Why read Second Home?

Book cover of Second Home: Orphan Asylums and Poor Families in America

Book description

As orphan asylums ceased to exist in the late 20th century, interest in them dwindled as well. Yet, from the Civil War to the Great Depression, America's dependent children - children whose families were unable to care for them - received more aid from orphan asylums than from any other…

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American history

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Why read it?

1 author picked Second Home as one of their favorite books. Why do they recommend it?

Marlene Trestman

Author

Perhaps the standard bearer in scholarly research about the history of orphanages in America, U Mass Boston Professor Timothy Hacsi’s Second Home is essential reading for anyone seriously studying the subject.

Armed with tables that cogently summarize – by decade - the number and types of orphanages, their populations, funding sources, and staffing ratios, Hacsi surveys the landscape of American public policy in the 19th and 20th centuries as religious groups, Progressives, and ultimately government responded to the needs of dependent children and families.

From Marlene's list on The best books about orphans & orphanages for children and adults.