Lincolnshire Poor Law

An Act of Parliament in the year 1834 took the responsibility of administering to the poor from the local parish church to the doorstep of civil government. The government grouped each civil parish into a union of parishes. There were nearly 600 such unions throughout England, each one comprising close to 20 or more parishes, and were specifically setup to meet the demands of the poor among their local populations, with a workhouse on the premises. The responsibility was transferred from local parishes to a Board of Guardians in each union. These groupings or unions were known as poor-law unions. Lincolnshire had the following poorlaw unions within its boundaries:

The Poor Law Unions

 * Boston Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Bourne Poor Law Union, Linconshire
 * Caistor Poor Law Union,Lincolnshire
 * Gainsborough Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Glanford Brigg Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Grantham Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Grimsby Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Holbeach Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Horncastle Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Lincoln Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Louth Poor Law Union,Lincolnshire
 * Sleaford Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Spalding Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Spilsby Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire
 * Stamford Poor Law Union, Lincolnshire

The Records
Records from the Poor Law Unions, which were created from this time forward include the following:


 * 1) Guardianship
 * 2) Creed Registers
 * 3) Rate books
 * 4) Workhouse Lists of Inmates
 * 5) Register of Apprentices
 * 6) Register of Births
 * 7) Register of Deaths
 * 8) Vestry Rate Books
 * 9) Admission and Discharge Registers
 * 10) Board of Guardians' Records

Pre-1834
Lincolnshire Family History Society has indexed the following records:

Online


 * Lincolnshire Poor Law Removals 1665-1865 on Findmypast (£)
 * Lincolnshire Settlement Certificates 1675-1860 on Findmypast (£)
 * Lincolnshire Settlement Examinations 1721-1861 on Findmypast (£)

Publications


 * Lincolnshire Settlement Certificates 1688-1834
 * Lincolnshire Settlement Examinations, Lincolnshire Removal Orders 1688-1865
 * Lindsey Petty Sessions Settlement Examinations
 * Settlement Examinations from the Holland Quarter Sessions, 1703 to 1846
 * Settlement Examinations from the Kesteven Quarter Sessions, 1700-1847

Records at The FamilySearch Library
To determine records availability for each poorlaw, search the FamilySearch Catalog under the name of the county (Lincolnshire), and then under the name of the poorlaw union, i.e. Stamford; then search under the term[s] "poorlaw" or "poorhouses".

The Lincolnshire Family History Society has created indexes to their Poor Law Records.

The FamilySearch Library has these indexes on a County wide basis

Online Transcriptions Relating to Poorlaw Records
1) The Workhouse - brief history, and the Lincoln Workhouse

2) Here's a general website providing data on approximately 10 percent of Lincolnshire's poor