The "workhouse" preceded the "union," which latter term was adopted when parishes, throughout a large district, were united for the purposes of poor relief."[1] In some cases a country parish had its own workhouse. For instance, old parish books of Thimbleby,[2] show that in 1819 £20 was spent upon the village workhouse, which was insured for £200.
Among some old churchwardens' records, in the possession of Mr. John Overton, of Horncastle (members of whose family have frequently held that office), it is mentioned that early in the 18th century a "public oven" was erected in the town to enable the poor to cook their meals, or to bake the "black bread," then in common use,[3] more conveniently than they could at home.[4] At a later date (1780) a spinning school was established by public rate, to help the poor to earn a livelihood by a home industry.[5]
An important advance was made in poor relief, in 1735, when, as the same records state, "on April 17 a committee was appointed,[6] in Horncastle, to build a workhouse," and on May 7th in the following year a brief note gives the cost of the building as being £175 13s. 4d. This was situated on the east side of St. Mary's Square, separated by a few yards from the Grammar School, the site being now (1908) occupied by a common lodging house. It continued to be the public workhouse for over 100 years; and that the poor, who needed relief, were generally expected to enter as inmates, is shewn by another brief note, in the same records, to the following effect: "May 2nd, 1781. Out payments discontinued, except in sickness."
It was not till 1838 that the present workhouse, in Foundry Street, was built, from the designs of Mr.—afterwards Sir—Gilbert Scott, being one of his earliest undertakings.[7] It is a commodious structure, capable of accom-
- ↑ As an instance of this the Horncastle Union comprises 69 parishes.
- ↑ These books were inspected by the present writer a few years ago, although now (1906) supposed to be lost. In the account of Thimbleby, given in the appendix to this volume, instances are given of various forms of relief to paupers, in coals, shoes, petticoats, &c., but always on condition that they attended the church services regularly, otherwise such relief was forfeited.
- ↑ In some parts of the country "black bread," made of oatmeal, was in use, among the humbler classes, as late as in 1850.
- ↑ This had been forestalled as early as in the reign of Edward I.; a Pipe Roll dated 12 Edward I. (A.D. 1284) shows that a payment of 60 shillings was made for a common oven, rented of the Bishop of Carlisle, as Lord of the Manor. Lincs. Notes & Queries, vol. iv, p. 237.
- ↑ The older ones among us will remember that in the days of our grandmothers the spinning wheel was usually to be seen in the boudoir, or drawing room. A common shrub of our hedgerows and copses is the spindle tree (euonymus europeus), so named because of its compact, yet light, wood was made the spindle of the spinster. An old MS., kept by Sarah Cleveland, shows how not only the poor but ladies of all ranks, like the Homeric Penelope and her maidens, practised spinning; the younger with a view to providing a marriage portion for themselves; whence, until marriage, they were called "spinsters," a term still in use. [Berenden Letters of William Ward and his family, of Berenden, Kent, 1758-1821, edited by C. F. Hardy. Dent & Co., 1901.] It may be here mentioned that the ancient building in Boston named Shodfriars' Hall, was formerly a spinning school. In the Parish Register of Wispington, in this neighbourhood, not only is the female mentioned as "spinster," but the male is called "weaver," and in the adjoining parish of Woodhall there is a "weavers' close," part of which is named "tailors' garth," in the same connection, and the present parish clerk's grandmother, a Mrs. Oldfield, had herself a hand loom; and in the parish of Minting weaving is known to have been carried on extensively, an informant telling the present writer that his grandmother had a hand loom, see Records of Woodhall Spa, &c., under Minting, by the author. In Horncastle a weaver, named Keeling, formerly occupied the premises now the book-seller's shop of Mr. Hugh Wilson; another lived in the house, 3, North Street, now occupied by Mr. G. Walkley.
- ↑ The members of this committee are given as Rev. Jas. Fowler (Vicar), Joshua Towne (a well-known clock maker, whose clocks are still valued), Geo. Heald (gent), James Watson, William Maddison, Robert Boulton, John Spraggings, Francis Rockliffe, and Joshua Vickers (hatter).
- ↑ In digging to lay the foundations of the building, a considerable number of ancient jars were exhumed, which passed subsequently into the possession of the Chaplain, the late Rev. E. M. Chapman, Rector of Low Toynton. After disappearing for some years, several of these were sold in 1905. They are supposed to be Cyprus ware. The present writer has three of them, others have been presented to different museums, &c.
