Sampson Kempthorne

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Sampson Kempthorne (1809-1873) was a workhouse architect. He began practicing in Carlton Chambers on Regent Street in London. His father was a friend of the Poor Law Commissioner Thomas Frankland Lewis which may have helped him to get the commission to build workhouses.

Kempthorne came up with two designs - the square plan and the hexagonal or "Y" plan - both contained sections for the different types of inmates (men, women, boys, girls, infirm). The space between different wings was used to provide areas where inmates could exercise - segregated from the other groups.

Workhouses he designed include: