Ripon Union Workhouse, William Perkin, and Elisha Backhouse green plaque

This green commemorative plaque records: Ripon Union Workhouse These impressive buildings were home to the poor and destitute of the city and surrounding parishes before the Welfare State. Replacing an earlier poor house, construction began in 1854 to the designs of Perkin and Backhouse of Leeds. Male and female paupers were separately housed within the main block. From the 1870s vagrants were accommodated in the gatehouse wings. Recorded plaque organisation: Ripon Civic Society.

William Perkin and Elisha Backhouse were prominent architects from Leeds who designed significant Victorian buildings, including the Ripon Union Workhouse, showcasing their contribution to the architectural landscape of the period.