Wayne County Training School
| Wayne County Training School | |
|---|---|
| Construction Began | 1924 |
| Construction Ended | 1930 |
| Opened | 1926 |
| Closed | 1974 |
| Demolished | 1997-99 |
| Current Status | Demolished |
| Building Style | Cottage Plan |
| Location | Northville Twp, MI |
| Alternate Names |
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History
The Wayne County Training School was the only county run training school in the United States. In 1919 Judge Henry Hulbert was concerned with poor conditions at the Lapeer State Home. His appeal to the County board led to the passage of a public act to allow the County build their own school. In 1924 1000 acres was purchased in rural Northville Township, land that is the highest point in the county and the located at the farthest western border.
Construction began in 1923 on 1,040 acres, with initial buildings designed for residential and instructional use, and the school admitted its first residents in 1926. Early operations focused on self-sufficiency through farm work and manual training, funded primarily by county appropriations supplemented by state aid for eligible cases. Expansion continued through 1930 to accommodate growing admissions, underscoring the institution's rapid development amid rising institutionalization rates for mental deficiency in the 1920s. Initial operations accommodated approximately 400 mentally impaired children aged 6 to 18, supervised by Dr. Robert Haskell, focusing on segregated care and training. By April 1928, the resident population had risen to 452 children under Haskell's direction.
Capacity expansions continued through 1930 with additional construction on the campus, enabling population growth; by the early 1930s, the facility housed around 700 residents, including on-site staff accommodations to manage the increased numbers. These developments reflected rising institutional demand for feeble-minded youth in Wayne County amid limited state-level alternatives. Vocational training intensified after age 15, replacing formal education with half-day supervised labor on the 1,040-acre self-sufficient grounds, including bakery operations, kitchen duties, greenhouse maintenance, landscaping, crop cultivation, and livestock care such as raising cows for dairy. By the 1930s, the population reached about 700, reflecting the program's scale in addressing Wayne County's unmet needs for mildly impaired youth beyond state capacity.
The Wayne County Training School operated a hospital building to provide medical care for its residents, including routine examinations, treatment for illnesses, and management of developmental disabilities under the oversight of a medical superintendent, such as Robert H. Haskell, M.D., who held the position by 1952. The facility's medical staff addressed physical health needs amid institutional challenges like overcrowding, with a 1961 survey noting continuous leadership from the original medical superintendent until retirement in 1955.
In the mid-20th century, the Wayne County Training School faced allegations of physical abuse, neglect, and institutional scandals, as recounted in personal testimonies from former residents and employees during its operation. No major federal or state-led investigations, akin to those exposing conditions at other U.S. institutions like Willowbrook State School, were publicly documented for the Wayne County Training School. Broader scrutiny of Michigan's training schools in the 1960s and 1970s, driven by overcrowding and inadequate care standards, contributed to policy shifts favoring community-based services over large-scale institutionalization. Reforms culminated in the school's closure in 1974 as part of the national deinstitutionalization movement.
The Wayne County Training School closed on October 18, 1974, after nearly 48 years of operation, marking a key instance of deinstitutionalization in Michigan's care for individuals with developmental disabilities. Following its closure, the site in Northville Township, Michigan, remained largely abandoned for over two decades, with most buildings deteriorating amid minimal maintenance. The redeveloped site now includes a golf course and residential housing developments, transforming the former institutional grounds into suburban land use without retaining original buildings or features.
Pasquale Buoniconto was Chief of staff at Danvers State Hospital prior to heading the WCTS.
Images
Video
- The following film was found at Wayne County Training School in the 1990's by a Canton High School Student. It was digitized by the Northville Historic Commission and uploaded to Youtube by Northville Tunnels.
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