Manuscript Records by Overseers of the Poor. [manuscript] Circa 1676-1737

Weston & Wixhill, Shropshire, England Circa 1676-1737.

1 item ; Small quarto (180 x 150 x 10 mm)

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272958 MS

From dealer's description: "[POOR LAW] Two manuscript accounts books recording administration of poor law. [Weston & Wixhill, Shropshire. Circa 1676-1737]. Two volumes. The first volume [now Folger 272958 MS]: Manuscript Records by Overseers of the Poor. Circa 1676-1737. [now Small quarto (180 x 150 x 10 mm). 82 pages of accounts on 41 leaves. Vellum binding. Paper softened and fragile, frayed at edges, some leaves loose, and some presumably lost. ¶ The issue of ‘what to do with the poor’ has taxed rulers and governments for centuries. The origins of Poor Laws in England are generally traced back to the reign of Richard II in the late 14th century, but Henry VIII’s dissolution of the monasteries (and the consequent confiscation of the assets from which they disbursed relief for the poor) compounded matters, leading to a series of parliamentary acts throughout the 16th century. The Poor Relief Act of 1597 created the role of Overseers of the Poor, appointed for every parish and supervised by a local Justice of the Peace, and a 1601 act formalised and refined previous measures, making assessment for the relief of the poor compulsory. Acts and legislation came and went; meanwhile, this manuscript shows life at the sharp end, as the overseers in “Weston and Wixill” (some 14 miles north of Shrewsbury) assess local need, collect the poor rate from landowners, and distribute food or money as they deem appropriate. These accounts are kept by a series of overseers, beginning in 1676 with “Thomas Hoden”, who records amounts “Recd”, presumably from landowners, then lists disbursements to “widow Baly” (ranging from “00-03-00” to “00-06-00”) and others. On the next page, his accounts are signed as “Seen & allowed” by two worthies – perhaps Justices of the Peace – “Ch: Maynwaringe” and “Th: Hitt”. Subsequent entries follow the same pattern over several decades, with overseers for the parish (including “Robert Longdon”, “Robert Peate”, and “Thomas Massey”) itemising their receipts and recording payouts and expenses, often with a specific purpose added (“Rent”, “3 yards of peats”, “for a blankit”, “a paire of shooes for ye tinkers Child”, “pd William Ridgway for 5 days and a halfe for thatching Thoms Gitttens house”, “Elizabeth: Haries when her husband was sick”). The pages also disclose the unusual presence of a female overseer: “Elizabeth Berry”, who sets down her accounts for “17256”. A late entry here concerns her payment to “Thomas Griffis for wrighting and going with me to gather some part of my Lowne”, followed by a separate payment for “puting them in the book”. The second book [now Folger 272957 MS] is a ledger recording debits and credits by individuals mostly in the same region (Hodnet, Whitchurch, Hawkestone, and so on), beginning in the late 1690s. A few of the names in the first book appear here (“Bayley”, “Fletcher”), and they are joined by the likes of “Sr Orlando Bridgman” for such things as “money lent in a Mortgage in Lands in Droit witch” and several amounts “Recd of Mr Fletcher”. The infamous Sir Orlando Bridgeman, 2nd Baronet (1678-1746) a British landowner and Whig politician who sat in the House of Commons between 1707 and 1738. In order to build an impressive mansion, he took on too much debt, and was pursued by creditors. He faked his own death in 1738 and went into hiding, but was soon caught and spent the rest of his life in prison. Both manuscripts retain their original bindings, and, while the earlier of the two is in poor condition, it is an unusual survivor which provides rare first-hand evidence of the administration of poor law; of who decided who “deserved” financial assistance in small, rural communities of early modern England." Ordered from Dean Cooke, D9747, 2024-05-04, Cat. The Hidden Art of the Book, item #8, Ref. 8216 Purchase made possible by [funding info goes here].

272958