By the middle of the fourteenth century, begging was becoming a social problem. During periods of economic dislocation, the unemployed began to roam the countryside and migrated to the towns looking for work. Capitalism, wage labor, and poverty continued to grow. The American welfare state is dated from the Social Security Act of 1935. the act continued and hardened the categorical programs that had been enacted by the states between 1910 and the 1920 s. Categorization began with the institutional movement.
In the 1830 s, the states began to separate out those categories of the poor who were morally blameless and provide separate institutions for the blind, the deaf and mute, and the insane. The Civil War resulted in further categorization. Single mothers and their children were put into a difficult position. They were part of the “unworthy poor’.
They along with the rest of the poor, were helped, but mostly under severe conditions. Poor children began to be a separate category that deserved attention. In 1911 the first aid to dependent children was enacted. Various similar programs to help the needy were introduced. The number of families in the AFDC program increased.
