found in Mt. Pleasant Records," The Golden View, April, 2014, p. 22.

4. "Glimpses of History from Mt. Pleasant Home's 140 Years," The Golden View, February, 2015, p. 18

5. Ibid.

6. Ibid.

7. Gray, Chris, "'It's Like Coming Home,'" Telegraph Herald, July 19, 2024, p. 1

8. "Caring for the Needy," Telegraph Herald, December 21, 2004, p. 10

9. "Glimpses of History..." March 2015

10. Ibid.

11. Ibid.

12. Ibid.

13. Gray