Workhouses of Wales and the Welsh Borders
by Peter Higginbotham
A survey in 1776 recorded almost 2,000 parish workhouses operating in England, while the number in Wales was just 19. The New Poor Law of 1834 proved just as unattractive in much of Wales – some parts of the country resisted providing a workhouse until the 1870s, with Rhayader in Radnorshire being the last area in the whole of England and Wales to do so.
These facts make this, Peter Higginbotham’s latest book, an important study for anyone with Welsh ancestors who fell on hard times. Where were the workhouses in Wales? What sort of buildings were created or re-used? And what would life have been like for inmates?
Peter is a well-respected historian of workhouses and this book covers not only Wales, but also the neighbouring counties of Cheshire, Herefordshire and Shropshire. The book is generously illustrated with archive and currentday photographs, which demonstrate just how varied these buildings were – some looking little more than a private house; others large and forbidding structures.
Seventeen chapters cover separate counties and there are also chapters on places to visit, how and where to find Welsh workhouse records, and a useful introduction to the various poor laws and the introduction of the workhouse system.