Genealogy Chat

One of my relatives employed one poor lady as a maid of all work, also have a dropout and two young boys working as pages.

What can I get for a ' bird stuffer'? Essex marshes, Derek in France

I could do you a straight swop with ag. labs., one for one unless you think that workers from varying counties have different bargaining power. Sussex ones, - a good crowd, hardworking and valued education, even for the daughters in the family. Herefordshire - again hardworking, some moved across to Wales to be miners but one moved to New Zealand, did well enough to buy a farm and married a Maori girl. 3 of my grandfather's brothers were well boring,- Artesian wells that is.... Not for swap. They moved all over the country but I only know that from certificates or census, - no work records found. I could offer you their uncle Daniel though. He's led me a merry dance keeping track of his antics ( and 3 marriages) He died onboard a ship on the River Mersey, so he's one of my more interesting characters.

5 years hard labour I should think Derek

just found a pickle labeller - she was EIGHT (presume it was just putting the labels on the jars, not writing them)

Oh bless her. I was reading Charles Dickens biography recently and when his dad became bankrupt (on one of many occasions) dear little soul was farmed out in London - sitting in a shop window in Covent Garden labelling - I think it was shoe polish.

'a manure manouverer' (next door to an Italian Confectioners) - I mean where would you manouver it to? and for what reason would you do so??? Why would you be doing it in a premises? Can you just imagine these posh Victorians saying, 'Oh my dears, we must go to Antonios, I hear he makes the best confectionery in London .... oh, and here we are ....................... (heave, vomit)'

To the rhubarb, Heather? Important occupation. Can you imagine the state of the streets without them? Lucrative sideline selling to market gardeners? Gwyn

My mum's family are a pretty sad lot -stone sawyers, stone masons, quarrymen, for generation after generation after generation. The best of them got an O.B.E the day he died, for services to the British Museum -he was the only man on site who could remember how to reassemble some Greek marbles they had down in the basement. The women were all servants, domestic, unless they became 'wife'. My husband's family is much more interesting - a mix of English 'gentry' wih poor moral upbringing and Scottish slaters cum plumbers cum spirit dealers. There was a tide wader in that lot if I remember correctly. Beverley

Jess You can have my shoemakers any day as a swap for your ag labs. All my shoemakers died before they reached the age of 40.......something to do with the preparation of the leather which included the use of Dog Shit. They died from some pretty awful diseases. Janet.

I can let you have a couple of 'Potters' Jess Gill

Janet, Do you think your shoemakers had the wrong recipe? My lot all lived to a good age! But maybe the shoes my lot made were no good??? ***rushes off to worry about rellies***! Merry

Well yes Merry, I expect your lot were cobblers to the pope or something and used rarified nuns poo for their workmanship. Or on the other hand, bearing in mind how your lot seem to prosper, perhaps they left out the dog poo to save on the costings.

No one has any hatters do they? You know that saying mad as a hatter cos the arsenic or something they used for preparing the materials. What a b***** - one day you are happily fixing ostrich feathers to hats and the next you are a raving loony.

Merry My shoemakers were from Northamptonshire. Is there any other place where shoes are made?? Wrong recipe or not, I was recently in Culross in Scotland where my other shoemakers are from and he also died age 35 close to a road called 'The Stynking Wynd' Not sure what that might have meant!! Janet

Blimey Janet!!! (my shoemakers never went to Northamptonshire!! They lived at North Newington in Oxfordshire, population about 20! LOL) YES!!!! I have one hatter! He was my 4xg-grandfather!! But he lived to 84. What are the symptoms of arsenic poisoning then???? **rushes to find his death cert** Merry

Janet, there were shoemakers everywhere there were people who could wear them!! I've 2 or three generations, separate families, from Kent & Berkshire. I'd forgotten about the poo... might explain why the last of my Berkshire shoemakers (sorry, cordwainers) died at the age of 64 from 'diseased brain' and 'diarrohea' Surely it would have been the apprentices who did the dirty work?

I`ve got a stud groom which sounds quite exotic. Also one gt. grandfather with a very sad end. City of London Police Officer,died at 35 of diabetic coma. No insulin in those days. But the Police Force put his four sons through school. Sort of like having a pension. Sylvia

Vikky Only my teasing!!! Note the two question marks!! Of course Northamtonshire likes to consider itself the home of Shoemaking!!! Hm I have a molecatcher and a molecatchers son but I will hang on to them for a bit until I have done more researrch as I understand they were quite an important part of the estate. Janet

Yep, Northampton and Norwich - still get some of the best shoes from Northampton dont we - there or Tai Wan. Yours werent inTai Wan merry were they?