Norfolk: Poor Law after 1834 Act

Swaffham Union

Union history

1834 - Swaffham Poor Law Union was formed.
1836 - Workhouse at Watton Road, Swaffham, PE37 7EN , [Map reference is TF824081].
Description is in Whites 1845 directory
1930 - Union dissolved.
1933 - Kelly's directory has a section "Norfolk No 11 Area Guardians Committee" but old Union buildings are not mentioned.
1937 - Kelly's directory - as 1933
The site (just off the Watton Road) is now under "The Oaklands" and other roads in a housing estate.

Before 1834 some of these parishes had their own Work or Parish House (WkHse) as shown.

Swaffham Union Places	Pre 1834 Parish Work House
Acre, South (South Acre)
Ashill	WkHse
Beechamwell
Bodney
Bradenham, East (East Bradenham)
Bradenham, West (West Bradenham)	WkHse
Buckenham near Tofts (Buckenham Parva)
Caldecote
Cockley-Clay (Cockley Cley)
Colveston
Cressingham, Great (Great Cressingham)
Cressingham, Little (Little Cressingham)
Didlington
Foulden	WkHse
Gooderstone	WkHse

Swaffham Union Places	Pre 1834 Parish Work House
Hilborough
Holme Hale
Houghton-on-the-Hill
Ickburgh (Igborough)
Langford
Narborough
Narford
Necton	WkHse
Newton by Castleacre
Oxborough
Pickenham, North (North Pickenham)	WkHse
Pickenham, South (South Pickenham)
Saham Toney	WkHse
Shingham
Sporle with Palgrave	WkHse
Stanford	WkHse
Swaffham	WkHse
Threxton

Poor Law Records - Images

Online images of some poor law registers, admissions books etc. from 1796 to 1900 are available at the

LDS familysearch website (UK+Ireland records section)

Go down the "Historical Record Collections"
Select Title - "England, Norfolk Poor Law Union Records, 1796-1900"
Select "Browse through xxx images"
Under County pick - "Norfolk"
Under Poor Law Union select the "Required Union"
Records are under headings such as "District, Workhouse & Unknown etc."

Other Websites

Acts, descriptions, maps, some pictures etc. can be found at :-
www.workhouses.org.uk (The Story of Workhouses).

Further information can be found:

about locations in the Towns and Parishes pages.
about which hundred a parish occurs in.

See also the Poor Law page and the Post 1834 Unions page

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