Course Enrollment: EN-203 English: Poor Law and Parish Chest Records

Optional Print Course Material: English: Poor Law and Parish Chest Records

*Course material will only be sent to students who are registered in the course.

Family history is more than just collecting names, dates and places. In their efforts to recreate the lives of their ancestors, diligent researchers will follow the economic and social ups and downs of individual ancestors and of their family units. There could be considerable movement within an individual’s lifetime and certainly over a few generations. This course concerns itself mainly with the lows of life—and it is a very rare family indeed that will not have some of these. Some of your ancestors may feature in the parish administration or early ‘welfare system’ records. They may have been recipients or donors of charity, or serving their turn administering parish affairs. Equally important were those who did not need assistance but provided aid, were contracted to work or supply the church or workhouse and thus be mentioned as their accounts are rendered to the church.

This course discusses how to access records giving details of their daily lives, whether they were ‘on the parish’ or on the payroll. The highs and lows of life tend to be the best documented and material on the poor is in archives, libraries and the FamilySearch website.