The Poor Laws existed in England and Wales between the late 16th century and the 20th century in some form or another. Before their introduction, beggars and vagrancy were increasingly viewed as a problem that needed to be dealt with, so a system was created to help the ‘deserving poor’ and punish the ‘undeserving poor’… Read more The Overseers and the Old Poor Law
Public enquiries often draw our attention to collections we haven’t focused on before. Last year, we received a request to copy a selection of letters to the Blandford Overseers of the Poor, asking for parish relief. This is a fascinating record of those in a difficult position in the past, which we’ll take a closer… Read more Poor relief and charity
In the Dorset History Centre Frampton of Moreton collection there is an 1854 letter from Henry Frampton seeking advice on how to deal with a local farm labourer, John House, who had been charged with vagrancy. To understand the context of the letter we need first to back-track to find out who John House was.… Read more The ‘removal’ of John House from Affpuddle
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