England, Norfolk, Poor Law Union Records, 1796-1900

What is in This Collection?

This collection contains poor law records, which are records created by a vestry or union in their care for the poor. Poor Law records include all of the documents created in the collecting, dispersing, and protecting the funds for the legitimate poor of the parish. The first poor law came into effect with the Poor Law Act of 1601. Under this law the Church of England parish served as a unit of the local government in managing the care of the poor who lived in the parish. The vestry council, or “vestry” for short, was the administrative body of local government. After 1834, responsibility for the care of the poor fell on the Poor Law Unions and their workhouses. Poor Law Unions encompassed several parishes.

Poor law records contain records of many types, including:

• Vestry council minutes document the discussions and decisions of the vestry
• Churchwardens’ rate books list the tax receipts
• Overseers’ disbursement books track the distribution of money and in-kind materials
• Settlement certificates identify an individual’s or family’s parish of legal settlement. The Settlement Law of 1662 required that a person have legal settlement in the parish before he or she could qualify for aid
• Settlement examinations were conducted to establish the financial condition of the individual or family who had left their parish of legal settlement without obtaining a settlement certificate and to determine their parish of legal settlement
• Removal orders were issued to have the individual or family removed from the parish and transported back to their parish of legal settlement
• Apprenticeship indentures placed orphans and the children of poor families under the care of a master, which helped limit the costs of their maintenance
• Bastardy documents of various types were created to deal with children born out of wedlock
• Admission and Discharge registers that give the dates and places of the term of relief
• Birth and Death registers including names, dates and to which parish the individuals belong
• Correspondence from local authorities to the National Poor Law commission

Additional records and/or images may be added to this collection in the future.

To Browse This Collection

What Can These Records Tell Me?

The following information may be found in these records:

Collection Content

Sample Images

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  1811 Poor Law Records Example 1

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  1825 Poor Law Records Example 2

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  1822 Poor Law Records Example 3

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  1895-6 Register of Paupers

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  1841-5 Register of Births

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  1864 Register of Baptisms

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  1842-3 Register of Deaths