The following is typical of entries to some government records I have been inspecting: 1821 (477) (Ireland) Grand Jury Presentments, Dublin (pp. 43 - 44): "To L. Crosthwaite, P. Roe and R. Shaw, esqrs. and George Halpin, gent, to repair 76 perches of road from Ringsend bridge to Artichoak road, between said bridge and Beggar's Bush road...£159 12 0." The "esquires" concerned were merchants of no particular family standing, wealthy, successful, on some company and banking boards and civic committees, undoubtedly property owners, possibly landlords. The "gentleman" was also well-to-do, largely self-made, a property owner and city landlord but also of a hands-on nature, the "Inspector" appointed by two civic corporations. All came from a background of education and industry, erudition and ambition. May I therefore revisit the old debate about the distinction between an esq(ire) and a gent(leman)? The best summation that I have found is at Wikipedia but even there the editors ask for the article to have more grounding and references. Even by the 1700s I think it was too archaic to hark back to esquire deriving from the squires of knights, certainly by the 1800s. Knights had not had squires for 500 years. So, what did 1820s publications mean by such epithets? What was the implied distinction between an esquire and a gentleman? I have put this query to another list and there have been a number of replies but I thought I should put it to the learned subscribers here too. Bill.