In 1913, the Washington State legislature enacted a series of laws unofficially known as the “Lazy Husband’s Act.” Men convicted of family desertion were forced to work for the county on municipal projects such as building roads, while their abandoned wives and children received their wages. The detention facility where they lived was known as the “Lazy Husband’s Farm” or the Stockade, which was located between Bothell and Woodinville, then moved to the Willows property.
Elke Hautala and Cari Simson, hosts of the podcast Invisible Histories, bring you the history of the people living and working at the Stockade, and King County’s evolving strategies to house and care for its impoverished citizens. Learn all about the twists and turns that King County and the State of Washington went through to try and provide people with basic financial support and meaningful work.