Founded: 1812 as House of Industry; name changed 1831
Location: Frederick Road, Baltimore, MD

Images

House of Refuge, Baltimore. Opened December 5th 1855. Lithography by A. Hoen & Co. From First Annual Report of the Managers of the House of Refuge, frontis. Maryland Historical Society

House of Refuge, Baltimore, Opened December 5, 1855. Artist: Unknown Other Contributor: A. Hoen & Co. Pict 16.15 x 11.11 1933 Notes : Lithograph by Hoen, 1855. This building, a home for unruly boys, stood on the hill west of Gwynns Falls near Frederick Avenue. At the laying of the cornerstone, October 27, 1851, Chief Justice Taney and Governor Lowe of Maryland were speakers. George W. Brown, afterward Mayor, was president of the board. Cator Collection, Print 120. Enoch Pratt Free Library

House of Refuge. Message of Frank Brown, Governor of Maryland, to the General Assembly at its Regular Session, January, 1894 (Baltimore: Wm. J.C. Dullany Company, 1894). Maryland State Archives

Additional Information

• Dates: 1812/02/14
  Notes: House of Industry (later, 1831, House of Refuge) organized by Drs. Edward Johnson, James McHenry, George Roberts, James H. McCullough and others (February 14).
  Source: Cordell, Eugene Fauntleroy, Medical Annals of Maryland 1799-1899 Baltimore: The Medical and Chirurgical Faculty for the State of Maryland: 679
• Dates: 1894
  Notes: HOUSE OF REFUGE, situated on the Frederick Road, in the western suburbs of Baltimore city, was chartered in 1831, and embraces a lot of fifty-five acres. The large buildings were erected at a cost of $260,000, which amount was contributed by the State of Maryland, the city of Baltimore and by private contributors. It is a reformatory institution where incorrigible boys are committed at the request of their parents. Others are committed for misdemeanors and sundry offenses. The institution provides for a plain, practical English education, and has workshops for mechanical training in the practical branches of industry, many of the boys being engaged in printing, some as wood-workers, and others in the metal-working department. The need of an institution of this character is generally recognized by the citizens of the State. The State of Maryland appropriates the sum of $15,000 annually towards its support. This is followed by an appropriation from the city of Baltimore of about the same amount.
  Source: Message of Frank Brown, Governor of Maryland, to the General Assembly at its Regular Session, January, 1894 Baltimore: Wm. J.C. Dullany Company: 70