Occupation Mysteries: What Did Your Ancestor Actually Do?

One of the most fascinating things about researching your family history is discovering what your ancestors did for a living. Their occupations offer clues about their lifestyle, social status, and even their values. But sometimes the words we find in old records leave us scratching our heads. What exactly was a "cordwainer"? And how does a "hawker" differ from a "pedlar"?

At Ancestry Uncovered, I’ve come across hundreds of unusual or now-obsolete job titles in my work as a professional genealogist. Some are quaint, some are mysterious, and some sound far grander than they really were! In this blog, I’ll explore how to decode these occupational puzzles—and why they matter so much when it comes to understanding your ancestors.

Why Occupations Are More Than Just Job Titles

Your ancestor’s job tells you more than just how they earned a living. It can reveal:

• Social class and economic status

• Level of education or training

• Geographical movement (e.g. travelling tradespeople or seasonal workers)

• Family tradition or trade passed through generations

• Health risks and life expectancy

• Community standing or reputation

Occupations are a window into daily life. They show us the grit, skill, and resilience of ordinary people—and help us imagine what their days were really like.

Common Confusions in Historical Records

Let’s start with some of the job titles that often confuse modern researchers:

🔨 Ag Lab

Short for “agricultural labourer,” this term appears frequently in 19th-century census records. It refers to someone who worked on the land—usually for someone else—doing anything from sowing crops to mucking out stalls.

👞 Cordwainer vs. Cobbler

Both made shoes, right? Yes, but there's a difference: a cordwainer made new shoes, while a cobbler repaired them. Cordwainers were trained craftsmen and often had higher social status than cobblers.

📦 Hawker, Pedlar, Chapman

These were all types of street or travelling sellers. A hawker often sold goods door to door or at fairs. A pedlar might do the same, sometimes on foot with a pack. A chapman typically sold books or printed materials. These roles could vary slightly depending on the region.

🧵 Spinner, Weaver, Dresser, and Winder

Textile work was complex and highly specialised. For example:

• A spinner spun thread from raw fibres.

• A weaver used that thread to create cloth.

• A cloth dresser finished the cloth, trimming and treating it.

• A winder prepared threads for weaving.

These distinctions were especially important in areas like Yorkshire and Lancashire during the textile boom.

Titles That Sound Grand—but Aren’t

Some job titles sound more impressive than they were:

🪑 Chair Bottomer

No, not a foreman or manager—this person re-caned or re-rushed chair seats. It was skilled, repetitive work, often done from home.

🛠️ Mechanic (in 19th-century records)

Before cars, the term “mechanic” could refer to any skilled manual worker or machinist—not necessarily someone who fixed engines.

🔧 Engineer

In Victorian times, this could range from a locomotive driver to a designer of bridges and canals. Context matters!

Jobs You Might Not Expect

Some occupations reveal surprising truths:

👨‍🍳 Publican

If your ancestor ran a pub, they were not just a businessperson—they were often at the heart of their community. Pubs were social hubs and often family-run, passed down through generations.

💼 Clerk

A clerk could be anything from a junior assistant in an office to a legal or railway clerk. The job title alone doesn’t always indicate seniority.

⚖️ Relieving Officer

This person administered poor relief under the old parish or union workhouse systems. They were often involved in decisions that affected entire families.

Clues in Context

Sometimes it’s the company your ancestor keeps on the census page that reveals more than their title. For example:

• If your ancestor is a “hewer” and their neighbours are also miners, you can be fairly sure they worked in coal mining.

• If they’re a “steel roller” living in Sheffield or Rotherham in the 1900s, you can make a reasonable guess they were involved in heavy industry.

It’s also worth noting how often a job appears in records. If someone is listed as a tailor in 1851, 1861, and 1871, that’s probably their lifelong profession. But if someone jumps from “labourer” to “navvy” to “scavenger,” they may have taken whatever work was available—an indicator of economic hardship.

Tracing Occupational Changes Across Generations

One of the joys of genealogy is seeing how families evolve over time. It’s not unusual to see a line of agricultural workers in one generation, followed by a child who becomes a railway porter, and a grandchild who ends up a teacher or civil servant.

These changes tell stories of:

• Social mobility

• Urbanisation

• Education

• Economic opportunity (or crisis)

In one client’s case, we traced a family from handloom weaving in a rural Yorkshire village to managing a printing shop in Bradford within three generations. The records told a clear story of ambition, adaptation, and success.

Where to Look for More Information

If you come across an unfamiliar job title, don’t worry! There are great resources available:

• The Dictionary of Old Occupations (free online)

• The British Newspaper Archive (can show adverts or reports involving certain trades)

• Trade directories (e.g. Pigot’s, Kelly’s) to find businesses and tradespeople

• Apprenticeship or guild records for skilled crafts and trades

• Local archives and museums, especially those focused on industry or regional heritage

Bringing Your Ancestor’s Work to Life

At Ancestry Uncovered, I don’t just record what your ancestors did—I explore why they did it, how it shaped their lives, and what it tells us about the times they lived in. By combining occupational research with local history, I help clients understand the real meaning behind the titles.

Was your ancestor toiling in a dangerous trade? Rising through the ranks of a profession? Or doing vital—but often invisible—work to keep a household afloat?

Whatever their role, it’s a part of your story too.

Let’s Discover What Your Ancestor Really Did

Curious about what that mysterious job title meant in your family tree? Or what your great-grandfather’s trade says about your family’s journey?

📞 Book your free 1-hour consultation today.

Let’s bring your ancestors’ working lives out of the shadows and into the story they deserve.

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