History of Union Workhouse, Lynn Road, Wisbech, 1853 (Samuel Smith)

Union Workhouse, Clarkson Hospital, Lynn Road, Wisbech

History of Union Workhouse

 

Union Workhouse was constructed under the Poor Law Act of 1834. It replaced th 18th cent. workhouse on Albion Terrace. the previous workhouse was built in 1720 on a three acre site between the Horse Fair and the quay, to house 80. Only those fit to work were admitted.

Later known as Clarkson Hospital.

Demolished 1982.

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Opened in the early eighteenth century, the Wisbech Workhouse became one of the most successful examples of organised poor relief in Cambridgeshire. It provided employment in activities including spinning, baking and brewing, while also offering accommodation for the poor. Murphy describes it as well administered and comparatively humane, earning a reputation that encouraged neighbouring communities to establish similar institutions. Wisbech demonstrates how workhouses could become centres of both economic activity and welfare rather than simply places of punishment.

Source: Michael J. Murphy, Poverty in Cambridgeshire.

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Also see ‘In and Out of the Workhouse’ EARO 1978.