In the Shadow of Speenhamland: Social Policy and the Old Poor Law.

Examines how the findings of studies in social and economic history undermine the stories about Speenhamland, a town in Berkshire County, England that have been deployed in social policy debates. Indictment of Speenhamland issued by the Royal Commission Report of 1834; Controversy surrounding the English Poor Law legislation; Trends in productivity and wages exemplified by the standard Speenhamland stories.