Week 36 of #52Ancestors is about work - something pretty unavoidable for many of us. Researching what my ancestors did for a living has been fascinating and at times eye-opening, and for many of the listed occupations I have had to do some research to discover what the occupation actually entailed.
While many of my ancestors were farmers and agricultural labourers, other occupations have included many trades. Several generations of my Argent and Pike ancestors were millers, with sons apprenticing to their fathers and uncles and mills passing down through several generations.
 |
| Newbridge Mill in West Bergholt, owned by the Argent family |
Another ancestor, Christopher Prentice, was a water bailiff, elected to the job. Several articles appeared in the Ipswich Journal about his election during the late 1700s. In the first article below he thanks the freemen of the borough for electing his to the position.
 |
| Ipswich Journal Sat 12 Dec 1778 |
Christopher clearly held the job for some time, as he applied to continue the position several years later in 1784.
 |
| Ipswich Journal Sat 10 July 1784 |
No comments:
Post a Comment