TIP #483 - THE ENGLISH INFLUENCE For this tip, I'm going back to England because many of the occupations, social status and immigration classifications go right back to England and worked their way along the east coast of America and might explain many things in Kentucky. When America was being settled, the settlers following English tradition and rules. England encouraged the colonists, which she considered "hers" to produce at home. Laws were passed discouraging colonial production that would compete with their home ... England. And, for a time, the colonists obeyed. Mercantilism was briefly "a nation is more important than its parts". Make what you can at home, sell abroad but don't buy abroad, stash the money away. Some of this was seen in the fact that most of the English timberland was used up so it was America's responsibility to supply them with timber. English ironworkers needed pig iron from the colonies but didn't want the colonists to make or sell pots, pans, etc and have the money for themselves. Colonists were forced to import only from England and had to pay cash for everything they bought. Americans soon grew tired of this and found ways around the law, some illegal. It has been noted that somehow, tobacco grown in the south showed up in Holland. They bartered with France for cotton, silk, brandy and cheese. Rum produced in Rhode Island showed up in the ports of Africa and bartered for molasses to make more rum. The immigrants from England in this early time fell into several categories: Specialists were trained craftsmen and they were few in number. James Reed in Jamestown was a blacksmith; John Allen was a cooper who came on the Mayflower. As more boats arrived on America's shores, more craftsmen arrived. Weavers settled in the Boston area. . The specialists were often wandering men and women. Starting in a small village, they were prone to move to the larger cities to open their own stores. The best specialists and craftsmen settled originally in the trade centers of the time - Boston, Newport, New York and Philadelphia with some heading off to Annapolis, Williamsburg and Charleston SC. The crafts grew until there were many specialists gracing the new world - furriers, weavers, brick and tile-makers, leatherworkers, feltmakers and many types of metal workers. . Those moving to the cities normally had their shop on the first floor and either lived upstairs or rented out the upstairs. Craftsmen learned that, although not as important in America, they had to adhere to certain status rules to profit in their field. The ways for improving your social status included: - Going to the correct church - Marrying the proper girl - Being seen with the right people Various levels of social status developed. "Substantial artisans" were considered to be the middle class. These were the workers whose work used more hand and body than brain and the term merchanick came into use. Semi-skilled laborers such as sawyers were termed "inferior mechanicks." Voting privileges in the colonies was limited to those who owned 50 or more acres of land or had 50 pounds worth of personal property. The Apprentice System was well known from early colony times, as it had existed in England before. It had begun there because of a labor surplus. The "master" could demand that a boy serve as an apprentice for seven years. He was allowed to enforce rigid discipline, demand menial chores from the boy and charge the parents of the apprentice for teaching him the trade. This became known as "binding out" the child. As you have noted, this was carried on into Kentucky also, apprenticeships were a common thing. In Kentucky, a child was bound out until he or she reached the age of 18, the "master" was to provide the child with room and board, and at the end of the apprenticeship provide a new suit of clothes, a horse and saddle or a bed. This system was abused often. Back in England however, the requirements were a lot sterner. Some children were bound out by the offer of their parents so the child could learn a trade. Some were bound because they were orphaned or illegitimate, it saved the town money so they wouldn't have to provide for the town's poor. Many of these provisions continued in Kentucky. In early colonial days most boys were bound out for seven years with four to five years the norm. Many were very unhappy with this arrangement as the master was not a kind person and had a lot of free labor, and they ran away from the master such as Ben Franklin did. It was not unusual to see ads placed by masters offering a reward for a run-away apprentice. At the end of the apprenticeship, for those who survived due to hard labor or a kind master, they became a journeyman. Sometimes the master allowed the children to attend a school of some sort to learn to read, write and cipher. This tradition also continued into Kentucky times. Some boys did learn wonderful trades, many more became angry and lazy adults. The Journeyman. The first requirement of a journey man was to submit his "master piece" to prove his skills. He had worked for years beside his master learning the trade and it was now time for him to prove himself on his own. The work was hard and the hours long but the now young man was on his own without the shadow of the master over his shoulder. He took great pride in his work. Payment was normally very good and if hired for a particular project, he was also given room and board, thus he could save his money for his future. By 1760, a normal journeyman's wages were about 15 shillings a week plus board and keep. The journeyman many times needed workers to assist him in his craft and hired other men and slaves. In the Virginia area, a plantation owner might have in his employ skilled brickmakers carpenters, blacksmiths, coopers. Some slaves were apprenticed in weaving, tailors, house joiners and cabinetmakers - but of course, at a much lower wage. The Masters. They had the hardest jobs in many respects. He was constantly in competition with others of the same craft, never had enough qualified men working for him (craftsmen were known to steal from each others the most qualified men). He had to keep "peace in the family", be that black or white, his people had to show up for church, and they shouldn't get into trouble. He was always haggling over the raw products of his trade, trying to get the best price. His wife was busy running a large household. Many times however, if the master died, the wife was smart enough to take up the same business and set up little shops of their own. Many masters had to have a side-line business to keep them going when the times were tough. Cabinetmakers made caskets and often conducted the entire funeral. Bookbinders also sold books. Clothing makers sold needles, thread and materials. But still, many masters died penniless. Credit then, like now, was the "rage" and the account books were filled with so many debts that many never collected what was due them. Many of the creditors did attempt to pay in farm products. In the early days of Kentucky - and not that far back in time - if you have the privilege of seeing an old account or ledger book, you will see that everything was charged with the hope that someone in the household would pay the debt. When an individual died, these account books were gone through and a list of the debits and credits lists during the evaluation of the estate. Those who owed were supposed to come forward and settle their debts in order that the debts of the master could be paid before disbursements would be made to the legatees. Sometimes things never change! (c) Copyright 3 June 2004, Sandra K. Gorin Colonel Sandi Gorin SCKY Links: http://www.public.asu.edu/~moore/Gorin.html SCKY surname registry sites: http://www.rootsweb.com/~kyclinto/reg.html http://www.rootsweb.com/~kyclinto/forms/SCKYreg.html Gorin Publishing: http://ggpublishing.tripod.com/