Overseers

Overseers of the Poor

The main duty of the overseers of the poor was to make sure the poor of the parish were cared for and to collect sufficient funds to be able to support them from the owners of property in the parish. This was done by levying a rate on all property owners according to the rateable value; a precursor to council rates. Landlords in turn charged their tenants. The Overseers gave a weekly allowance to their poor in accordance to a rate drawn up by and approved by the vestry meeting, presided over by the Church Wardens and other Parish Officers. Examples are from a vestry book for Willoughby held at Warwick Record Office.

On 6th Feb 1815

William ELLARD the Overseer should gather the third levy 6d in the pound for use of the Poor and accidents of the Parish

1. Man his Wife and 1 child 1s 6 per week
2. plus 2 children 3s per week
3. plus 3 children 4s per week

This is William ELLARD [5131] (1764-1846).

This is a considerable rise from the example for Dec 8 1814 (on Poor Law page)

Parishioners could ask for help in purchasing clothing and tools and for house repairs. An example from the Willoughby Vestry book

May 1 1820 Order that Ed Boyes house be repaired and allow.... 2/6 per week for Richard Cowley house rent.

Examples from the Poor law Accounts Book for Tadmarton Oxfordshire kept at Oxford record Office.

Feb 28 1829	Willm MORBY's trees 8s
June13 1830	R DRINKWATER lodges 2 weeks 2s
	R DRINKWATER washing 1s 6d
Jun 1 1833	To Rd HARRIS for repairing widow NEEDLE's dore & dore trees	Elizabeth NEEDLE [7513] Direct line
	Poor people had a coal allowance in Tadmarton
Dec 6 1828	John COLIGRAVE cayge of cole £2- 8- 3 <carriage of coal> Jno NEEDOL 15 cwts	This is John NEEDLE [7512] Direct line
Feb 28 1829	Wm MORBY has cole	probably William MORBY [7873]

The overseer also made sure that the medical requirements of the poor were adequately covered. There is an interesting meeting on 25 April 1820 where John Seymour Brind a surgeon from Dunchurch agrees to vaccinate the poor and on March 24 1825 to provide his attendance for Midwifery, Fractures, Small Pox and all Accidents. In Tadmarton there are examples of the sick being cared for by the community.
Apr 4 1830	MORBY Wm for fetching Doctor 1s
Jun 6 1830	MORBY Wm Snr for attending R DRINKWATER 1 s MORBY Wm jnr for attending R DRINKWATER 2s 10	Probably William MOREBY [7873] Probably William MOREBY [9286] son of the above
Nov 19 1831	E NEEDLE for attending to Wm SPRINGER 2s	This is Elizabeth NEEDLE [7513] Direct line
Nov 26 1831	E NEEDLE for attending to Wm SPRINGER 2s
Jun 15 1833	Wm MORBY wife for waiting on widow NEDLE 2s	This is probably to help when Elizabeth NEEDLE gave birth to her last child Hannah Cox June 1834 (the date needs checking) Probably Ann MORBY nee GENNINGS [9236] wife of William [9286]
Jun 22 1833	Wm MORBY wife for waiting on widow NEDLE 2s
Jun 29 1833	Wm MORBY wife for waiting on widow NEDLE 2s
	Through out the book extra payments are made when a person is unwell
Nov 22 1828	MORBY Jas not well 5-1s3d 8s 4d
Jan 2 1831	Jas NEEDOL Snr not well 4s	This is James NEEDLE [7845] direct line
Aug 10	John NEEDLE 1 day lay still 5d
Another part of the overseer’s duties was to arrange parish apprenticeships for poor children (see Parish Apprentice page) and to provide work for those able bodied who had no employment. From the Tadmarton book for 1834
Aug 10	James NEEDLE 4 days on the rode 3s 4d
Aug 17	James NEEDLE 3 day on rode 2s 6d
Aug 24	James NEEDLE 1 wk on rode 5s
Aug 31	James NEEDLE 1 wk on rode 5s
The Overseer was also responsible for collecting the appropriate fee from the father of any illegitimate child liable for parish relief (See Bastardy page) Where a settlement dispute requires a removal he has to see that the constable is paid.(see Settlement) The parish also paid for funerals of pauper parishioners Examples from Tadmarton
Nov 22 1828	MORBY Wm child's funeral 2s 6d	This is Sarah MORBY [9243] born 1826 buried 26 Nov 1828 daughter of William [9286] and Ann MORBY nee GENNINGS [9236]
May 28 1831	Jno NEEDOL funeral 4s 6d	This is John NEEDLE [7517] Direct line who had been invalided out of the army 10 years previously.

Poor Land Allotment.

Land was being enclosed early in 1800 under local bye laws then a parliamentary Act was passed in 1836 in an attempt to unify the situation it made it legal for land owners to enclose land with out reference to parliament. During that time many cottagers found they had no land to grow food graze their animals or to collect timber, this was leading to civil unrest. A further Act was passed in 1845 which provided for land to be set aside for allotment use. Commissioners were to make provision for the landless poor to each have use of up to a quarter of an acre of “field garden”. However the Act was not well implemented. Local parishes set up their own schemes under the existing parish Poor law committees until eventually an Act was passed in 1887 obliging local authorities to provide allotments.

Several Parishes used the allotments not only to provide land to the needy but also to raise funds from the rent of plots. An interesting account of how the parish used the rents from the allotments to provide coal to the poor can be read at Hampton (of Hampton Court fame).

There is an interesting account of the Poor Land of Hampton Poyle which provided Whitsun ale in 1625 and later to allow the rector to provide bread and cheese for the poor at Easter. By 1817 it provided 26cwts of coal for the poor(at a cost of 1s 5d per cwt.

Family involvement

In Hampton Poyle several ancestors are documented as being involved in Poor Land Allotment. Between 1876-1901.

Nov 8 1875: Applications received by Thursday last accepted ... land let at 7d per pole

... allotments should be drawn for Tuesday next at 6pm. ... unless cottages signed agreement by Feb 1 allotment void.

Family Overseers of the Poor at Willoughby, Warwickshire

Thomas HESOM [9128] was the brother in law of William ELLARD [5154] (1774-1846).

William ELLARD [5131] (1764-1846) was at least an overseer in 1814-1815 from examples given left and on the Poor Law page. He later became Church Warden.

William ELLARD [5154] (1774-1846) an overseer in 1821.

Jan 13 1876	Hannah King	9. 7½
	Hannah Cox	9. 7½	Hannah Cox nee ELLARD [989] widow of John COX and sister of George ELLARD.
Jan 14 1876	Hannah Ellard (pr herself George Ellard)	19. 3	Hannah Ellard [955] wife of George ELLARD [987]
Feb 7 1876	The widow of Henry Savins	receive 12/10.
	George Ellard	receive 5/1	It was agreed to each of the remaining cottages should be given10/3
Jul 23 1877	John Goodgame	Payment 19.10	[1079]
	Richard Giles	Payment 16.10	[1062]
	Martin Giles	Payment 16.10	[1058]
	Emmanuel Edmonds	Payment 16.4	[981]
	William Giles	Payment 16.4	{ several William Giles found}
	Richard Sperrin	Payment 16.11	[10248]
	John Giles	Payment 16.11	[1044]
	Joseph Giles	Payment 16.11	[1048]
	William Wing	Payment 16.11	[6615]
	David Ellard	Payment 16.11	[983] son of George and Hannah,
Nov 13 1877	John Giles	13.4
	Martin Giles	13.4
	William Giles	13.4
	Mary Giles	13.4	[1061]
	Richard Sperrin	13.4
	Hannah Ellard	13.4
	Emmanuel Edmonds	13.4
	John Goodgame	13.4
1883			William Giles not on paying list but on receive list
Dec 31 1883			relet to present occupiers Lot 1 John Giles
Dec 1884			M, Giles, J Giles and D Ellard rec’d.
1885			rents reduced – D Ellard back in
Dec 1885			paid M Giles, J Giles, D Ellard
1887			John Giles, Martin Giles, David Ellard in distribution list.
6 Dec 1889 - 10 Dec 1889	Received of Mr John Giles & Others	11 shillings and 4 pence	for poor rate.
1892			John Giles not in Allotment holders but John & Martin Giles still in shareout. Eliza Young [1135] & Sam Savin in Allotment list.
Sep 29 1901			On Recipients list Giles Martin & Giles Mrs Jno [1082] Elizabeth nee Hawkins John Giles died Sep 1900 :
1903	Giles Martin & Giles Elizabeth
1906	Mrs Giles and Martin Giles
1908			No Giles - Martin died Feb 1906 and Elizabeth Giles nee Hawkins died May 1907

Family Overseers of the poor at Beaford, Devon.

John NOTT [1422] 1636 and 1643 from a very faint Overseers accounts book 2215 Aa/P01 1631-1648

Arthur NOTT [2400] 1749 from Apprenticeship Indenture for John HEARD

Robert HEARD [2594] 1790 from Apprenticeship Indentures of Robert FOLLAND [10841]

From the Apprentice Indentures the following were Overseers in Beaford

1749 Robert SAUNDERS & Arthur NOTT [2400]

1766 John BUDD & John WILLIAMS

1775 William WEBBER & Anthony SNELL

1790 Robert SAUNDERS Junr [10879] & Robert HEARD [2594]

1804 John SNELL & John MARSHALL

1810 Robert SAUNDERS [10879] & William PINCOMBE

1811 William PINCOMBE & Thomas CLARKE

From Overseers accounts 1779 Richard BUDD[10569]

James M COGGINS [11907] Middleton Stoney Oxfordshire

James was the son of the Parish clerk George COGGINS[1187] and brother of William [11903] who followed his father as clerk. James was involved in the Bicester Union work house in 1852 when he together with the chuchwardens and a second overseer sold two cottages, then being used for the poor, to the Earl of jersey in order to raise the parish donation for the Workhouse. At the time a widow COGGINS was living in one of the cottages concerned as yet she has not been identified. The following is an extract from a deed held in Oxford Record Office (J I ac /1)

”....the Guardians of the Poor of the Bicester Union in the Counties of Oxford and Buckingham and William Underwood and Joseph Woods the Churchwardens and Thomas Wheeler and James Coggins the Overseers of the Poor of the Parish of Middleton Stoney ...”