During the Victorian era people who suffered dire financial hardship who had no one else to rely on had to take the drastic action of seeking the charity of their local Poor Law Union. This included children abandoned by their families. The Poor Law Union sought reimbursement of any costs whenever possible.
On the 27th September 1858, George Gilham, a tailor by trade, was appeared in court from custody, charged with abandoning his two children and leaving them chargeable on the township of Allington, part of the Rossett Parish.
It was alleged that he had deserted his two children the previous April, and that the two children had become chargeable on the township of Allington, the cost of maintenance being calculated at £6.5s.
George Gilham claimed that he did not have the means to pay this charge. As a result he was sentenced to Ruthin gaol for a month with hard labour.
Source: With kind permission – Victorian Criminal Cases: The Wrexham Area ©2013 Wayne Piotr Cronin-Wojdat of Historical Gems.
