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Poor Law records from 1834 onwards

Research Guide
poor-law-union-map

1. About this guide

This guide explains how to find post-1834 poor law records at The London Archives.

Under the Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834, parishes in England and Wales were grouped into Poor Law Unions. Each union was run by a Board of Guardians who reported to the Poor Law Commission.

These Poor Law Unions ran workhouses, infirmaries, children's homes and paid out-relief.

Some records in this guide are available on Ancestry.co.uk. A subscription is required to access Ancestry.co.uk at home but free access is provided at The London Archives.

2. Online records

Many poor law records are available on Ancestry.co.uk. Some records are however not searchable by name so you may need to use the 'Browse this Collection' function.

3. Which Poor Law Union?

If you have the name of a workhouse or infirmary, you need to find out which Poor Law Union ran it. An excellent starting point is The Workhouse website by Peter Higginbotham.

Once you know the correct Poor Law Union, browse the individual catalogues below for surviving records:

Poor Law UnionCatalogue reference
Bermondsey Poor Law Union (1904-1930)
St Olave’s Poor Law Union (1836-1904)
Bermondsey Poor Law Parish (1836-1868)
Rotherhithe Poor Law Parish (1836-1868)
BBG
Brentford Poor Law Union (1836-1930)BG/B
Bethnal Green Poor Law Parish (1836-1930)BEBG
Camberwell Poor Law Parish (1835-1930)CABG
Chelsea Poor Law Parish (1841-1930)CHBG
City of London Poor Law Union (1837-1930)
East London Poor Law Union (1837-1869)
West London Poor Law Union (1837-1869)
CBG
Edmonton Poor Law Union (1837-1930)BG/E
Fulham Poor Law Union/Parish (1845-1930)FBG, FHBG
Greenwich Poor Law Union (1836-1930)GBG
Hackney Poor Law Union (1837-1930)HABG
Hammersmith Poor Law Parish (1899-1930)HHBG
Hampstead Poor Law Parish (1848-1930)HPBG
Hendon Poor Law Union (1835-1930)BG/H
Holborn Poor Law Union (1836-1930)
St Giles in the Fields and St George Bloomsbury Poor Law Parish (1868-1914)
Clerkenwell Poor Law Union (1868-1869)
St Luke's Poor Law Parish (1868-1869)
HOBG
Islington Poor Law Parish (1867-1930)ISBG
Kensington Poor Law Union/Parish (1837-1930)KBG
Lambeth Poor Law Parish (1835-1930)LABG
Lewisham Poor Law Union (1836-1930)LEBG
Paddington Poor Law Parish (1845-1930)PABG
Poplar Poor Law Union (1836-1930)POBG
St Marylebone Poor Law Parish (1867-1930)STMBG
St Pancras Poor Law Parish (1867-1930)STPBG
Shoreditch Poor Law Parish (1867-1930)SHBG
Southwark Poor Law Union (1901-1930)
St George's Southwark Poor Law Parish (1835-1869)
St Mary Newington Poor Law Parish (1867-1869)
St Saviour's Poor Law Union (1836-1901)
SOBG
Staines Poor Law Union (1836-1930)BG/S
Stepney Poor Law Union (1836-1930)
Mile End Poor Law Parish (1857-1925)
St George in the East Poor Law Parish (1836-1925)
Whitechapel Poor Law Union (1837-1925)
STBG
Uxbridge Poor Law Union (1836-1930)BG/U
Wandsworth Poor Law Union (1930)
Wandsworth and Clapham Poor Law Union (1836-1904)
WABG
City of Westminster Poor Law Union (1913-1930)
Westminster Poor Law Union (1868-1913)
St George's Poor Law Union (1870-1913)
Strand Poor Law Union (1836-1913)
St Martin's Poor Law Parish (1835-1868)
St George Hanover Square Poor Law Parish (1867-1870)
St Margaret and St John Westminster Poor Law Parish (1867-1870)
WEBG
Willesden Poor Law Union (1896-1930)BG/W
Woolwich Poor Law Union (1868-1930)WOBG

4. Types of records

Creed Registers

These registers are a good place to start as they are often arranged alphabetically by surname. They generally give name, date of admission, where admitted from, religion, occupation, date of discharge, reason for discharge, and name and address of a relative or friend.

Admission and Discharge Registers

These registers are arranged chronologically and give the names of those admitted and discharged each day. They occasionally give the cause of seeking relief.

Settlement Examinations

When someone applied for poor relief, they may have undergone a settlement examination to determine which poor law union was legally responsible for looking after them. Examinations are very valuable as they give details of a person's life history such as where they were born and where they have lived.

Orders of Removal

If their place of legal settlement was found to be elsewhere, a magistrate could sign a removal order forcing them to go there. Surviving orders of removal usually contain similar information to a settlement examination.

Reception Orders

These documents were completed to admit or transfer individuals to lunatic asylums. They usually contain medical certificates with observations of the person's behaviour.

Board Minutes

The Board of Guardians were required to meet at weekly intervals to discuss the business of the union. The minutes of these meetings contain information about the administration of the union such as issues relating to staff, repairs and alterations to buildings, and the tendering of contracts to supply the workhouse with food and other necessary provisions. The minutes occasionally contain references to individual paupers but they can be very difficult to find and may not yield a lot of information.

5. Parishes exempted from the 1834 Act

The following parishes did not come under the control of Boards of Guardians until the years 1867-1869. Records relating to the administration of poor relief in these parishes from 1834 to 1867/9 will be found with the parish records:

  • St Giles-in-the-Fields and St George, Bloomsbury
  • St James and St. John, Clerkenwell
  • St Leonard, Shoreditch
  • St Luke, Old Street, Finsbury
  • St Mary, Islington
  • St Mary, Newington
  • St Marylebone
  • St Pancras
  • St George, Hanover Square
  • St James, Westminster
  • St Margaret and St. John