A Victorian workhouse
What were workhouses?
Workhouses were where poor people who had no job or home lived. They earned food by doing jobs in the workhouse. Also in the workhouses were orphaned and abandoned children, the physically and mentally sick, the disabled, the elderly and unmarried mothers.
Did families get split up?
Women, children and men had different living and working areas in the workhouse, so families were split up. To make things even worse they could be punished if they even tried to speak to one another!
Did children get taught?
Yes, children did get taught however the children did not learn reading and writing, which were needed to get a good job.
What did people wear?
Everyone was made to wear a uniform. This meant that everyone looked the same and everyone outside knew they were poor and lived in the workhouse. The uniform was a bit like a cloak however they were all old, dirty and tattered.
What food did they eat?
They ate things like bread, gruel, cooked meats, pickled pork, bacon, vegetables, potatoes, yeast dumpling, soup, suet, rice pudding, cheese, broth and butter. They were all very cheap.
What sort of work did people have to do?
People had to do jobs such as gardening, sewing, corn milling, sack making, stone crushing (for road building) and oakum picking.
Where did they eat and sleep?
They eat in a dining-hall and slept in dormitories. People slept on a iron sort of bed with no mattress, just a small tatty cover on top of the person. If there wasn’t enough beds people could of slept in a box of a shelf.
Why was everyone afraid of the workhouse?
They were feared because you would get there and they would strip you clean and cut off your hair, it was made to look like a prison and was just really unpleasant!
Did they have playtime?
No, they didn’t. It was just get up, work, breakfast, work, lunch, work, tea, work, supper and bed.
What sort of punishments did they have?
They had punishments like a whip. If you were really naughty you would have to wear a Scold's bridle which stopped you talking, it was really horrible.
Workhouses were where poor people who had no job or home lived. They earned food by doing jobs in the workhouse. Also in the workhouses were orphaned and abandoned children, the physically and mentally sick, the disabled, the elderly and unmarried mothers.
Did families get split up?
Women, children and men had different living and working areas in the workhouse, so families were split up. To make things even worse they could be punished if they even tried to speak to one another!
Did children get taught?
Yes, children did get taught however the children did not learn reading and writing, which were needed to get a good job.
What did people wear?
Everyone was made to wear a uniform. This meant that everyone looked the same and everyone outside knew they were poor and lived in the workhouse. The uniform was a bit like a cloak however they were all old, dirty and tattered.
What food did they eat?
They ate things like bread, gruel, cooked meats, pickled pork, bacon, vegetables, potatoes, yeast dumpling, soup, suet, rice pudding, cheese, broth and butter. They were all very cheap.
What sort of work did people have to do?
People had to do jobs such as gardening, sewing, corn milling, sack making, stone crushing (for road building) and oakum picking.
Where did they eat and sleep?
They eat in a dining-hall and slept in dormitories. People slept on a iron sort of bed with no mattress, just a small tatty cover on top of the person. If there wasn’t enough beds people could of slept in a box of a shelf.
Why was everyone afraid of the workhouse?
They were feared because you would get there and they would strip you clean and cut off your hair, it was made to look like a prison and was just really unpleasant!
Did they have playtime?
No, they didn’t. It was just get up, work, breakfast, work, lunch, work, tea, work, supper and bed.
What sort of punishments did they have?
They had punishments like a whip. If you were really naughty you would have to wear a Scold's bridle which stopped you talking, it was really horrible.
A scolds bridle.(it was a punishment.)
A bowl of gruel. Gruel was the most common(and disgusting) food at a workhouse.
This is what a Victorian Workhouse would of looked like.
This is a bed you would find in a Victorian workhouse.
A Victorian workhouse dining hall.
