Braintree Poor Law Union, Essex Genealogy

History
Braintree had a parish workhouse in 1635, one of the earliest recorded workhouses in England. A parliamentary report of 1777 recorded parish workhouses in operation at Braintree (with accommodation for up to 60 ), The site was originally intended for use by almshouses and records also show the premises there being referred to as a "hospital house". Workhouse inmates were required to perform tasks such as spinning and carding wool. In the 1821 census, the workhouse accommodated seven males and nine females

Bradwell (13), Black Notley (16), Bocking (140) Bocking had a parish workhouse on Church Lane, near to the bridge over to Bocking Churchstreet. The building appears to date from 1500 but was used as a workhouse from the 1720s. The reported capacity of 140 reported in the 1777 parliamentary survey, if accurate, would have made it one of the largest in Essex.

Finchingfield (25), The Finchingfield vestry agreed to erect a new parish workhouse in 1763 but may instead have resorted to using an existing building. These premises, located next to the village pond, are now known as Bridge House. A late eighteenth century inventory of the workhouse mentions rooms including a governor's room, dining room, dwelling room, ward, buttery, brewhouse, coalhouse, governor's chamber, first chamber, hall chamber, first garret, and second garret. Eliza Vaughn, in her 1926 book The Stream of Time gives an account of the final years of the workhouse. Inmates were employed in cultivating hops in a field known as the Hop Ground. The much-feared master of the workhouse wore a smock with grey breeches and stockings. When, as often happened, inmates ran away from the workhouse, he would take a whip and search for them.

Stisted (20), Weathersfield (25). Wethersfield's parish workhouse was in operation by at least 1727. In 1729, it had eleven inmates in residence. Robert Carter was appointed master at a salary of 7s.6d. per week to maintain seven paupers in "meat, drink, washing and lodging". An inventory of 1792 records eating utensils for up to 20 inmates. The contents of three storey building also included a spinning wheel in the Great Bed Room, and another in the Wool Room. A house on The Green in Wethersfield, now known as Ivanhoe House, is thought to have been used as the workhouse.

Braintree Poor Law Union was formed on 16th December 1835. The new Braintree Board of Guardians invited the submission of workhouse plans for four architects: Sampson Kempthorne, Mr Pennice (a Colchester architect), Mr Watson (a local builder), and William T Nash (an architect based in Royston). The plans eventually adopted were those of Nash, who also designed workhouses at Buntingford, Royston, Halstead, St Ives, and Caxton &amp; Arrington.

In 1837 the Braintree workhouse riot concerned complaints that the workhouse diet was insufficient to support paupers directed to work the corn mill “wheel” Refusal to work was punished by hard labour by local magistrates. The new Braintree Union workhouse, for up to 300, was built in 1837-8 at a site to the west of Braintree on the north side of Rayne Road. The Poor Law Commissioners authorized the sum of £6,342 for the nuilding which was carried out by the firm of Steggles and Son. The heating and cooking facilities were fitted by the London firm of Eckstein and Son, at a cost of £235.10s. The Board of Guardians first took possession of the premises in March 1838. In 1894, the British Medical Journal set up a "commission" to investigate conditions in provincial workhouses and their infirmaries. Following a visit to Braintree, the commission's report was broadly favourable. It did, however, make a number of criticisms about the various buildings used for accommodating the sick, which were all overcrowded. Ideally, a new infirmary for 100 or more beds was needed. Additional nurses were also required, although until a new building had been constructed, there was nowhere to house them. From 1905-1910 infirmary wards were added mainly for Tuberculosis treatment. The workhouse later became St Michael's Hospital. By 2000, parts of the main block were being used for geriatric care, but most of the upper floors and out-buildings were no longer in use. The hospital closed a few years later and in 2008 was converted into luxury flats.

Braintree Union Children’s Home
A house on Bradford Street, now the Old Court Hotel, was used by the union as a children's home prior to 1930.

Constituent Parishes
Black Notley, Essex Bocking, Essex Bradwell by Coggeshall, Essex Braintree, Essex Cornish Hall End, Essex Cressing, Essex Finchingfield, Essex Great Saling, Essex Panfield, Essex Pattiswick, Essex Rayne, Essex Shalford, Essex Stisted, Essex Wethersfield, Essex White Notley, Essex

Bayne, Black Notley, Bocking, Bradwell, Braintree , Cressing, Finchingfield , Great Saling, Pattiswick, Penfield, Shalford, Stisted, White Notley, Weathersfield.

Records
• Essex Record Office, Wharf Road Chelmsford CM2 6YT. Holdings include: Guardians' minutes (1835-1930); Admissions and discharges (1883-88, 1891-4, 1897-8, • Creed Registers reference G/BR/23-25 1890-1939 • Admission and discharge registers for Casuals reference G/Br/1-14 1916-1938 A7897 Records of St. Michael's Hospital (formerly known as the BRAINTREE Union WORKHOUSE and as the BRAINTREE Public Assistance Institution); of the BRAINTREE Area house and staff welfare committees; and of the BRAINTREE and Dunmow dispensaries - see detailed list supplied

1866-1975

• Due to sensitivity of some records some documents will be withheld from public use until 2044 e.g. the pffences and punishment books and registers of mechanical restraint and medical officers books

Websites
http://www.workhouses.org.uk/index.html?Braintree/Braintree.shtml Peter Higginbotham’s Workhouses site for maps and images of the Union.