Art
The Schuylkill County Almshouse was where people without money or family went to live—and where they bought the few things they needed. For the 19th-century poor, the almshouse store was often the only place they could afford to shop.
Art · Full story
You step inside the almshouse grounds, past the main brick building where hundreds live on charity. The small store sits nearby—a modest counter where residents exchange their meager allowances for cloth scraps, soap, and bread. There's no choice here, no browsing: you get what they have, at prices they set.
Reflect
Who decides what people can buy, and at what price? How does that shape their lives?