Poor Relief (Ireland) Act 1838 facts for kids
| Act of Parliament | |
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| Long title | An Act for the more effectual Relief of the destitute Poor in Ireland. |
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| Citation | 1 & 2 Vict. c. 56 |
| Dates | |
| Royal assent | 31 July 1838 |
The Poor Relief (Ireland) Act 1838 was an important law passed by the Parliament of the United Kingdom. It created a new system to help people who were very poor in Ireland. This law was similar to an earlier one that had been made for England in 1834.
Before this Act, there wasn't a clear way to help everyone who needed it. This new law aimed to provide support for those who had no other means of survival.
Contents
How the Poor Relief System Worked
After the law was passed, 130 special areas were set up across Ireland. These were called Poor Law Unions. Each Union had a building called a Workhouse. This was a place where poor people could go to live and get help.
Funding the Workhouses
The money to run these workhouses came from "rates." These were like taxes paid by people who owned land in each Union district. This meant that local people helped pay for the poor relief in their own area.
Managing the Unions
The whole system was watched over by a group called the Poor Law Commissioners. They made sure everything was run properly. They set up strict rules for keeping records and managing money.
Each Poor Law Union also had its own local team. This team was called the Board of Guardians. They met every week to manage the workhouse. They also looked after any outdoor relief, which might have been work schemes for people outside the workhouse.
Keeping Records of Poor Relief
To make sure everything was organized, many records were kept. These records help us understand how the system worked and who it helped.
Minute Books
The most common records were the Minute Books. These books recorded everything that happened at the weekly meetings of the Board of Guardians. They included:
- How money was spent.
- What supplies were bought for the workhouse.
- Who was hired to work there.
- How the people living in the workhouse were managed.
- Any other issues that came up each week.
The Minute Books also tracked how many people were in the workhouse. They noted how many people came in or left each week. They even separated the numbers by men, women, and children. The books also recorded how many people were sick and how many deaths happened each week.
Rate Books
Rate Books were used to keep track of the money paid by property owners. They showed who paid the rates and what kind of property they owned. This helped manage the finances of each Poor Law Union.
Registers of People Receiving Help
Registers were special books that listed everyone who received help from the Union.
- Indoor registers listed people living in the workhouse. They included details like their name, age, gender, religion, where they lived before, their condition when they arrived, and the dates they entered and left the workhouse.
- Other registers sometimes recorded deaths or details from the porter's lodge at the workhouse entrance.
See also
- Irish Poor Law
