Information for record number MWA3284:
Site of Workhouse, Spring Lane, Kenilworth

Summary The site of the workhouse which housed the poor of the parish during the Imperial period. A building and two fields called 'workhouse Close' and 'workhouse Land' are marked on an Estate Map of 1781. The probable remains of the workhouse were revealed during excavation at The Blundells, Albion Street, Kenilworth.
What Is It?  
Type: Workhouse, Wall, Feature, Robber Trench, Pit, Feature, Drain, Robber Trench, Pit
Period: Imperial - Industrial (1751 AD - 1913 AD)
Where Is It?  
Parish: Kenilworth
District: Warwick, Warwickshire
Grid Reference: SP 28 72
(Data represented on this map shows the current selected record as a single point, this is for illustrative purposes only and does not represent an accurate or complete representation of archaeological sites or features)
Level of Protection National - Old SMR PrefRef (Grade: )
Sites & Monuments Record
Description

  
Source Number  

1 A building is shown here on a 1781 Estate map, and two pieces of land immediately adjoining and behind it are called 'Workhouse Close' and 'Workhouse Land'.
2 The South Warwickshire Bulletin contains a copy of Workhouse Committee Orders, 1797-1813.
3 There is no sign of the site now, and the land holds the Kenilworth Working Men's Club.
4 Archaeological evaluation and subsequent excavation recorded three parallel sandstone walls and associated surfaces which formed a building approximately 7.4m by 3m. The majority of the dateable material retrieved pointed to an 18th century origin for this building, and as such, it seemed the most probable interpretation was that of the Workhouse commissioned in 1726, or that of the later Workhouse built in 1787. Several periods of robbing activity, levelling and terracing, had led to a great degree of truncation, particularly in the northern part of the site. It was almost certain that the standing sections of the brick and sandstone walls that bound the development area, and the neighbouring Kenilworth Sports and Social Club site, related to the Workhouse. In particular a bricked up hatchway that was alleged to have been used for feeding bread to the poor was visible on Albion Street.
 
Sources
Source No: 4
Source Type: Archaeological Report
Title: The Blundells, Albion Street, Kenilworth, Warwickshire. Archaeological Evaluation and Excavation
Author/originator: Cullen K
Date: 2004
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: 04041
   
Source No: 2
Source Type: Bibliographic reference
Title: S.Warks Bulletin
Author/originator:
Date:
Page Number: 8
Volume/Sheet: 1:3
   
Source No: 1
Source Type: Map
Title: Estate Map
Author/originator:
Date: 1781
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet:
   
Source No: 3
Source Type: Unpublished document
Title: SMR Card
Author/originator: Thompson D J
Date: 1983
Page Number:
Volume/Sheet: PRN 3599
   
Images:  
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Glossary

 
Word or Phrase
Description  
source SMR Card Sites and Monuments Record Card. The Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record began to be developed during the 1970s. The details of individual archaeological sites and findspots were written on record cards. These record cards were used until the 1990s, when their details were entered on to a computerised system. The record cards are still kept at the office of the Warwickshire Sites and Monuments Record. back
technique excavation Archaeologists excavate sites so that they can find information and recover archaeological materials before they are destroyed by erosion, construction or changes in land-use.

Depending on how complicated and widespread the archaeological deposits are, excavation can be done by hand or with heavy machinery. Archaeologists may excavate a site in a number of ways; either by open area excavation, by digging a test pit or a trial trench.
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period Imperial 1751 AD to 1914 AD (end of the 18th century AD to the beginning of the 20th century AD)

This period comes after the Post Medieval period and before the modern period and starts with beginning of the Industrial Revolution in 1750. It includes the second part of the Hannoverian period (1714 – 1836) and the Victorian period (1837 – 1901). The Imperial period ends with the start of the First World War in 1914.
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monument SITE * Unclassifiable site with minimal information. Specify site type wherever possible. back
monument CLUB * A building used by an association of persons for social and recreational purposes or for the promotion of some common object. back
monument BUILDING * A structure with a roof to provide shelter from the weather for occupants or contents. Use specific type where known. back
monument ROBBER TRENCH * Use broader site type where known back
monument WORKHOUSE * A 19th century establishment for the provision of work for the unemployed poor of a parish; later an institution administered by Guardians of the Poor, in which paupers are lodged and the able-bodied set to work. back
monument FEATURE * Areas of indeterminate function. back
monument DRAIN * An artificial channel for draining water or carrying it off. back
monument SOCIAL CLUB * A building used by a group of people who meet socially to participate in activities, usually related to a particular interest or occupation. back
monument INDUSTRIAL * This is the top term for the class. See INDUSTRIAL Class List for narrow terms. back
monument PIT * A hole or cavity in the ground, either natural or the result of excavation. Use more specific type where known. back
monument FIELD * An area of land, often enclosed, used for cultivation or the grazing of livestock. back
monument SIGN * A board, wall painting or other structure displaying advice, giving information or directions back
monument WALL * An enclosing structure composed of bricks, stones or similar materials, laid in courses. Use specific type where known. back

* Copyright of English Heritage (1999)

English Heritage National Monuments Record