Clark County, Indiana - Chapter 34: The Indiana Reformatory and the American Car and Foundry Company, 1909

Chapter 34: The Indiana Reformatory and the American Car and Foundry Company

In the fall of 1821 the first state prison in the state of Indiana was established on the northeast corner of Ohio avenue and Market street, in the town of Jeffersonville. Previous to the opening of the prison, prisoners were punished at the whipping post. The law was so changed that all persons who committed a crime for which they should receive not to exceed thirty-nines lashes, should be sent to prison for a term not to exceed three years. W'iiere formerly the punishment was one hundred stripes, a term not to exceed seven years was imposed. The old prison was a primitive affair built of logs at a cost of about three thousand dollars, the greater part of which had been subscribed by Jeffersonville people. It had fifteen cells in a row, made of logs ten inches square, dove-tailed at the ends. The doors were four inches thick covered with strap iron. There was no light or ventilation except what came through a space of about four inches at the top of the door. The roof was of heavy planks cut from the surrounding forest, and dressed by hand. The cell-house was surrounded by a stockade made of logs, and to get into this inclosui'e one had to pass through a massive door swung on hinges and strong enough to resist a battering ram. The office, guardroom and other apartments were in a two-story log house outside the stockade, and within the guard room was an ample supply of flint-lock guns and pistols. These were strewn around on tables and desks and some of them were hung on tlie walls in accessible places. Rawhides were used on the convicts then without mercy, and one dose was usually enough. The first lessee was Capt. Seymour W'estover.

The first convict ever received was named Friend, and it is a singular coincidence that the oldest inmate at present in the Indiana Reformatory bears the same name. Captain Westover went 1o Texas in 1826 and was killed with Crockett in the Alamo. He was succeeded by James Keigwin, the father of the late Col. James Keigwin.

The prisons of Indiana have been conducted on three different principles. The first adopted at their inception and above referred to, was suited to the days when but a small number of persons were convicted, or confined, and may be designated as the boarding system. During its continuance the keeping of every prisoner was at the direct cost of the state, without any return and with- out any sufficient check upon the dishonesty and rapacity of keepers, wlio could abuse the men committed to tlieir charge by semi-starvation and rither measures of "economy."

So soon as tiie numl)er of convictions in the state had so far increased as to warrant the change, prisons were erected at the cost of the people. In these the convicts were confined, building, prisoners and all, leased to private individuals who fed. clothed and maintained the prisoners, and paid a certain gross annual sum in addition for such labor as they could extract from them.

The third system adopted by the state consisted of renting the labor of the convicts to contractors, who paid a certain per diem for each man employed, while the discipline, control and personal care of the men was in the hands of a warden and other officials representing the state. This was commonly designated as the contract system. The curse of idleness was removed by the lessee system, but only to give place to abuses so horrible that it is a matter of congratulation that Indiana abandoned it as soon as she did. Under the lease system a warden was oppointed by the state for each prison, whose duty it was to see that the contract of the lessee was lived up to, but the convicts were body and soul in the hands of the contractors, and the warden had little power and too often less inclination to restrain those whose interest often led them to commit the greatest cruelties. The one aim of most of the lessees was to obtain from the convicts under their control the greatest possible amount of labor at the least expenditure for maintenance. Men were ill-fed, ill-clothed, punished by the lash with the utmost severity, for trivial derelictions, or for a failure to perform in full the daily allotment of labor, often when sickness and infirmity made it an impossibility to fulfill the requirement. The sick and disabled were neg'lected as if the consideration of life weighed lightly in the balance against the few cents daily necessary for their maintenance. The cells and corridors were foul, damp and unwholesome ; swarms of vermin infested every corner, and thus overwork, cruelty, starvation, filth, the pistol and lash of the guard, all contributed to a wholesale murder of the weak, and to brutalizing the strong beyond the hope of redemption here or hereafter. The horrors of the prison systems before the lessee ceased to be the guardian of convicts were such as to better befit the days of the Spanish Inquisition than the enlightenment of the nineteenth century.

The histor\- of the old Prison South is one of many phases, and unfortunately the stories of cruelty and neglect were often true. The modern ideas of reformation and the square deal to the unfortunates incarcerated had not developed to a degree that resulted in' any great benefit to them, ^^'ith advanced ideas and improvements in every line of business and science, it was but natural that the students of criminology should advance likewise, and the metamorphosis of the old stockade of the Prison South into the present wonderful institution of the Indiana Reformatory bears testimony that Indiana is the peer of any state in handhng' such questions.

Bairds History Of Clark Co., Ind Baird S History Of Clark Co., Ixd

Hardly a year has passed since the present location was selected that improvements of some kind have not been made. In 1882 a large cell house was built at a cost of fifty thousand dollars, but the greatest number of improvements have been made since the institution became the Indiana Reformatory.

In April, 1897, an exchange of inmates was made between the Indiana Reformatoiy and the jMichigan City penitentiary, to carry out the provisions of the new law which provided that all life-time men and those over thirty years of age should be confined in the latter place. At that time three hundred and sixty men were taken north and two hundred and ninety-seven men were received here. A. T. Hert, wdio was the last warden, became the first superintendent, and he remained as such for two years, to be followed by W. H. Whittaker. Among the many modern improvements which have been made at the new institution may be mentioned the new C cell house, constructed in 1901, from plans drawn b}^ Arthur Loomis. of Jefifersonville. This cell house is one of the most modem in the United States. It is sixty cells long and five cells high, making a double stand of three hundred cells on each side of the center of the cell house. Each cell is about six feet wide by eight feet high, by ten feet deep and is equipped w'ith running water, toilet and washstand, electric light, wire spring bed, shelf and chair. The total cell capacity is six hundred for C cell house ; one hundred sixty-eight for B cell house, and two hundred for A cell house, making a total of nine hundred sixty-eight.

The present entrance was reconstructed during the wardenship of Mr. Patton, just preceding Mr. Hert. The foundi^y was built and burned in 1908 ; the hospital was built in 1898; the trade school building in 1895: the new laundry and bath house were built under Mr. Whittaker's superintendency, and the large drill ground was walled in in 1907. In 1909 about eight additional acres of land were obtained through condemnation proceedings. The roof garden for the hospital is one of the most valuable features in the whole plant. Here the men in the grasp of the white plague are made to sleep and exercise, and the results of this treatment have been excellent. The building containing the office of Mr. Barnard, tiie assistant superintendent, also contains the solitary cells. The last report speaks as follows of this feature :

"Our methods of discipline are humane. At no time is a man thrown into a dungeon or into a dark or poorly ventilated cell ; but. whenever necessary to confine a prisoner for discipline, it is done in a well-lighted and wellventilated cell, and for the first offense he is given two full meals a dav while in punishment. We find we get just as good results from this method as we did from the old method of giving a man only eight ounces of bread per day and all the water he could drink while in punishment.

"I find that the best method of handling men of this character is to give them at all times fair treatment, and in no case should punishment be meted out to the offender unless he has wilfully violated some rule of the institution. In adhering closely to this rule and in giving to each fellow a "square deal." I find that far better results can be attained than by the old method of vindictive punishment, and w^here careful investigations were not always made before a prisoner was placed in punishment."

There are no dungeons at the reformatory now. The solitary cells are about eight feet by ten feet by twelve feet deep and are airy, clean and well lighted, eveiy cell having an outside opening.

The librar}' is of great benefit in oft'ering good, clean instruction and pastime to the inmates and at the same time in furthering the reform idea. The library was burned on February 8. 1908. and three thousand and seventeen books out of a total of four thousand six hundred twenty-seven were destroyed. Since that time new liooks have been added until there are now si.x; thousand, five hundred forty-nine. This libran- has an average monthly circulation of fifteen thousand seven hundred fifty-one volumes, or a total circulation of one hundred eighty-nine thousand and fourteen for the year.

On the second floor above the library is the chapel, with a seating capacity of one thousand fifty. Here ever}' Sunday morning the inmates and officers gather for divine ser\-ice. and the fact that the inmates contributed one thousand two hundred dollars towards the purchase of a pipe organ for this chapel indicates to what extent they are interested.

Among the minor features of the refoiTnatory may be mentioned an excellent brass band of twenty-eight pieces, and also a newspaper, called the "Reflector," which each inmate finds in his cell every evening. For physical exercise, besides the daily w'ork of the trade schools, the military idea has been adopted, and a drill for each day is held if possible. Under the instructions of Lieutenant Harrell. of the Indiana National Guard, the men have received excellent training in the sitting-up exercise and marching, as well as in discipline.

The central idea in the reformatory being reform, education is naturally used as the best means of accomplishing this result. The trade schools are not only teaching trades to the men but are a source of revenue to the institution. They are on an excellent basis. Instruction is given the men in the following trade schools: chain-making, shirt-making, foundry department, shoe-making, tinsmithing, blacksmithing. brickmasonry, broom and brushmaking, cabinet-making, carpentering, tailoring, laundering, painting and printing-.

The various other institutions in the state such as the insane asylums, etc., etc., are supplied with furniture, clothing, shoes, etc.. from the reformatory and the receipts from this source reduce considerably the expense on the taxpayers for maintaining this institution. The shirt department clears about forty-five thousand dollars per year. In 1908 the institution C(_ist one hundred ninety-six thousand eight hundred fifty-seven dollars and thirty-nine cents for maintenance in all departments including schools, library, parole and discharge of prisoners, supervision of paroled prisoners, salaries, food, clothing, fuel, etc.. yet the trades schools made one hundred seventeen thousand three hundred twenty-one dollars and forty-four cents, leaving a very small remainder for the taxpayers to contribute towards the support of nearly one thousand three hundred of their delincjuent citizens at less than eighteen cents per capita, when we remember, too, that over two hundred boys are kept in school under competent teachers more than nine months in the year. The fact that competent instructors are provided in all trades schools, and the fact that inmates are given military drill and moral instruction to help them physically and mentally, and the further fact that no contractor has a word to say as to the amount of work a boy must perfomi makes the system almo.st ideal. The trades schools are now furnishing all of the chairs, beds, mattresses, tinware and furniture for the new Southeastern Hospital for the Insane, being constructed at Madison.

In the educational department the men are given good practical instruction. If they are illiterate they are placed in the kindergarten department, where they are taught reading, writing, spelling and number work. In the next or primary' department the men are taught reading, elementary language, arithmetic, history and geography. In the intermediate department, literature, grammar, physiology, civil-government, geography and arithmetic are taught. In the advanced department, arithmetic, English grammar, and ten lessons in algebraic equations.

There is also another department for weak minded boys, and also one for foreigners, another department of mechanical drawing, and a correspondence school, whereby the men may study in their cells. At present the school is able to offer arithmetic only by correspondence, but the demand for this work has been so large and the results so commendable that this course is to be made to include the other subjects.

each succeeding year demonstrates its value. Its idea is to correct rather than to punish. Although there is a complete lack of clap-trap sentimentality, there is no unswerving rigor in enforcing the regulations. The instructions are of practical benefit and the output is of practical benefit to some one. The ultimate intention is to produce everything required by the other state institutions. The system of paroling men has stood the test of time and its unquestioned \-alue proven. The wonderful results evident in the management of the Indiana Reformatory could never have been produced with politics the sole qualitication for service. The sixty-five to seventy officers and instructors are doing what the average politician could never do. W. H. W'hittaker and M. Barnard, the superintendent and assistant superintendent, have given the state an exceptionally efficient ser\'ice. ]\Ir. Barnard came to the reformatory from the Michigan City penitentiary after eight years' service there as assistant superintendent. The other officers of the institution without an exception are imbued with an esprit de corps which argues well for the present and future management of the plant.

June 1,1864, the Ohio Falls Car and Locomotive Company was organized with a capital stock of three hundred thousand dollars, afterwards increased to four hundred and twenty-eight thousand five hundred dollars. The following were the first officers of the company: President, D. Rickets: secretary and general manager, Hiram Aldridge : treasurer, Jacob L. Smyser. Its first directors were D. Rickets, A. A. Hammond, J. L. Smyser, W. P. Wood and H. Aldridge.

On October i, 1866, i\Ir. Joseph ^^'. Sprague took charge of the works as president and general manager. The business of the company was not then of the best, its credit was questionable, and its stock selling far below par. Under Mr. Sprague's judicious administration a great change was wrought, the company was pressed with orders, the stock was brought up to par, and there was every prospect for a continued and increased prosperity.

So matters stood when one day in 1872 the works caught fire, and before anything could be done to prevent such a result, were completely swept out of existence. Fortunately a heavy insurance was carried, and the building of the present magnificent system of fire proof and isolated structures was commenced. These were still incompleted and the business of the company barely resumed, when came the panic of 1873, which, with the long period of financial depression that followed, completely paralyzed the building and equipment of railroads in the United States, and compelled the company to suspend, and ultimately to dissolve and offer its property for sale to cover its indebtedness.

On the 7th day of August, 1876, was organized the Ohio Falls Car Company, with Joseph W. Sprague as president and general manager, and R. M. Hartwell secretary and treasurer. Its directors were J. W. Sprague, S. A. Hartwell, J. L. Smyser, J. H. McCampbell, and S. Goldbach, and its capital stock of eighty-eight thousand three hundred dollars, later increased to four hundred thousand dollars. The officers remained the same, with the exception of the appointment of R. S. Ramsey as general manager, made September 27, 1 88 1, to relieve Mr. Sprague from overwork. The company purchased the lands, buildings, machinery, stock and tools of the old corporation, and at once began operations, first in a comparatively small wa}^ gradually increasing to enormous proportions. The new company was made up of nearly the same stockholders as the old, and any losses made by the former failure were retrieved tenfold. The success of the institution was largely due to the enterprise and business tact of its managers, but not a little to natural advantages of location. The works are located about five hundred feet from the Ohio, and. being outside the city limits, a low rate of taxation is permanently secured.

The Ohio river affords the cheapest class of transportation for iron, coal, lumber and other supplies. The Pennsylvania Railroad. Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern, and the Louisville & Southern Indiana Traction Company enter the premises by switches. By means of the railroad bridge over the Ohio river, located half a mile below the works, immediate connection is made at Louisville with the southern network of railroads. \\'ithin a very small radius an ample supply of the quality of white oak, white ash, yellow poplar and black walnut used in construction can be obtained at reasonable prices. Empty cars returning from the South insure very low rates of freight on yellow pine, and the various brands of irons made from the rich ores of Alabama. Considering the convenience of receiving supplies and of the distribution of products, this location can hardly be surpassed for almost any branch of manufacture.

The real estate upon which the extensive institution is located embraces a large territory. The buildings which were first built are situated upon outlot No. 34. of Clarksville, containing an area of about nineteen and twothirds acres. Part of outlot No. 23 containing about five and a half acres immediately west of outlot No. 34 is used as a lumber yard.

The river slip containing about thirteen thousand eight hundred square feet lies opposite the works upon the river bank. On this was located the engine house and pump for furnishing the water supply. This was before the installation of the water works system by the city of Jeffersonville. since which the company has used water from this source. Automatic sprinklers were introduced in all the shops, and fire hydrants were erected at a cost of over twenty thousand dollars. Lot No. 9, Jeffersonville, containing about five thou- sand sixty square feet, secures a connection witli the Baltimore & Ohio Southwestern Raih'oad. Blocks No. 18, 19, 49 and 80, situated on the west side of Missouri avenue, were purchased by the company upon which to erect new shops. The beautiful residence for the superintendent was erected on the river bank in 1900. The buildings of the company, numbering over fifty, are all substantial and in good condition. With the exception of the office, the pattern lofts and cupola they are one story high. They are constructed of brick and the roofs are covered with the best quality of slate. These buildings are arranged with high gables, with ample spaces between them and are substantially fireproof. They are all thoroughly lighted and most of them are amply provided with skylights of heavy plate glass. The machine shops in the freight and iron department are provided with gas from the city mains of Jeffersonville, and are wired for the necessary electric currents. Mr. Sprague took charge of the institution in September, 1866, and labored faithfully for the interests of the company until about October, 1888, when he retired, selling his large stock interests to his associates. This was during the financial tlepression which commenced in T884, and continued until the fall of 1889. Upon the resignation of Mr. Sprague, Jacdb L. Smyser, of Louisville, Kentucky, was elected president. For about fifteen months during 1888 and 1889 the works were closed for lack of orders. General business was badly depressed, and this worked a terrible hardship upon the large force of men who had in the past relied upon this institution for their living and support of their families. Necessarily the business of Jefifersonville was seriously aflr'ected, but the gradual resumption which commenced late in 1889 soon relieved the situation. The employees were called to their old places and in an unusually short time the works were in full blast. The business of the company became larger than ever before, with corresponding profits the results. New buildings and improved machinery were continually being added until 1892. the working force had reached a maximum of two thousand three hundred men, with a pay roll of seventy thousand dollars per month, nearly three thousand dollars per working day. These figures and facts are staggering, but serve to illustrate what location, energy and a comprehensive grasp and application of business principles can accomplish. In 1893 another panic swept over the country and the business of the company shared in the depression as a natural consequence. In the late fall active work was again suspended and was not resumed until about the beginning of 1895 ^^'^ then only in a limited degree. During this period the banks of the country were under suspension, and currency was selling as high as four per cent, premium, being paid for by certified check, payable onh^ through the clearing houses of the various financial centers. Notwithstanding this severe tax upon the depositors to avail themselves of the balances they had in the banks, this company, at a great sacrifice met all of their maturing obligations without asking a single renewal.

Resumption of business was very slow ; many railroads had to pass through long-drawn-out receiverships, and it was not until about 1898 that normal conditions had returned. In the interim, however, the car company, because of e.xceptional facilities and financial strength, had its full share of the business to be done, and continued its prosperity until 1899, when there was a merger of about thirteen car building companies of the country, of which this company became one, selling to the new corporation, the American Car and Foundrv' Company, at a very acceptable price its entire business and effects. The plant has been enlarged and improved by the same cijmpany, and it is generally understood that it has ha 1 a profitable career. The capital of this new coinpany, the American Car and Foundiy Company, is sixty million dollars, half preferred and half common shares. The preferred pays regular cjuarterly ilividends of one and three-quarters per cent., ecjual to seven per cent. per annum. This common stock pays one per cent, quarterly. The last yearly statement of the American Car and Foundry Company, shows it to be one of the strongest and most prosperous industries in the country, having a net surplus of over twenty million dollars. For several years, up to 1908, John D. Ingram was the manager of this branch of the company. At present J. R. Scanland is the general manager.

In 1888, soon after J. L. Smyser had been placed in control, ^I. E. Duncan was made general manager of the Ohio Falls Car Manufacturing Company, and Jefferson D. Stewart, secretary and treasurer. They continued with the company until the time of the merger, excepting that during the depression after the panic of 1893, Mr. Duncan was otherwise engaged for about two years. When activity returned he resumed his former relations in the management. 'Sh. Smyser was a director in the new American Car and Foundn' Company and so remained fiir about eight vears, when he declined re-election.

This plant means much to the working people and general business of Jeffersonville, and it is to be hoped that its continued prosperity may reflect happiness and contentment on all those who depend upon it for employment or support.