Description

Immediate dispatch from Somerset. Book in excellent unread/unused condition. See images. Fantastic book.

About the book >.>.> Cheltenham in the early to mid-nineteenth century was a magnet for the rich. It also attracted the poor eager to benefit from the availability of work in a growing town but not all who migrated there found success. This volume examines the lives of those whose dreams failed and who had to seek relief from the parish. Many discovered they were not – according to the complex Poor Laws of the day – Cheltenham’s responsibility. Those who had already achieved “settlement” elsewhere were typically returned to that place even though they might no longer be familiar with it or have any acquaintances there. The Poor Law Amendment Act of 1834 the most significant change to the Poor Laws since Elizabeth’s reign created a bleak new environment; the local reception of the new Act is played out in these examinations. (MP)