“ To render the Poorhouse unattractive to the lazy and the vicious, and to keep them under proper restraint when they are inmates, a harsher treatment and sterner discipline are necessary than if the good and industrious resided within these walls ”
Join us for this talk by Alastair MacDonald to hear about the story of the Edinburgh Poorhouse. Taken entirely from contemporary accounts, this is the extraordinary story of the Edinburgh City Poorhouse at Craiglockhart, which opened in 1870 as a model institution to replace the old insanitary and overcrowded Poorhouse at Greyfriars. Often in the words of the officials and inmates themselves, the tales can both be moving and shocking, as well as highly amusing. It is surprising how many issues in caring for the poor in Victorian times still resonate today. Alastair MacDonald is a former senior official in the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP). He is now a writer and historian and a volunteer with Scotland’s oldest purpose-built library, the Leighton Library in Dunblane (founded in 1687)
This is one of four talks this series being delivered jointly by Museums & Galleries Edinburgh and the Edinburgh Festival Voluntary Guides (EFVGA). This is a new venture. The EFVGA has been offering free Royal Mile Festival walks since 1947. More information about the EFVGA can be found on their web site - edinburghfestivalguides.org.
Book on the link or by calling Lauriston Castle on 0131 336 2060
‘The Cold Hand of Charity’ Tales from the Edinburgh Poorhouse