About This Resource:
The Indiana School for Feeble-Minded Youth in Fort Wayne opened its doors in 1890 on East State
Street, in an area that was, at the time, in the country. The school's campus included the
Administration Building, cottages, a school, an industrial arts building, a hospital, and a
gymnasium. The vocational arts were divided by gender, with men learning carpentry, agriculture,
painting, upholstering and the making of mattresses, shoes and bricks, and the women learning the
domestic arts of cleaning, cooking, canning, dressmaking, loom weaving and laundry. Residents
came from all over the state. In 1931, the 1130 resident capacity facility housed 172, and had a
waiting list of 200. That same year, the legislature changed the school's name to Fort Wayne
State School.
In 1960, many residents moved to the new site at Stellhorn and St.
Joe Roads, but some residents continued to live at the old school for about 20 years. After a
number of years in which the State Street campus was inhabited by vagrants and rats, the
Administration Building was demolished in 1982 to make way for North Side Park, which became Bob
Arnold Northside Park. The Park Department saved a stone archway to leave as memorial to the
former residents.
These mortality lists are taken from the Annual Reports of the Fort
Wayne State School to the Governor, and cover the time period from November 1912 to June 1937. (ACPL
call number GC 977.202 F77fmy.) After that time, the reports did not list the deaths. The report includes name, age, date and
cause of death, and evaluation grade. Actual death records were created for each individual and
are part of the Allen County Death Records. Microfiche copies of the Allen County Death Records
to 1932 are held at The Genealogy Center of the Allen County Public Library. Later death records
can be obtained from the State Vital Records Office. Among other information, death records could
provide birthplace and parents' names, when known. Also provided are burial places. Some deceased
residents were buried in their hometowns, others in various cemeteries in Allen County, including
the institution's cemetery, located in Section 19 of St. Joseph Township, on the west side of St.
Joe Road, between Broyles and Canterbury Boulevards. There is one large stone, dated 1901 to 1967,
but the graves were never marked. It is probable that some of those bodies supposedly buried at
the school cemetery were instead donated for medical research. Many deceased inmates, however,
were buried in other cemeteries or returned to their hometowns for burial.
About Searching This Resource:
This database may be searched in the following ways:
- Fuzzy -- will search for that string of characters. Searching for Smith would find
Smith, Smithson, Arrowsmith, etc.
- Exact -- will search only for that exact text. Searching for Smith will find only Smith.
- Soundex -- will search for the Soundex equivalent. Searching for Smith will find Smith, Smythe, Schmidt, etc.
To keep the system running smoothly, the
search will return a maximum of 1000 items.
|
