PARISH GOVERNMENT AND POOR RELIEF
Vestry minute-books for Navestock survive for the
period 1806 to 1870. (fn. 74)
Meetings of the public
vestry were held at irregular intervals, averaging about 8 a year until 1810 and subsequently about
5 a year. The number of persons attending the meetings, in addition to the churchwardens and overseers,
varied between 1 and 7. Until 1838 the chairman was
never named as such in the minutes but the vicar, or
in his absence one of the churchwardens, always signed
first. From 1806 until 1816 the vicar, J. Filkes,
attended the vestry regularly, but after 1816 rarely,
and between March 1818 and 1830 he attended only
once. Ford, when vicar, always attended regularly and
usually signed the minutes as chairman.
In 1824 the parish adopted the second Sturges
Bourne Act (59 Geo. III c. 12) and set up a select
vestry, which held its first meeting on 29 July of that
year. (fn. 75) In 1826 the select vestry included twelve
members in addition to the vicar, churchwardens, and
overseers. (fn. 76) It apparently ceased to function after 12
April 1832. (fn. 77)
The work of the open vestry consisted mainly in
nominating parish officers, granting rates, and auditing
the overseer's accounts. The overseer presented
interim accounts at nearly every meeting of the vestry
and a final account at the end of his year in office. In
1806 a 1s. rate yielded £173 and between then and
1834 there was no great variation.
There was probably a poorhouse in Navestock from
1741. In that year the churchwardens and overseers
were negotiating with Elizabeth Merrick of Caversham (Berks.) for the lease of her house, called the
White House, and two fields belonging to it, containing 10 acres, for the purpose of making a poorhouse.
It was proposed that the premises should be leased for
21 years at a rent of £14 a year. It is not certain that
these negotiations were completed, although they
reached an advanced stage. (fn. 78) It is certain that by 1770
the workhouse was on a site which it continued to
occupy until 1836. This was just south of the vicarage
and was some way from a house owned in 1770 by
Elizabeth Merrick. (fn. 79) In 1826 the workhouse was
repaired at a cost of £60. In 1834 a cottage belonging
to Green's Charity was also being used by the overseers
to accommodate paupers. (fn. 80)
In 1776 £272 was spent on poor relief in Navestock. (fn. 81) In the three years 1783-5 the average poor
rate amounted to £444, and the average cost of poor
relief to £400. (fn. 82) In the year 1800-1 the cost of relief
was £1,705. It was £1,624 in the following year.
From then until 1816-17 it varied between £1,020
and £1,674, being highest in 1812-13 and lowest in
1815-16. (fn. 83) In 1816-21 the poor rates varied between
£1,012 (1815-16) and £1,433 (1817-18). (fn. 84) The
total sum collected in 1828-9 was only £511. The
income from work done by the paupers in the workhouse was about £40 a year from 1806 to 1810-11.
The rates were very high in 1809-10 and 1810-11
and it is probable that a special effort was made to
increase paupers' earnings, which rose to £57 in
1811-12 and £111 in 1812-13. That high level was
not maintained but for some years the earnings ranged
between £52 and £92. From 1821 onwards they
were much lower, reaching a minimum of £23 in
1823-4.
For some years before 1834 James Lash was governor
of the workhouse; it may have been to this post that
he was appointed in 1813 at a salary of £17. In 1832
it was agreed that he should farm the poor at 3s. a head
for all above one year of age. At that time there were
30 persons in the workhouse, of whom 7 were named
Noaks, 5 Burns, and 3 Eldred. In 1834 Samuel
Randal was appointed to succeed Lash. It was agreed
that he should receive a minimum of 2s. 6d. a head for
17 paupers and 2s. 6d. a head for all above that
number.
In December 1830 the salary of the parish surgeon
was reduced from 40 to 35 guineas. (fn. 85) In July 1831
the vestry ordered that the overseer should pay the
surgeon the amount of his extra charges, £8 6s., and
request him to call at the poorhouse each week.
In 1836 Navestock became part of the Ongar Poor
Law Union. In the same year the workhouse at Navestock was sold by the union to David Pinchon, at a net
profit of £164. (fn. 86) In 1840 the building consisted of
several tenements. (fn. 87) About 30 years ago it was
demolished. (fn. 88) The gardens are immediately south of
the 'Plough'.