New York House of Refuge Chaplain's Reports to the Indenturing Committee

Chronological.

These are brief narrative reports made by the reformatory's Protestant chaplains, who functioned also as "home visitation agents" or parole agents from 1863 until 1894.

Most of the volume contains reports for the period 1863 to 1874, by the chaplain who visited and evaluated an inmate's former home, the master's home of an indentured inmate, or the home of a "paroled" inmate. The reports end abruptly in 1874, and resume again for the year 1892 only. The name of the inmate is written in the margin beside each report. Depending on the reason for a visit, each report contains information about some of the following: master's name, residence, and occupation; master's treatment of inmate; inmate's habits of school and church attendance; residence, occupation, and economic status of inmate's family; conditions of inmate's house; whether inmate's family will take back inmate; and recommendations whether to return inmate to family on parole.

Microfilm is available for use at the New York State Archives or through interlibrary loan.

Alphabetical by inmate's last name.

The Department of Correction placed these records on loan to the Syracuse University Library from 1960-1977.

There are no restrictions regarding access to or use of this material.