Long-term Workhouse Inmates in Kidderminster Union, Worcestershire, 1861
In 1861, the Poor Law Board published a return of the name every adult pauper who had been a workhouse inmate for a continuous period of five years or more, together with the duration of their residence (in years and months), the reason for it, and whether they had been brought up in a District or separate Workhouse School. It was noted that the term 'District School' had been widely misinterpreted by respondents as meaning any school in the local area, such as a national or private school, and that there was only one instance in the whole report of an inmate actually having been in such a school.
| Name | Yrs | ms. | Reason | School |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John Perks | 33 | 0 | Asthmatic, and a cripple | no. |
| William Cooke | 20 | 0 | Chronic hernia | no. |
| Samuel Williams | 7 | 0 | Asthmatic and rheumatic | no. |
| Thomas Williams | 13 | 0 | Rheumatic and hernia | no. |
| John Lewis | 26 | 0 | Weak intellect | no. |
| James Reed | 9 | 0 | Rheumatism and hernia | no. |
| William Nicholls | 6 | 0 | Fistula in ano and hernia | no. |
| Samuel Dougherty | 7 | 0 | Severe chronic hernia and rheumatism. | no. |
| Joseph Cooke | 6 | 0 | Rheumatism | no. |
| Cornelius Ainsworth | 6 | 0 | Severe hernia | no. |
| Benjamin Smith | 6 | 0 | Blind | no. |
| Edgar Tyler | 17 | 0 | Rheumatic, and a cripple | no. |
| James Baylis | 7 | 0 | Blind (totally) | no. |
| William Ricketts | 16 | 0 | Aged and infirm | no. |
| Charles Winwood | 7 | 0 | Idiot | no. |
| Joseph Tibbetts | 6 | 0 | Nearly blind | no. |
| George Smith | 11 | 0 | Chronic rheumatism | no. |
| Richard Burton | 5 | 6 | Eczema and blind | no. |
| William Willetts | 19 | 0 | Aged and infirm | no. |
| William Jordan | 24 | 0 | Weak intellect | no. |
| John Lowe | 6 | 6 | Diseased liver | no. |
| William Cooksey | 7 | 0 | Idiot | no. |
| Mary Brown | 30 | 0 | Weak intellect | no. |
| Elizabeth Nicholls | 7 | 0 | Epileptic | no. |
| Hannah Tolley | 17 | 0 | Rheumatism, and a cripple | no. |
| Martha Noakes | 10 | 0 | Aged and infirm; debilitated by hernia. | no. |
| Sophia Shepherd | 18 | 0 | Epileptic | no. |
| Esther Jones | 11 | 0 | Aged and infirm | no. |
| Elizabeth Williams | 20 | 0 | Dumb | no. |
| Mary Perry | 13 | 0 | Wreak intellect; epileptic | no. |
For US readers 
Unless otherwise indicated, this page () is copyright Peter Higginbotham. Contents may not be reproduced without permission.