Pounds shillings and pence - in today's value.

[Northerngirl]

Hi I wonder if someone can help.

I've just found an article regarding an ancestor which involved him suing another person for none payment of a debt.  The amount at the time in the 1890's was 39 pounds, 17 shillings and tuppence.

How much roughly would that be in today's terms?

 Another issue involved the threat to sue for slander for 200 pounds - again in the same or following year - how much would that equate to please?

A rough estimate would suffice.

Yours curiously.
J.A.

[meles]

This might help you.

http://measuringworth.com/calculators/ppoweruk/

meles

[meles]

Using that, the 1890's debt was worth £3,018.55

meles

[meles]

...and the slander compensation was worth £15,127.44.

meles

[Northerngirl]

Hi Meles

Thank you for the site reference and the calculation - you must be a faster t  y  p  e  r than me!  I calculated the first sum as 3014.77 but got the same for the slander sum.

J.A.

[JK Bradshaw]

Thank you from me as well Meles!  My great-great grandmother revceived compensation from the Naval Widows & Orphans Fund in 1890 after my great-great grandfather was lost at sea.  The amount was 36 pounds 10 shillings (equivalent of 1 year's wages) and I have been trying to figure out what that would be in today's money.  I should have checked rootschat before trying anywhere else!

Thanks again.

[Redroger]

Fifty years ago I worked on the railway, and amongst other things we paid weekly sums awarded to people under the Workmen's Compensation Act (1907?) for injuries that had received while working for the railway. One man received 50/- (£2-50p) per week for the loss of an eye which represented around a third of his weekly income. Really the inflation since 1960 has been collossal, used as a device to reduce the real effects of wage rises I believe?

[Ray T]

In 1819 my 3xG Grandfather received £5 to compensate for the sabre wounds he received at Peterloo. Whether you look at it from the point of view of the RPI or average earnings, it doesn't seem an awful lot in todays terms.

[JK Bradshaw]

Well, that 36 pounds was enough to allow my great-great grandmother to live on her own means, with 2 young daughters, for 4 years before she remarried.  I suppose she might just have been very frugal but she managed!