| Administrative History | A parish workhouse had been erected in Chesterfield c1735-c1737 on the south side of the Bowling Green at the south of the Market Place. In 1767, forty-two Derbyshire parishes (some of whom would later form part of the Chesterfield Poor Law union) voluntarily formed themselves into the Ashover Union. By 1777, a parliamentary report recorded local workhouses in operation at Chesterfield, Ashover, Barlow, Dronfield and Eckington. Assistant Poor Law Commissioner Mr R Pilkington investigated the operation of the poor laws in Derbyshire in 1832 and criticised Chesterfield for providing relief to the able-bodied without work being demanded.
The 1834 Poor Law Amendment Act grouped parishes together into Unions for purposes of poor relief. In 1837, the Chesterfield Poor Law Union was established and within a few months had purchased land on Newbold Road (opposite Trinity Church) from Joseph Gratton for £700. To reduce costs the original plans were amended to leave out a block for 'idiots' and 'imbeciles'. The final cost of building and fitting out the workhouse was around 10,000 but the builders had anticipated a cost of 6,245 and went bankrupt during the work. the first inmates were received into the new workhouse on 9 Dec 1839.
In 1930, the functions of the guardians were taken over by the Public Assistance Committee of the County Council; this continued until 1948, when the Poor Law was abolished by the National Assistance Act. In 1930, the records had been inherited by the County Council - some were still required for administrative purposes and a few volumes continued to be used. Likewise, in 1948, various records might remain in the former poor law institutions (now in many cases hospitals) still in use, or inherited either by design or inertia. Some of the records deposited here refer solely to the period after 1948, when the buildings had become Scarsdale Hospital.
The site was redeveloped in 2001 and all the buildings demolished except for the main block, to create new flats.
The Union contained the following parishes or townships:
Ashover, Bolsover, Brackenfield, Brampton, Brimington, Calow, Chesterfield, Clay Lane, Coal Aston, Dronfield, Eckington, Great Barlow, Hasland, Heath, Holmesfield, Killamarsh, Little Barlow, Morton, Newbold and Dunston, North Wingfield, Pilsley, Shirland and Higham, Staveley, Stretton, Sutton cum Duckmanton, Tapton, Temple Normanton, Tupton, Unstone, Walton, Wessington, Whittington, Wingerworth and Woodthorpe.
Later additions:
Ault Hucknall, Barlborough, Barlow, Beighton, Blackwell, Clay Cross, Clowne, Dronfield Woodhouse, Egstow, Elmton, Glapwell, Pinxton, Pleasley, Scarcliffe, Shirebrook, South Normanton, Tibshelf and Whitwell. |
| Custodial History | These records were deposited in September 1964 by the Secretary to the Chesterfield Hospital Management Committee, and accessioned in 1983. |