The Home of the Friendless

Photo circa 1900

National Register of Historic Places Nomination

Quick Facts

Location:

4431 South Broadway, St. Louis, Missouri

Significance:

Early elderly care facility

Designation:

National Register of Historic Places

OPEN TO PUBLIC:

No

The Home of the Friendless is eligible for inclusion in the National Register of Historic Places under Criterion A. It is locally significant in the area of social history.

Charlotte Charless established the Home of the Friendless (Home) in 1853 to "afford relief to destitute and suffering females," specifically elderly women and widows who had lost their means of financial support. The Home served as a senior care facility for nearly 160 years, becoming a landmark in the St. Louis community. When first established, it purchased an existing building to create a comfortable alternative to the destitution of the poorhouse, often the only alternative for residents. The Home quickly became a sanctuary for its residents, offering them security, companionship, and assistance.

To accommodate increasing numbers of residents and changing standards of aid, the Home periodically expanded its facilities with a succession of ten additions in 1930, 1931, 1934, 1939, 1961, 1963, two c.1980, and two in 1995. As attitudes about the elderly and options for their care evolved through the late-nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the Home adapted its facilities to continue to fulfill its mission of providing support and hospitality to those in its charge. The Home enlarged its facilities and added wings dedicated to specific functions in order to meet the needs of the growing number of residents. Likewise, as the role of charitable institutions changed, the Home evolved from a residence into a nursing home, offering enhanced medical care and improved facilities.

The Home of the Friendless was the oldest and largest facility in St. Louis to provide a home for elderly women and continued to modify that facility to provide excellent care throughout the period of significance. The period of significance begins in 1853, the date of the Home's founding, and ends in 1965, the fifty-year closing date for periods of significance where activities begun historically continue to have importance but no more specific date can be identified.

Property Name	The Home of the Friendless
Reference Number	15000773
State	Missouri
County	St. Louis
Town	St. Louis
Street Address	4431 South Broadway
Multiple Property Submission Name	N/A
Status	Listed 11/9/2015
Areas of Significance	Social History