The Workhouse

Has anyone seen Secrets of the Workhouse on ITV? Well, it's been interesting to see what exactly went on (mostly quite horrifying), the treatment of people... in some ways they had a potentially good idea for a place the poor (completely destitute) people could go, but I think a lot of 'looking down' on people and social rebuking, not dealing with the root problem, but getting it 'out the way' took over and led to a great fear of being in the workhouse.

Through my family history research I have found a few members linked to the workhouse. As yet I haven't seen records as to why they were admitted, but my great x2 grandmother was born in St Luke's workhouse infirmary and my great x3 grandfather died in Shoreditch workhouse aged 80.

I have gone into more detail with tips on tracing your own relatives on my family history page.

Descriptions of the workhouses are generally dire, as well as the areas surrounding them where people lived in lodgings, however it may have appeared to those creating the workhouses that were offering a lot to the poor:

Workhouses varied enormously in size, with the smallest such as Belford in Northumberland housing fifty inmates, while the largest such as Liverpool could be home for several thousand. However, all workhouses were essentially a self-contained — and often largely self-supporting — community. Apart from the basic rooms such as a dining-hall for eating, day-rooms for the elderly, and dormitories for sleeping, workhouses often had their own bakery, laundry, tailor's and shoe-maker's, vegetable gardens and orchards, and even a piggery for rearing pigs. There would also be school-rooms, workshops, nurseries, infirmary and fever wards for the sick, a chapel, and a dead-room or mortuary. Workhouses were also highly compartmentalised to separate the various classes of inmates, with the yards between the various buildings being divided up by eight-foot-high walls.
Quoted from http://www.workhouses.org.uk/life/inside.shtml

Layout of St Luke's c1873

St Luke's Workhouse, London c1879



These large imposing & foreboding buildings went through great overhauls until it was acknowledged this was not the way to help the poor. Great injustices were committed and the stigma of the workhouse lives even to this day - we all know it's a place you want to avoid.

 

The Great Outdoors

Some nice warm weather got me outside enjoying a walk by the canal & collecting elderflowers. There are so many blossoms out now & elderflower is a lovely refreshing drink - we've already been through a bottle and so I have collected 3 bags worth of elderflower which makes about 4 bottles of cordial per bag!!

The cordial is very sweet, but syrup like so you can also use it as a little dressing if you like on things like ice cream and fruit. I'll also be looking at what you can bake with elderflowers! I've frozen the flowers so I have time to come back to it as the flowers are turning to berries and I will be busy making elderberry cordial come autumn time - although be warned it doesn't last long before it turns alcoholic! Speaking of which, I was also going to look at making elderflower wine...

Elderflowers

Poirots Last Cases

Well, after years of watching David Suchet as the unforgettable Hercule Poirot, the last few cases are approaching.

After watching the last episode- 'Elephants Can Remember', I was caught by the fashions of the time (although the novel is based in the 70s), the 20s/30s feel does suit Poirot.

The very distinctive Hercule Poirot - photo: carnival films

Whilst the novels are great to read, the production of Poirot in tv and film has been very popular - not beating her record as the best selling novelist of all time (quite a feat!), but equally they should be noted for the deadication and attention to detail that specifically the tv series has continued to show.

Die hard Agatha Christie fans may well question its translation from novel to screen (as any books moving to screen suffer critical analysis) whilst some changes can be seen as unnecessary, the changes in the latest episode fitted in keeping with the original novel.

I literally finished the novel on Sunday, just with hours to go before the episode - it was a challenge set to me to read the last few novels before the episodes air, we then heard the first episode was on Sunday so I had a week to read it. I'm not the fastest reader, unless a book grips me! And I'm usually reading several books, but I put them to one side and completed my challenge. I could then compare notes with my sister on its translation to screen (just as my mum would.) Overall - storyline and the characters and of course the setting, worked well together.

The fashions do stand out, I think more so nowadays with the increased interest in 'vintage'.

So looking at some 30s fashions -



Smart wear was the style of the day, no casual hoodies back then!

 

Miss Lemon always looks very smart and elegant

 

 

 The styles had begun to change in the 30s from the shorter flapper style dress to longer fitted dresses and collars were very popular too.

 

 

A fabulous 1930s fashion tale comes from Wallis Simpsons wedding dress which you can find out more about at Madame Guillotine. It's not quite what you might deem a wedding dress to look like...

Wallis' wedding dress 1937 - but don't be deceived - the dress was originally blue! Photo from Madame Guillotine


You might want to try this great blog post I found on Poirot from Diamond Stash