Workhouse
Simon Fowler

Workhouse The people, The places, The life behind doors

We are all familiar with the moment when Oliver Twist dares to ask for more and his subsequent abuse at the hands of the workhouse system. Charlie Chaplin was another workhouse inmate and Florence Nightingale an outspoken critic of the system. These were institutions, we popularly believe, where families were torn asunder and the sick and needy subjected to the grimmest of regimes. What kind of society saw a solution in this uneasy mix of compassion and deterrence? And why did the workhouse strike terror into people’s hearts so long into this century? This popular history conducts a full tour of the workhouse from 1696 to 1948. It draws upon the Archives’ unique and personal accounts of inmates and staff. For those interested in researching further – including their own pauper ancestors – the book contains a guide to the sources.