Penshurst, Kent
The Penshurst Poor Law Union officially came into existence on 25th March 1835. Its operation was overseen by an elected Board of Guardians, 12 in number, representing its 6 constituent parishes as listed below (figures in brackets indicate numbers of Guardians if more than one):
County of Kent: Chiddingstone (2), Cowden, Edenbridge (3), Hever, Leigh (2), Penshurst (3).
The population falling within the union at the 1831 census had been 6,367 with parishes ranging in size from from Hever (population 559) to Penshurst itself (1,453). The average annual poor-rate expenditure for the period 1831-4 had been £6,409 or 19s.10d. per head of the population.
A new Penshurst union workhouse was completed by February 1836 at Bough Beech Green. However, on 22nd September 1836, despite opposition from the Penshurst Vestry, all the Penshurst Union's member parishes were absorbed into the adjacent Sevenoaks Poor Law Union. The Penshurst workhouse building was sold off in December 1838.
Bibliography
- Maidstone Journal (16/2/1836 and 18/12/1838)
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