St. Louis Poor House History Reveals Overcrowding, Medical Experimentation, and Institutional Challenges
A historical deep dive into the St. Louis Poor House reveals its complex role in 19th-century St. Louis, serving as a last resort for the elderly, sick, disabled, and destitute. The institution, which combined shelter with medical care, faced persistent overcrowding and eventually housed hundreds of psychiatric patients transferred from the City Insane Asylum. By 1897, the distinction between the Poor House and an asylum had largely disappeared due to the city's continuous assignment of more people and responsibilities without adequate resources. The facility also became a site for medical experimentation, notably in 1889, when physicians injected nine residents with an 'elixir of life' made from liquefied animal testicles, a local version of Charles-Édouard Brown-Séquard’s remedy. Despite ethical concerns acknowledged by the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, the experiments proceeded, with residents reporting temporary improvements, though the 'elixir' was later found to be ineffective. The Poor House also endured...
