Looking at laws and local ordinances can help us understand the information in records we find. These can typically be found in the series of town records in the local or regional archives.

Ordinance regarding public houses of debauchery and public women in Vlissingen, 1858
For example, when the hospital bill of my ancestor Cornelia Platschart was sent to the police, I initially thought she was incarcerated. It was not until I looked at the local ordinances that I realized that the police oversaw prostitutes and sent women who were ill to the hospital. See Using Hospital Records for Social History – The Case of Cornelia Platschart for the full story.