TOWN HALL POOR BOX (Wooden 'poor box')
Rights information: Copyright: Hastings Museum and Art Gallery
Description
Magistrates Poor Box made from wood, slot on top to place money, locked by key.
The horrific conditions and harsh regimes of the workhouse failed all who were forced to live there. With the state failing to provide adequate care, charities took on a greater responsibility. There were several charities in Hastings during the 19th Century such as the Hastings Blanket Lending Society, the Relief of Distressed Travellers and many more. Charities have provided support for hundreds of years and have supported many disabled people or people with different impairments.
- Jack Guy, Curating for Change Fellow, Hastings Museum and Art Gallery
Community curation: This small wooden box, although seemingly uninteresting, holds a great deal of history. A history that still affects how disabled people are seen and treated today. Many others and I have been treated as if we are broken or different because we have a disability. We are seen as unable to achieve in society, and when we do, we are praised as an inspiration for overcoming our disability. This treatment makes us othered.