Rolling Hills Asylum

When Genesee County opened its poorhouse in 1827, it was not a hospital in the modern sense. It was the county’s answer to poverty and dependence: a place for people who had no other means of support, including older adults, children, people with disabilities, and those described in the period’s records as “lunatics.” The institution’s name changed over time, but its work remained bound to the county’s changing ideas about relief, labor, illness, and responsibility.

The site began in a former stagecoach tavern near the geographic center of the county. In 1828, officials added a stone building for people considered mentally ill and for residents committed for misconduct. The surrounding poor farm helped feed and heat the institution. People able to work were assigned farm and household labor; the operation raised animals and crops, preserved food, and maintained workshops. Such county institutions combined shelter and public assistance with close supervision, and residents’ experiences varied with their circumstances and the resources available.