Contributor

More Info

Welcome to the Greene County Historical Society. You are standing at what was the main entrance to the original Rinehart family home and then the Greene County Poor Farm. The main staircase in this foyer is not the original staircase built for the Rineharts, which would have been a simpler Georgian-style staircase. This staircase was added in 1886, at the same time that the West Wing was constructed. To begin the museum tour, begin in the Parlor, which is the room to your right when you are facing the main doors.In sections of the museum, you will notice small metal circles next to doors and exhibits. These Memory Medallions have QR codes that you can scan for more information about a room or exhibit. Using the camera on your phone, focus the camera on the QR code and a website link will appear. Click on the link to open the information for that room or display.

Foyer

The original section of the building is the 1857 farmhouse owned by the Rinehart family. The 12-room Georgian Revival brick home was the center of the family’s large farm. In 1861 the home was purchased by Robinson Downey who then sold the property to Greene County.The Greene County Almshouse was established in 1861, the result of state legislation passed just prior to the Civil War for each county to establish a house for the care of their poor and indigent residents. The County purchased the Rinehart home and farm as the site of the Greene County Home (also known as the Almshouse or Poor Farm) and immediately expanded the structure to house inmates.A two-story wing was constructed in 1861 to accommodate 40-50 inmates. Rooms in the original Rinehart house were occupied by the steward and his family while the new wing housed a large kitchen and resident rooms. Between 1861 and 1884 the Green County Home housed poor, infirm, and insane residents of the County; after 1884, many of the insane residents were transferred to Dixmont State Hospital.Overcrowding and poor conditions were constant problems at the Greene County Home, typical of like institutions and asylums across the nation. By the early 1880s the Greene County Home had a poor reputation for the living conditions provided for the inmates. This resulted in the construction of the three-floor (including the basement) West Wing in 1886. Each floor had 12 dormitory rooms and a bathroom which expanded the capacity of the almshouse to reduce crowding. Unfortunately, conditions at the County Home continued to be problematic.The final expansion of the main building came in 1890 with the addition of the kitchen and baking areas at the rear of the building.The Greene County Home continued operating into the mid-1900s, eventually transforming from a poorhouse/almshouse into a residence for the county’s older population. During this time the institution was known as the “Green Hills Farm.” In 1969, the Greene County Home was deemed unfit to continue as a home for the indigent. It was replaced by the Curry Home constructed directly across the street. About the Greene County Historical SocietyThe idea for a Greene County historical society was first suggested in 1923 by Waynesburg College professor Andrew Jackson Waychoff. President Judge of Greene County, J. W. Ray, decreed a certificate of incorporation for the historical society on September 19, 1925 and the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania officially incorporated the Greene County Historical Society on November 15, 1925. The original location of the GCHS was in the basement of the Long Building. The museum was originally housed in one basement room there until the Historical Society purchased a second room in 1956 to accommodate the growing collection.As the Historical Society grew, it outgrew its original home in the Long Building. The original plan was to build a new building on land donated by board member Levi Funk, but that ultimately fell through, the site was sold, and the money saved for purchase of another site. When the County Home was transferred from the original building to the new Curry Home in 1969, the Board of the Greene County Historical Society approached the county to use the former Home as the new site for the Historical Society. The library was opened in November of 1970 in the former boiler house and the main museum opened to the public in June 1971.The Greene County Historical Society operates the 52-room main building along with the grounds and several outbuildings. Buildings on the grounds include two reconstructed log cabins, a sawmill, smokehouse, the former boiler house (now library), barn, and railroad shed housing Engine No. 4 of the Waynesburg &amp; Washington Railroad. The museum interprets the Greene County Poor Farm history in addition to a wide variety of county and regional history topics.

The Greene County Historical Society is located in the historic Greene County Home which housed the county’s poor, infirm, and elderly residents between 1861 and 1969. The original section of the building was built as a home for the Rhinehart family in 1857 and the building was then expanded in 1861, 1886, and 1890 to accommodate inmates of the County Home. The Greene County Historical Society was incorporated in 1925 and moved into this building in the 1970s.

Greene County Historical Society and Museum

This is the first floor of the 1861 addition onto the Rhinehart house when the Poor Farm first opened. Originally this room was similar to the second floor with a central hallway and five rooms on either side for inmate housing. The five rooms on the east side still remain (several are in use as GCHS offices) while the five rooms on the western side were later removed to create a large dining hall for the inmates. Thank you for visiting the Greene County Historical Society!

First Floor: Main Hall (1861)

First Floor: 1861 Addition

This rear section of the building was the final addition to the Greene County Poor Farm building, constructed around 1900. The larger area was the kitchen to feed the inmates (the Steward and his family had a separate kitchen in the front house). The smaller room was, and still is, the bake shop. The cast iron door in the wall is the original brick oven that is still used for special events. To finish the tour, return to the main hall on the first floor.

The General Store exhibit is located in what was the kitchen starting in 1890.

Kitchen & Baking Addition (1890)

First Floor: Kitchen & Baking Wing (1890)

As you leave the first floor you will pass the entrance to the basement (not currently open to the public without a guide). The basement of the West Wing has the same configuration of rooms as the first and second floors. However, the basement rooms are brick with dirt floors. Continue out of the hallway into the large main room. Before exploring the main hall, continue to the right and enter into the Kitchen and Baking Wing.

Basement: West Wing (1886)

Basement

Identical to the third floor, this floor of the West Wing was used as male dormitories. Once you have explored the rooms and exhibits on this floor, return to the hallway by the staircase where you entered.

First Floor: West Wing (1886)

As you walk from the 1861 addition to the West Wing, you will notice that the corridor and stairwell that separate the two sections of the building is constructed of stone. The floors, ceiling, and stairs in this entire small section of the building are made of stone, marble, and iron to create a firebreak between the old and new sections. Overcrowding and poor conditions in the Poor House led to the construction of this three-story addition in 1886. The three floors were essentially identical, with a central hallway and inmate rooms lining both sides of the corridor. This wing was the first to have indoor plumbing and an updated heating system. The top floor of the West Wing was used as female dormitories. Once you have explored the rooms and exhibits on the second floor, return to the stone hallway and take the stairway down. At the bottom of the stairs, make an immediate right turn to enter the first floor of the West Wing.

Second Floor: West Wing (1886)

Stepping through the doorway from the Rhinehart section of the building, you have now entered the first addition made to the building once it became the Greene County Poor Farm. This two-story addition was constructed in 1861 to house the first inmates committed to the Farm. Both floors were originally of similar design with a central hallway and 5 rooms on either side to house inmates. The far end of this floor was later altered with the construction of the West Wing in 1886.The stairs lead to an attic (not currently open to the public) that was also used as inmate housing as the Poor House became overcrowded with increasing numbers of inmates.Once you have explored the rooms and exhibits in this hallway, take the hallway that leads to the West Wing (located near the Roseberry Barbershop room).

Second Floor: 1861 Addition

This side of the second floor was likely the master bedroom suite of three rooms. During the early period of the Poor Farm, the upstairs rooms were utilized for operations while the Steward lived in the downstairs front rooms. The master bedroom was used for storage during this time.After 1886, with the completion of the West Wing, the original Rinehart home was renovated back for use as the residence of the Steward and his family. Continue into the study and dining room of the master suite. Once finished, continue straight across the Foyer to the bedroom on the other side of the hall to explore the three rooms there.

Master Bedroom Suite

Crow Bedroom

Rinehart Bedroom

During the first period of operation for the Poor Farm (roughly 1861 through 1886) this room was utilized as a sewing room. After 1886 the original home was converted back to a residence, but it is likely that this room was utilized by the staff. Interviews of staff indicate that in the 1930s and 1940s this room was where the female staff lived. To continue the tour, step into the Foyer (the main staircase will be to your right and the Master Bedroom ahead of you). Take the door to your left to enter into the 1861 addition of the building.

Spinning Room

Second Floor: Rinehart Home (1857)

This room was the Rhinehart family’s parlor, a space for family activities and entertaining guests. When the home was converted into the Poor Farm this room was part of the Steward’s space. The parlor was divided into two rooms—you can see a “scar” on the floor that indicates where the dividing wall was—between roughly 1861 and 1886. The front portion of the room was used as the Steward’s office during that time and the back portion was the bedroom.To continue the tour, return to the Foyer and continue into the Dining Room on the other side of the hall.

Parlor

Like the parlor, the Rhinehart’s dining room was divided into two spaces between 1861 and 1886 during the first years of operation as a poor house. One section was used as the Steward’s kitchen and the other as the Steward’s dining room. After 1886 (when the West Wing was constructed) the front rooms were restored to their original size and the majority of the Rinehart house was used by the Steward’s family and other staff.Continue on into the rear room connected to the dining room.

Dining Room

This room represents the second kitchen in the original Rinehart house. During the Rinehart’s occupation of the house, the kitchen was in the basement with a large cooking fireplace and food storage. When the house was converted to the Poor Farm in 1861 this space stretched across the entire width of the building and served as the inmate dining hall. In 1886 this room was converted to the Steward’s kitchen.To continue the tour, take the door that leads back into the Foyer, turn left, and take the main staircase up to the second floor. At the top of the staircase take the first door to the right to enter the Master Bedroom.

Greene County Historical Society and Museum

Foyer

Introduction

Images

Additional Information