St Ives Union Workhouse

St Ives Union Workhouse

There are few better ways to understand the raw edge of social history than to read how St Ives cared for the poor in its Workhouse. From John Cole, only 3 weeks old, to James Inglett, aged 94. For a history of the St Ives Parish Poorhouse and the Union Workhouse, read on.

You can access census records for the St Ives Union Workhouse at the foot of this page. Looking for a particular person? The Surname Index lists all names mentioned in the census records (and elsewhere on this site).

Care for the poor
Relief has been available for centuries. In 1601 Queen Elizabeth I passed the Act for Relief of the Poor. This made parishes responsible for their care. A poor rate tax on property owners funded the cost. Grants of money, food, clothing or fuel were made to those living in their own homes.

By the early 1800s, the amount spent nationally on poor relief had quadrupled. Causes were an economic downturn and less need for agricultural labour. There was a widespread belief that the system was being abused. The Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 encouraged the building of union workhouses. Economies of scale applied by housing the poor in a single location. Groups of parishes, or 'unions', built their own. Soon, there were hundreds of workhouses throughout England.

Workhouses were organised to discourage their use. A porter or relief officer had to approve each applicant. Having followed a period of severe hardship, entry to the workhouse would have been a distressing experience. After a bath, the inmate was medically examined and issued with a uniform. Men, women and children were often separated, as were the able-bodied and infirmed. Women did cooking, sewing and laundry. Men did hard physical work, such as stone breaking, bone crushing or oakum picking.

How did people end up in the workhouse? Some were too poor to support themselves during periods of unemployment. Unmarried pregnant women, disowned by their families, had little option but to enter the workhouse. Homelessness was another cause. Those mentally ill or mentally handicapped were often assigned to the workhouse, described as 'idiotical' or 'imbecile'. Having no-one willing to provide support during old age or sickness was a factor. Aged or disabled inmates with no family might spend the rest of their lives in the workhouse.

Widowed mothers with young children. Abandoned mothers, their husbands elsewhere searching for work. If with a single child, they were most likely unmarried. Abandoned or orphaned children ended up in the workhouse, isolate, aged as young as a few months.

Workhouse medical treatment was basic in the early days. Female inmates provided the nursing care. Scandals of poor skills and hygiene led to legislation which improved conditions. From the 1880s, the poor entered just to receive medical attention. This marked the beginning of Britain's state funded medical service.

Poor relief in St Ives
There was a parish poorhouse in St Ives before 1719. Below is a map showing the poorhouse in 1808. It blocked off the east end of Market Hill, shown marked in red. In 1812, a new poorhouse was built in what is now Station Road.

St Ives built its own Union Workhouse in 1834. The map below is from 1899. The building still exists. It now forms rather elegant apartments on the A1096 heading south from St Ives towards the A1307. 

Census records
Census records from 1841 show information on Workhouse inmates and staff. The 1861 census is different, only showing initials of inmates to allow some privacy. The graph below shows total inmates for the censuses to 1921.

The 1851 census gives a snapshot of how economic changes could cause St Ives residents to end up in the Workhouse. There was a quadrupling of inmates in the ten years from 1841. More than half of those in the Workhouse in 1851 were there through unemployment. Almost half the male occupants showed their occupation as 'farm labourer'. It was a hard time if you worked on the land. Developments in agriculture meant farmers needed fewer workers. Once a farm labourer lost his job, the tied cottage went as well, dilapidated as it might have been. Farmers hired workers for the day rather than give them a permanent job.  

The Irish Potato Famine from 1845 to 1852 was another cause of the 1851 unemployment crisis. One million people emigrated from Ireland, many to ports such as Liverpool, Cardiff and Glasgow. Most stayed near to where they landed, too destitute to venture further inland. But there is evidence some made it as far as St Ives. Four Workhouse inmates are described as 'Irish tramp'. No doubt more were working in and around St Ives. With an excess of labour, farmers could reduce wages.

In 1841 there were no entire family groups (i.e. father, mother and children) in the Workhouse. So long as a husband was present, there was enough employment in St Ives to keep the family away from the Workhouse. Ten years later, children aged under 12 years made up 40% of the total. Almost two-thirds of these were still with their parents. This reflects entire families going into the Workhouse.

Of the 59 in the Workhouse in 1921, 39 (66%) were aged over 55 years reflecting an increasing function of medical and care provision. An extra 8 inmates of working age showed 'Nil' for occupation, indicating some physical or mental ailment. The 1921 census was the first to take no record of mental or physical infirmities. Although the unemployment rate was high at over 20% in 1921, unemployment benefit was introduced in 1911. This helped keep families out of the Workhouse.

St Ives Union Workhouse plan.

Those who died in the workhouse lie in unmarked graves in Westwood Road cemetery, St Ives. In the cemetery is a stone cross and plaque which says:

Please offer a prayer for all those who are buried in this cemetery, especially the men, women and children of St Ives Workhouse, whose graves are unmarked. May the souls of all find peace in the loving arms of God.

Other records
Minute books dating from 1836 deal with the Board of Guardian's general policies and issues. Registers of births and deaths from 1836 to 1914 are on microfilm. To read Board of Guardians' meetings and other workhouse news, click newspaper cuttings.

There are few other records for the poorhouses. Parish vestry minutes refer to funds, staff appointments, building works, etc. There is a bundle of estimates for repairs and alterations dating from 1817 to 1826.

Click any of the icons below to view Workhouse census records.

Thanks to Bob Burn-Murdoch and Mary Carter for some of the information shown above.