THE history of Okehampton's old workhouse was revealed in an interesting talk by Dr Jean Shields.

Twenty people listened to the talk as she talked through the history of the old workhouse, which stood on the site of Castle Ham Lodge.

Dr Shields spoke of the awful conditions and situations for staff and inmates alike and the continual desire to save money on the part of the government.

She used visual aids in the form of a half a loaf of bread to show the audience how much a day's rations amounted to and how inmates were allowed so many ounces of meat and cheese per week to top up their daily rations of gruel.

Sixty children aged four to ten had only one teacher and she had only two bibles and two psalters and a pair of scissors by way of equipment.

Dr Shields also passed around photographs and documents relating to the old workhouse.