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Ireland (Historical Counties) => Ireland => Dublin => Topic started by: eileeb on Wednesday 19 June 24 20:52 BST (UK)

Title: South Dublin Poor Law Union - changes to inmates ages.
Post by: eileeb on Wednesday 19 June 24 20:52 BST (UK)

Andrew Hutchinson baptised St James Dublin 17 January 1839 son of Laurence and Mary nee Bedford.

18 March 1915 he was in Dublin Workhouse and correspondence shows that Andrew's daughter Catherine, wrote to the South Dublin Poor Law Union, requesting they correct his age from 76 to 72, thus placing his birth in 1843.

There are other instances in the registers of this happening about the same period and I'm scratching my head as to why.  Can anyone help please? 

Title: Re: South Dublin Poor Law Union - changes to inmates ages.
Post by: Abhanliath on Sunday 23 June 24 13:42 BST (UK)

If someone were brought in wandering and senile, s/he mightn't give a correct reply on age; when relatives turned up and identified the person they'd probably correct the wrong age.

Title: Re: South Dublin Poor Law Union - changes to inmates ages.
Post by: KGarrad on Sunday 23 June 24 14:24 BST (UK)

Maybe something to do with proof of age for Pension purposes?
There were no Birth Certificates in the first part of the 1800's.

Title: Re: South Dublin Poor Law Union - changes to inmates ages.
Post by: Abhanliath on Sunday 23 June 24 15:03 BST (UK)

Could be that too. Though surely they'd be correcting them upwards if that were the case  ;)

Title: Re: South Dublin Poor Law Union - changes to inmates ages.
Post by: eileeb on Thursday 27 June 24 12:57 BST (UK)

Thank you for your responses.  Having searched through a number of workhouse registers for the period, they were receiving a steady flow of applications for the ages to be corrected but always in a downward direction.  It looks as if this is going to remain a mystery at least for the time being but thank you again for your input.