If you find you have ancestors who fell on hard times, they
may have had to apply for poor relief.
Before 1834, poor relief was administered locally by
each parish.
After 1834, poor relief was administered by poor law unions,
consisting of a number of parishes. Each poor law union
was run by an elected Board of Guardians.
Follow the links on the left to find out more about the records
of parish poor relief in Bath, and the Bath Board of Guardians
records.
Part of a page from an
overseers' account book for St James parish, 1793.
It lists those who received poor relief in the week ending 25
October, and how much they received . (Ref. : St James Overseers'
Accounts 1789-1797)