| The
Clinton County Children's Home On January 15, 1921 Clinton County purchased a house and grounds at 102 W. Baldwin in St. Johns. The property was formerly owned by Mr. and Mrs. Conrad Stephans and adjoined the land where the county jail and sheriff's residence were then located on the west side of Clinton Avenue south of McConnell.
Mr. and Mrs. Charles R. Dyke were appointed superintendent and matron of the new facility on Baldwin, then known as the Children's detention Home. Mr. Dyke, who had served as a deputy sheriff, became the Clinton County agent of the State Welfare Commission. The State Constitution of 1909 had given probate courts original jurisdiction in all cases of juvenile delinquents and dependents, so the Home was under the jurisdiction of Judge J. Charles Flynn, the judge of probate for Clinton County at the time. Mr. Dyke became ill and died in 1928. The Dykes were succeeded by Mr. and Mrs. Charles Miller who served a few years and were followed by William J and Leah Cook. Mr. Cook served for about ten years and died in 1941. His duties were assumed by Mrs. Cook. By this time the term "detention" had been dropped, and the institution was sometimes called the Children's Home and sometimes the Juvenile Home. The building at 102 W. Baldwin Street was an ordinary house, and the atmosphere there was homelike rather than institutional.
Children of elementary school age who lived at the home had always attended old Central School. Now they had a little greater distance to walk, but they attended Perrin-Palmer School which was new and modern at the time. Mrs. Leah Etta Cook was associated with the Children's Home for about twenty-five years. She died on November 3, 1956 at the age of 74. In February 1957 Mrs. Edwin Nobis assumed her responsibilities. State standards eventually forced the county to give consideration to more modern and secure quarters. The county bought some property just south of Clinton Memorial Hospital, extending between Oakland and Swegles Streets. In 1961 a new facility was built at 1004 S. Swegles and was occupied early in 1962. Mrs. Nobis retired in 1973 after sixteen and one-half years of service. - Hyla Bross |
The Baldwin Street house became the county home for children who
were orphaned or whose parents were unable physically or financially to give them proper
care. It was also a home for neglected or abused children. Sometimes it
housed children who had gotten into trouble with the law, but those children were usually
sent to the State Industrial School for Boys in Lansing or to the State Industrial House
for Girls in Adrian.
By 1944 the original home had become too crowded, so the county
purchased the large red brick house and grounds at 201 E. Gibbs from Bruno
Mazzolini. A fire escape was added to the outside of the house, making it look
somewhat institutional; but the quarters were more spacious and there was ample room for
outdoor recreation.