The records of the Llanfyllin workhouse include the cost of obtaining food, clothing, shoes, coal, etc as well as many of the materials used in the jobs carried out by the paupers or poor people living there. These places were not called workhouses for nothing !
But local people were also asked to quote a price to bury people who had died in the workhouse or when receiving Poor Relief outside. This would provide regular work, because the poor food, terrible conditions, and infectious diseases caused many deaths - including young children.
The Board of Guardians placed advertisements in the 'Oswestry Advertiser' newspaper for "Tenders for burying adult and other paupers in this Union", and as with other purchases, the cheapest suppliers got the job.

As the workhouse was shared among several parishes, different people bid for the awful job of burying dead children from each home parish, two of which are shown above.
The price written as "12/-" was 12 shillings [60 pence], and "13/6" was 13 shillings and 6 pence [67 pence] in the old pre-decimal system of pounds, shillings and pence.
The small extract shown above right is from the 1874 list of approved prices for Llanrhaeadr, which includes burying children over 10 years old for 4 shillings [20 pence], and under 10 for 5 shillings [25 pence] !

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