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Ancestry UK

Male Convict Invalids Prison, Woking, Surrey

From the late 18th century, invalid male convicts who were deemed unfit to cope with transportation or to perform labour on public works, were housed separately from able-bodied prisoners. Accommodation for the physically and mentally sick was provided in hulks, at Millbank Penitentiary and at a former ordnance barracks at Shorncliffe, in Kent. From 1852, Dartmoor provided over 600 places for invalids, and by 1858 was exclusively used for the purpose, by then housing up to 1,200 inmates capable of light labour. The hulks, primarily the Stirling Castle at Portsmouth and then the Defence at Woolwich, provided around 400 places, but their use ended in 1857 when the Defence was was destroyed by fire. A new convict prison for invalids then began construction at Woking, but until its completion, they were housed temporarily in the naval prison at Lewes, formerly the Sussex County House of Correction.

The new invalid prison at Knaphill, near Woking, opened in 1860 for around 700 prisoners who were incapable of performing the light labour demanded at Dartmoor and who were in need of constant medical care. Accordingly, its design reflected its role as a hospital rather than a prison. The entrance gatehouse was at the north of the site, behind which were a workshop and a store, and between them, further south, was a cruciform block containing offices and the kitchen. South of this, running east to west, was the long main building, three storeys in height, with a cross-wing at each end and offices and the chapel at the centre. A corridor ran the length of its north wall on the ground and first floors. Side wards opened off the corridor. On the ground floor these were small wards containing three to fourteen beds; the larger wards on the first floor thirty-five beds each. On the second floor, individual sleeping berths lay on either side of a central corridor. There were also sculleries containing baths and sinks, with water closets and slops basins adjacent to the sculleries in the wings.

Following a decline in the number of convicts by the late 1880s, a separate prison for invalids became unnecessary. the physically infirm were then sent to ordinary convict prisons, while the insane were transferred to the Broadmoor asylum for criminal lunatics, which had opened in 1863.

The invalid prison was closed in 1888. In 1895, the site was taken over by the War Office and became the Inkerman Barracks. After the Boer War (1899-1902) it became a military prison but the prison site now covered with modern housing. The only surviving buildings are a row of former staff houses.

Records

Note: many repositories impose a closure period of up to 100 years for records identifying individuals. Before travelling a long distance, always check that the records you want to consult will be available.

  • The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. Has Register of prisoners (1846-1889); Quarterly returns of prisoners in Hulks and Convict Prisons, Woking, Surrey (1859-76).
  • The National Archives, Kew, Richmond, Surrey, TW9 4DU. Has a wide variety of crime and prison records going back to the 1770s, including calendars of prisoners, prison registers and criminal registers.
  • Find My Past has digitized many of the National Archives' prison records, including prisoner-of-war records, plus a variety of local records including Manchester, York and Plymouth. More information.
  • Prison-related records on Ancestry UK include Prison Commission Records, 1770-1951, and local records from London, Swansea, Gloucesterhire and West Yorkshire. More information.
  • The Genealogist also has a number of National Archives' prison records. More information.

Census

Bibliography

  • Prison Oracle - resources those involved in present-day UK prisons.
  • GOV.UK - UK Government's information on sentencing, probation and support for families.

Except where indicated, this page () © Peter Higginbotham. Contents may not be reproduced without permission.