Discover your ancestor in these poor law and parish administration records.
Discover your ancestor in these poor law and parish administration records.
This collection houses several types of records. The amount of available information will vary depending on the record type. A transcript of information from the original documents is provided for you in results.
Admissions – Workhouse admission records
First name(s)
Last name
Age
Birth year
Year
Admitted date
Death year
Death date
Place
County
Country
Apprentices
First name(s)
Last name
Age
Year born or received
Date born or received
Apprentice date and year
Time placed out
Father’s first name(s)
Mother’s first name(s)
Master’s name
Master’s occupation
Address
Place
County
Bastardy
First name(s)
Last name
Birth year
Year
Event date
Role
Father’s first name(s)
Father’s last name
Mother’s first name(s)
Mother’s last name
Mother’s age
Mother’s birth year
Place
County
Examinations (settlement) – a poor person being examined by parish authorities to see if they are settled in a Westminster parish or can be removed to another parish for poor relief.
First name(s)
Last name
Age
Birth year
Year
Marital status
Spouse’s first name(s)
Spouse’s last name
Father’s first name(s)
Father’s last name
Mother’s first name(s)
Mother’s last name
Children’s names
Place
County
Land tax
First name(s)
Last name
Year
Address
Place
*County
Paupers
First name(s)
Last name
Age
Birth year
Year
Admission year
Other year
Address
Place
County
Poor law
First name(s)
Last name
Year
Event date
Place
County
Valuations
First name(s)
Last name
Organisation
Year
Event date
Owner’s / occupier’s / other name and organisation
House number
Address
Place
County
Folio number
Workhouse records (including day books, lists, and registers)
Depending on the specific type of workhouse records, you will discover a combination of the following fields:
First name(s)
Last name
Age
Birth year
Year
Event date
Admission year
Discharge year
Place
County
The Poor Law Act of 1601 included laws surrounding settlement, which constituted the place where individuals could receive poor relief. Under this law, an individual had to reside in a parish for at least one month to be eligible. In the Settlement Act of 1662, this was extended to allow individuals to receive settlement in any given parish through apprenticeship, marriage, over a year of domestic service, or living in a property worth more than £10 per year. If the eligibility criteria were not met, that individual could be removed to their previous parish; removals began in 1691.
A pauper was, therefore, an individual who was receiving aid under the poor laws. A settlement certificate was used by paupers who moved into new parishes to prove that their parish of legal settlement would receive the pauper if needed. Additionally, if a pauper requested relief from the parish, an examination would be held to determine in which parish the pauper’s legal right of settlement was. As such, examination books often contain a wealth of information about paupers.
One form of poor relief that a pauper might receive is called outdoor relief. This type of relief provided funds to supplement the income of the pauper. After 1834, this type of relief declined and utilization of workhouses became more prevalent, where the poor were sent to work off their relief. This was a common fate for unwed mothers.
A child born out of wedlock was legally considered illegitimate. If the father did not admit his responsibility, an examination was held to established paternity. During the examination, the mother usually was able to name the father. If the father could be identified and located, he was required to enter into a bastardy bond to support the child. This support would last until the child was of age to become an apprentice.
With the enactment the 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act, the administration of poor law relief was taken away from the parishes and given to boards of guardians.
The City of Westminster included the following parishes:
Liberty of the Rolls
Precinct of the Savoy
St Anne, Soho
St Clement Danes
St George, Hanover Square
St James, Piccadilly
St Margaret
St John the Evangelist
St Martin-in-the-Fields
St Mary-le-Strand
St Paul, Covent Garden
In this collection, nine parishes are included. The two not included are the Precinct of the Savoy and St John the Evangelist.
The breakdown of parishes by record type is as follows, with years in parentheses:
Admissions
St Mary-le-Strand (1639-1644)
St James, Piccadilly (1791-1858)
Apprentice
St Anne, Soho (1686-1843)
St Clement Danes (1640-1829)
St Margaret (1612-1939)
St Martin-in-the-Fields (1638-1802)
St Mary-le-Strand (1739-1799)
Bastardy
St Martin-in-the-Fields (1574-1834)
St Margaret (1726-1735)
St Clement Danes (1786-1828)
Examinations
Precinct of Liberty of the Rolls (1685-1832)
St Clement Danes (1703-1742)
St Margaret (1689-1860)
St Martin-in-the-Fields (1514-1840)
St Paul, Covent Garden (1747-1898)
Land tax
St Anne, Soho (1726-1829)
St Margaret (1698-1836)
St Martin-in-the-Fields (1755-1840)
Paupers
Parish chest records, 1774-1882, for Precinct of Liberty of the Rolls (1685-1832)
Precinct of the Liberty of the Rolls (1677-1821)
St Clement Danes (1605-1836)
St Martin-in-the-Fields (1638-1871)
St Mary-le-Strand (1639-1645)
Valuations
Workhouses
St Anne, Soho (1793-1828)
St Clement Danes (1677-1860)
St George, Hanover Square (1731-1911)
St Margaret (1561-1780)
St Martin-in-the-Fields (1660-1856)
St Paul, Covent Garden (1715-1876)
The Grosvenors, given the title of Duke of Westminster in 1874 by Queen Victoria, appear in the poor law records due to their status as landlords. In recounting the minutes of the board, we read the following: ‘The application be made to Mr. Andrews, Steward to Sr. Richard Grosvenor to know the real rents of the several tenants at the neat houses & Chelsea against the next rating of the Books’. There are several entries for Earl Grosvenor and Countess Grosvenor. Robert Grosvenor was Earl Grosvenor from 1802 to 1845.