Where were workhouses in Ireland?
The 18th century saw a workhouse established in most cities across Ireland: Cork (in 1735), Belfast (in 1752), Dublin North (in 1772), Limerick (in 1774), Ennis (in 1775), Waterford (in 1779) and so on. Compared to England or Wales, such houses of industry were far less prevalent in Ireland however.
Where was the North Dublin Union workhouse?
Following an Act of 1772 (11 & 12 Geo. III c. 11), a new House of Industry was established an 11.5-acre site on the north side the Liffey, at the north side of North Brunswick Street.
When were workhouses abolished in Ireland?
1925
Where can I find workhouse records?
Local archives are the best source of information on workhouses. Workhouse records at The National Archives usually relate to the general business of the workhouses rather than individual inmates or members of staff.
Can I access workhouse records?
Few workhouse records are online, so the best place to start is often the County Record Office local to the institution. You will need to know roughly when your ancestor was in the workhouse and, if it was after 1834, which Poor Law Union their parish belonged to.
Why was the workhouse so bad?
Conditions inside the workhouse were deliberately harsh, so that only those who desperately needed help would ask for it. Families were split up and housed in different parts of the workhouse. The poor were made to wear a uniform and the diet was monotonous. There were also strict rules and regulations to follow.
What did they eat in the workhouse?
The main constituent of the workhouse diet was bread. At breakfast it was supplemented by gruel or porridge — both made from water and oatmeal (or occasionally a mixture of flour and oatmeal). Workhouse broth was usually the water used for boiling the dinner meat, perhaps with a few onions or turnips added.
What were the punishments in the workhouse?
Rules and Punishment
| Name | Offence | Punishment |
|---|---|---|
| Rowe, Sarah | Noisy and swearing | Lock’d up for 24 hours on bread and water. |
| Aplin, John | Disorderly at Prayer-time | Lock’d up for 24 hours on bread and water. |
| Mintern, George | Fighting in school | No cheese for one week. |
| Greenham, Mary and Payne, Priscella | Quarreling and fighting | No meat 1 week. |
Why was it considered shameful to live in a workhouse?
If a man had to enter a workhouse, his whole family had to go with him. It was thought to be shameful because it meant he could not look after his own family and he could not get a job. The men, women, and children lived in different parts of the building.
Where did they sleep in the workhouse?
Dormitories were usually provided with chamber pots, or a communal ‘tub’. After 1860, some workhouses experimented with earth closets — boxes containing dry soil which could afterwards be used as fertiliser.
What were the three harshest rules of the workhouse?
Workhouse rules
- Or who shall make any noise when silence is ordered to be kept.
- Or shall use obscene or profane language.
- Or shall by word or deed insult or revile any person.
- Or shall threaten to strike or to assault any person.
- Or shall not duly cleanse his person.
Why did workhouses exist?
The Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, ensured that no able-bodied person could get poor relief unless they went to live in special workhouses. The idea was that the poor were helped to support themselves. They had to work for their food and accommodation. Workhouses were where poor people who had no job or home lived.
How were workhouses funded?
It also proposed the construction of housing for the impotent poor, the old and the infirm, although most assistance was granted through a form of poor relief known as outdoor relief – money, food, or other necessities given to those living in their own homes, funded by a local tax on the property of the wealthiest in …
What were English workhouses like?
The workhouse was home to 158 inhabitants – men, women and children – who were split up and forbidden from meeting. Those judged too infirm to work were called the “blameless” and received better treatment but the rest were forced into tedious, repetitive work such as rock breaking or rope picking.
Were there workhouses in the US?
In the United States, poorhouses were most common during the 19th and early 20th centuries. They were often situated on the grounds of a poor farm on which able-bodied residents were required to work.
Is a poorhouse the same as a workhouse?
As nouns the difference between poorhouse and workhouse is that poorhouse is a charitable institution where poor or homeless people are lodged while workhouse is (label) formerly, an institution for the poor homeless, funded by the local parish where the able-bodied were required to work (w).
What did a workhouse master do?
The Master. The Master was responsible to the Union and to the Poor Law Commissioners for the proper running and administration of the workhouse. He was also required to be “a friend and protector of the inmates”. Between 1835 and 1918, Abingdon workhouse had only three different Masters.
What was life like in the workhouse?
The ‘idle and profligate’ (another name for unemployed) were occupied with dull tasks, such as breaking stones for roads and pulling rope apart. Aspects such as education, medical care or diet may actually have been better inside The Workhouse than for the poor in their own homes.
What were workhouses originally designed for?
workhouses. The workhouse was an Elizabethan invention designed to provide a disciplined and productive environment for the able-bodied poor, at a time when rising urban poverty was putting pressure on existing systems of almsgiving and emergent local taxation.
What jobs did they do in the workhouse?
The women mostly did domestic jobs such as cleaning, or helping in the kitchen or laundry. Some workhouses had workshops for sewing, spinning and weaving or other local trades. Others had their own vegetable gardens where the inmates worked to provide food for the workhouse.