The Great Depression
Conditions at the children’s home improved when it was incorporated into the Greenwood City limits in 1927. Some of the benefits included: better electrical service, paved roads, an upgraded water system, and security by the Police Department.
However, the Great Depression would soon take its toll on the orphanage. Two cottages closed in 1928. Between 1933-1934, employee salaries were reduced twice by 10%. Many workers volunteered to return up to a fourth of their salaries to Connie Maxwell. Others offered to work for room and board only.
In 1932, former student Samuel M. Smith was hired as a Field Representative to assist church associations and Sunday schools. He visited rural people across South Carolina who might not have cash to give but could plant a patch of farmland and donate the produce to the orphanage. This ministry became known as God’s Acre Plan.
