Genealogy Chat

I found some ancestors that were placed in Kingston Union Workhouse, Surrey as children and later found in Cowley Industrial School in Cowley, Oxfordshire. I have enquired how they got there and it seems that Cowley paid Kingston Union to send them children. I am still trying to find out what happened the children after that. It is all very interesting. Tammy

Most of these apprentices are simply farm or domestic servants. Some of these records have been transcribed for other areas. In one parish in Devon, it appears that if you paid your rates you had do your bit by taking on an apprentice. In the London area, huge quantities of poor children were shipped up north to work in factories.

Robin In fact, children who were Apprenticed out of Workhouses, in other words, on the Rates, usually had to serve a 14 year apprenticeship, not seven years. This was so that the dear kindly soul who took them on got their money's worth. Marjorie

Sorry all! Add /misc(.)htm Debby

Boys of apprenticeship age weren't considered children. The apprentices were the lucky ones: it was manual labouring for the rest. The position was the same for most boys whose parents didn't have money. The apprenticeship terms for pauper apprentices were just the same as for all other apprentices; thousands of boys from skilled workers' and tradesmen's families were apprenticed on exactly the same standard contracts. In practice it was often the boys apprenticed to their own fathers who got worked the hardest. Cheap labour of course, but labour was always cheap, except at plague times. You could get a casual day labourer for a meal and a bed, so teenage boys had to work for what they were worth on the same scale. Pre-trade-union free-market economics

The practice was called Indenture and worse still, I suspect one of the 'Masters' might be a relative. It's a fantastic site if you've any rellies from Calverely/Pudsey area in Yorkshire but it's worth a visit anyway. It's got all the Manufacturers of the area & the inns they frequent! News Items - one's hilarious about a friend swapping his hat for his mates hat as it was a better quality one and how they've wasted the courts time! War Memorials, Census, partially transcribed Parish registers. I could go on and on ........ Debby P.S. It's www(.)calverley.info

It doesn't end there! The said apprentice, his said master well & truly serve, his secrets shall keep, his commands being lawful & honest at all times willingly shall perform and in all things. As a good & faithful servant shall demean himself towards his said master & all his family. The said master shall bring him up in some honest & lawful calling & in the fear of God and that he will find & provide for. Debby

Reminds me of the musical 'Half a Sixpence'! Maz. XX

Did you know that workhouse children were 'adopted' by the local businessmen. They were to be their apprentices and were classed as servants to their master. In return, they must be given 'sufficient, wholesome and competant meat, drink, washing, lodging & apparrel. Not a lot of love around then?!! They had to stay until they were 21 or married. Debby