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06/02/2003 Entry: "TIP: Identifying the Archaic Occupations of Our Ancestors"
The initial step in learning about your ancestor's occupation is to discover how he or she was employed. Census records, probate records, military records and parish records all may contain the answer. An example from a book on family history records "William Pautes, fustian-worker, from near Dover, on his marriage with Wybra Hanson, maid, on the 4 December 1610." Unfortunately, you may not know what a "fustian worker" does because it is archaic term. Fortunately, there are Web sites that can help you identify with old-fashioned names and archaic occupations. Please point your browsers to:
http://www.gendocs.demon.co.uk/trades.html
http://cpcug.org/user/jlacombe/terms.html
http://members.ozemail.com.au/~tonylangham/Occupa.htm
http://olivetreegenealogy.com/misc/occupations.shtml
In these Web pages you will lean that a "fustian worker" is someone who wove a kind of sturdy cloth, like corduroy, made of cotton and flax.
There is also a mailing list for the discussion and sharing of information regarding occupations from the viewpoint of family history. To subscribe send "subscribe" to mailto:occupations-l-request@rootsweb.com (mail mode)
or mailto:occupations-d-request@rootsweb.com (digest mode).
Source: Legacy News Mailing List
