Board: Message Boards > Localities > North America > Canada > Ontario > Prince Edward URL: http://boards.ancestry.co.uk/localities.northam.canada.ontario.princeedward/835.1/mb.ashx Subject: Re: House of Refuge Picton 1916 Author: Mary Date: 12 March 2003 Classification: Query Surnames:
I'm not 100% sure but I think a house of refuge was a "poor house", meaning people who had run out of money and had no relatives living in the area that would take them in. If they were not able to find a job or make a living they went to stay in the poor house. It was in the days before the government welfare system. A genealogy/history librarian might be able to confirm this.
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