I/L Dairy of a child at a Victorian Workhouse

Friday 14 th July 1856

Dear Diary,
Today was like any other day at the workhouse. I had dark eye circles
as usual. Today it seemed darker than before, and I knew exactly why.
Some idiot was messing around before we all went to sleep and ended
up ripping the curtains. I don’t blame him entirely though. Those
curtains were already in a bad condition. They were dusty with so
many webs around them and it already had many holes through it.
However, some of us, including me, can’t sleep with the lights on. The
sun shone into my eyelids, which kept me awake since sunrise.

Soon after, we heard the morning bells and we quickly got ready and
stood in front of our beds. Well, most of us, there were twenty people
who slept on the floor. I felt bad for them though. It was so
overcrowded. I wouldn’t have to go through all this if my mother
hadn’t passed away when I was born.

Mr Bumble, the corrupt master of the workhouse, stepped in with a

loud bang of course with a wooden stick in his hand. And not to
mention his usual grumpy face.

We quickly rushed out to get breakfast until I lost my appetite when I

remembered that we were going to have the same old, watery gruel. I
picked up my spoon and started playing around with my sloppy gruel
while chatting to my best friend Emily.
I somehow was able to finish my gruel and when our time was up, we
went straight to work. I had to break big rocks into tiny rocks. I almost
got two in my eye. In the last 5mins of our time I saw a kid sneaking to
the kitchen and stealing some gruel. She was obviously caught and was
punished for. Mr Bumble told her that as for her punishment she has
work whilst everyone else is eating and she wouldn’t get dinner either.

After work we went straight to lunch where we had gruel again. We

then worked and had dinner afterwards. Life is so boring; we must live
through the same routine with the same strict rules. It was tiring but at
least we all had a place to stay.