jain wykes wrote: > Do you know how commonly the euphemism 'dressmaker' was used for prostitute. > And if it was commonly used do you know how a genuine dressmaker may have > described herself, in order to distinguish herself from the euphemistic > type? I ask because I have come across several 'dressmakers' in my research. > i wonder if an understanding of the wealth of the area that the 'suspect' > lived in might give an indication? Jain It was very common - as I understand it the terms "seamstress" and "tailoress" were also used, but "dressmaker" was the most popular. So common was it that "Dressmaker" was the third most common occupation in England and Wales (after Coal Miner & Ag Lab) on the 1881 census. As you suggest, the only way of distinguishing a real dressmaker from a "dressmaker" was by the nature of the household and the area. A 20 year-old dressmaker living with her clergyman father and mother probably was a dressmaker. A 20 year-old "dressmaker" living with several other "dressmakers" in a seedy lodging house near the docks probably wasn't. Brian -- Brian Pears (Gateshead, UK) http://www.bpears.org.uk/ Joint List Admin NORTHUMBRIA Genealogy Mailing List GENUKI Northumberland Maintainer