Ledgers, ledgers, and more ledgers are housed in the collection at the Greene County Historical Society. Some are from old businesses and others are account books from stores. Perhaps the most interesting are a series of books that contain audits for the old County Home, the building that now houses the Greene County Historical Society Museum.
Though these books do not cover the entire history of the building and institution, they do cover periods from 1860 through the late 1870s and 1916 through 1937. These early audits give us a closer look at the expenses the County Home incurred. They document the original expenses when the County bought the farm and converted it to a poorhouse. The farm was purchased for $5000, and they spent a further $8000 building the first addition. Needing furnishings, they purchased dining room tables from a local carpenter for $28.
Unfortunately, we have not found the audits for the 1886 West Wing addition, but in the later 1916 to 1937 audits, it’s clear that fixing up the house was high on the priority list. Each year, they spent money on wallpaper, paint, and repairs for the building. Other funds went to purchasing supplies to keep the highly fruitful farm going. In addition, from 1932 to 1934, they catalogued all the expenses covering the construction and outfitting of the Curry Home across the road.
Just after they completed the Curry Home, a huge renovation project happened at the County Home. Through several installments, more than $2800 was paid to Acklin Lumber Company to replace several of the worn-out floors in many of the old rooms. They also constructed a new series of rooms in what was a large second dining hall on the second floor of the County Home, and new window sashes were installed in the original 1857 portion of the building. These window sashes are still in place and currently undergoing restoration.
Readers can also see the expenses for medical fees and burial expenses for the folks who lived and died at the County Home.
These ledgers provide a unique insight into the operations of a long-forgotten type of institution that played a vital role throughout the community. Shown in the photo here is one page of County Home expenses from 1936 that details some utility bills and other expenses for the year.