CANFIELD — The Canfield Historical Society will feature new displays and will kick off March 14 with a lecture on “The Old Pogy.”

The lecture will be presented by CHS President Suzy McCabe, who first discussed the topic seven years ago. She has updated the presentation and will present it at 6:30 p.m. in the Canfield Library. She said it was one of the society’s popular lectures with slides of the old structure.

“People have an interest in the Pogy,” McCabe said. “At the end I will address the cemetery that is still there, and the records that exist on who was buried there.”

“The Old Pogy” was the slang term of the day for the Mahoning County Infirmary, according to McCabe. It was opened in 1855 to serve the county for the care of elderly, infirmed, mentally challenged, physically challenged, mentally insane and the poor.

McCabe said people have wondered why it was built in Canfield. She said that in 1855, Canfield was the county seat. The Mahoning County Courthouse was built there, and the Mahoning County Fairgrounds, better known as the Canfield Fairgrounds, was located here. Canfield was and is the geographical center of Mahoning County.

The Old Pogy, also referred to as the Old Folks Home and the Poor House, served the poor up to the 1920s.

“Back in those days, there was no Social Security or welfare,” McCabe said. “If you couldn’t support yourself, you had to go to the Poor House.”

It wasn’t a place where all the inmates were locked away. McCabe said it was a working farm, and inmates would often be seen out tending to the animals and fields. The Old Pogy had cows, chickens and pigs. It even had a slaughterhouse on the property. The farm took up 190 acres of tilled land and 24 acres of mowed grass. It also had its own water tower and supply.

“It was a self-sustaining farm for many years,” McCabe said.

In the 1920s, with the beginning of social programs to help Americans struggling to make ends meet, the poor were no longer part of the Old Pogy. The facility kept going and served the other types of inmates placed there for care. It kept going until 1962 when it was closed. Later, the buildings were torn down, leaving just a cemetery.

The cemetery had ceramic disks with a number stamped into them. The Canfield Historical Society does have a map showing who was buried there and where, according to those numbers. Today, the cemetery is in a field with no fencing around it.

McCabe said the original lecture was inspired by Austintown resident Wade Schisler, whose father was in charge of the Old Pogy’s boiler system and his mother served as a cook. He had compiled a memoir from his memories as a child. McCabe said Wade passed away a year ago.

An hour prior to the first lecture, the Bond House Museum will be opened for tours. Guests will see a change as the former lecture room has been set up for more displays.

Bond House curator Laura Zeh said the lectures were attracting more people and when the library began letting the society use one of the rooms across the street, the decision was made to open the floor space to more artifacts.

Among the new displays is one involving household items from earlier Canfield residents. One of interest is the Delph family dress. The Delphs owned the seed and farm goods store in town.

Another piece is a chest crafted by Canfield carpenter John Flick in 1941. In the chest are a items from Canfield’s past. Zeh pointed out a vintage toaster used over a fire.

“We just keep finding more stuff in our collection,” Zeh said.

Lectures and tours are free and open to the public. McCabe said open houses will take pace later this summer and will be announced. She invites people to visit the Canfield Historical Society’s Facebook page for updates on happenings of the society.

The following is a list of lectures scheduled for 2024:

•   March 14, 6:30 p.m. Canfield Library, “The Old Pogy.”

•   April 11, 6 p.m. Canfield Library, “A Trip Down Route 66.”

•   May 9, 6 p.m. Canfield Library, “Canfield’s Historic Homes.”

•   June 8, noon, Mahoning Dispatch, living history tours with live actors, $5 donation requested.

•   July 4, 9 a.m. to noon, Mahoning Dispatch open house.

•   Sept. 21, noon to 3 p.m. Bond House open house.