The tension between doctrines about confessions and the impulse to protect children through mandatory reporting laws raises important legal, societal and religious questions about how religious leaders try to focus on and prioritize rescuing victims of abuse while also providing spiritual help to the person who has confessed.
A Page from North Quabbin History: Hospital Cottages offered country air for sick children
The Hospital Cottages buildings in Baldwinville. Courtesy Narragansett Historical Society
Deacon Willard Baker who, with his son, Dr. Lucius Willard Baker, founded the Hospital Cottages for Children. Courtesy Narragansett Historical Society Narragansett Historical Society
Modified: 3/11/2021 2:05:11 PM
The North Quabbin area has always been known for its rural atmosphere and country air. These assets are what inspired Dr. Lucius Willard Baker and his father, Deacon Willard Baker, to create the Hospital Cottages for Children in Baldwinville, a village of Templeton. The story of the Hospital Cottages started with Dr. Baker bringing children from the city to an Orphan’s Home at Lake Dennison, in Baldwinville. Previously, Dr. Baker had studied at the New York City School of Medicine. During his work at Bellevue Dispensary there, he had become convinced that his patients, esp