Lancaster County House of Employment

Lancaster County House of Employment
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
House of Employment in September 2012
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Location	900 E. King St., Lancaster Township, Pennsylvania
Coordinates	40°2′16″N76°17′8″W / 40.03778°N 76.28556°W / 40.03778; -76.28556
Area	1.3 acres (0.53 ha)
Built	1799-1801, c. 1875-1876
Built by	Hensel, William; Et al.
Architectural style	Gothic Revival
NRHP reference No.	80003525 [1]
Added to NRHP	April 17, 1980

The Lancaster County House of Employment, also known as Old County Hospital Building No. 1, is an historic American building that is located in Lancaster Township, Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1980. ^[1]

History and architectural features

Built between 1799 and 1801, this historic structure is a two-story, fifteen-bay-wide, stuccoed, stone building. It has a full-width front porch with Tuscan order columns that added roughly between 1875 and 1876. The same renovation added Gothic Revival-style details.

It has been in continuous ownership by Lancaster County since its construction. Built as a poor house, it was used as the House of Employment until 1876, when it was converted to a hospital. It later housed county offices. ^[2]

Gallery

• 
  Building sign

References

1. "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
2. Robert M Behling (June 1978). National Register of Historic Places Registration: Pennsylvania SP Lancaster County House of Employment. National Archives and Records Administration. Retrieved December 23, 2025. (Downloading may be slow.)

Further reading

• Bourque, Monique C-E.; Zeigler, Nancy K.; Herman, Bernard L.; Siders, Rebecca J. (1990). "BOTH ORNAMENTAL AND USEFUL": THE LANCASTER COUNTY ALMSHOUSE AND HOSPITAL (PDF). Newark, Delaware: University of Delaware.
• Hardman, Bryan Lee (1999). A PIECE OF MIND: THE FATE OF THE STATE-FUNDED ASYLUM OF THE NINETEENTH CENTURY (PDF). Athens, Georgia: University of Georgia., Masters Thesis