Overseer of the poor

An overseer of the poor was an official who administered poor relief such as money, food, and clothing in England and various other countries which derived their law from England such as the United States.

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England

In England, overseers of the poor administered poor relief such as money, food and clothing as part of the Poor Law system. The position was created by the Poor Relief Act 1597.

Overseers of the poor were often reluctant appointees who were unpaid, working under the supervision of a justice of the peace. The law required two overseers to be elected every Easter, and churchwardens or landowners were often selected.

The new system of poor relief reinforced a sense of social hierarchy and provided a way of controlling the 'lower orders'.^[1] Overseers of the poor were replaced in the Poor Law Amendment Act 1834, and replaced with boards of guardians, although overseers remained in some places as a method of collecting the poor rate.^[2]

Duties

Overseers had four duties:

Estimate how much poor relief money was needed in order to set the poor rate accordingly;
Collect the poor rate;
Distribute poor relief; and
Supervise the poorhouse.^[1]

Vermont

Overseers of the Poor in the U.S. state of Vermont were often reluctant but elected, unpaid officers of the town. Towns were sometimes so small in population that a few applicants for aid could overwhelm the budget.

Frequent requests for aid could result in the applicant being sent to a county poor farm where residents were not only expected to work to support themselves, but often to support handicapped or elderly residents, as well. Sometimes the latter predominated, putting an insupportable burden on able-bodied residents.^{[citation needed]}

Relief was obtained when the state took over welfare in 1968.^[3]

References

^ ^a ^b "The 1601 Elizabethan Poor Law". www.victorianweb.org.
^ Rees, Rosemary, Poverty and Public Health, 1815–1948, p3, ISBN 0-435-32715-1
^ Fields, Michelle (25 October 2015). "Ledger Reveals Hidden Poor Farm History". The Vermont Standard. Retrieved 2 April 2018.

v t e Poor laws of the British Isles
Poor laws by territory	England and Wales Scotland Ireland Isle of Man	Nantwich workhouse
Old Poor Law	Vagabonds and Beggars Act 1494 Tudor poor laws Poor Relief Act 1597 Poor Relief Act 1601 Poor Relief Act 1662 Relief of the Poor Act 1696 Poor Relief Act 1722 Relief of the Poor Act 1782 House of correction Overseer of the poor Poor rate Poor relief Buttock mail
Relief systems	Outdoor relief Speenhamland Labour Rate Roundsman Committee for the Relief of the Black Poor
New Poor Law	Royal commission (1832) Poor Law Amendment Act 1834 Poor Law (Scotland) Act 1845 Less eligibility Workhouse Workhouse test Board of guardians Outdoor Labour Test Order Outdoor Relief Prohibitory Order Poor law unions Opposition Book of Murder Scottish poorhouse
Changes after 1834	Poor Law Commission Poor Law Board Local Government Board Andover workhouse scandal Huddersfield workhouse scandal Union Chargeability Act
Decline and abolition	Liberal welfare reforms Royal Commission (1905–09) Majority Report Minority Report Interwar poverty National Assistance Act 1948
Other	Christmas Day in the Workhouse Historiography of the Poor Laws Timeline of the English Poor Law system Poor Relief Act List of poor law unions in England List of poor law unions in Wales List of Irish poor law unions

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This page was last edited on 6 April 2024, at 16:56

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