Hello Janine You may not have seen the advertisement in the 14 Dec. 1839 edition of the Ipswich Journal. A steam engine from a River Orwell dredging barge was to be sold by auction on the Ballast Wharf in Ipswich, by direction of the Committee of Management of the Ipswich Wet Dock. Prospective viewers were invited to apply to engineer James FRISTON at the Ballast Quay. He was clearly not a retired gentleman at that time, and I don't suppose he was a clergyman either. If he farmed a little land as a sideline, that was apparently not in Albion Street and certainly not his main occupation in 1841, so I suspect his inclusion under "Clergy, Gentry and Yeomanry" in 1839 was the result of erroneous or lazy classification. Incidentally, some members of the Yeomanry forces in the early 20th century, if not before, were never yeomen in the traditional sense. I've yet to spy a tinker in their ranks, but I have seen a tailor and a watchmaker. While the army would always welcome suitable volunteers who could shoot straight on horseback, a shortage of recruits in the years after the Boer Wars obliged the Suffolk Yeomanry to accept increasing numbers of men who didn’t bring their own horses to the annual training camps but had to hire them or borrow them from relatives. David Date: Sun, 17 Jun 2012 09:51:15 +1000 From: "Janine Fisher" <[email protected]> Hello list I have just found a listing for my 4xG Grandfather James FRISTON in the 1839 UK Poll Books and Electoral Registers under the heading of CLERGY, GENTRY & YEOMANRY.  James FRISTON was a blacksmith living in Albion Street, St Clement, Ipswich on the 1841 Census and from various other BMD certificates he is intermittently listed as an engineer. Could someone explain to me the classification of Clergy, Gentry and Yeomanry, in particular Yeomanry and how it might relate to James FRISTON on this occasion.  I have googled but would value the lists knowledge and experience on this. With thanks and kind regards as always Janine Fisher

Yeomanry need not refer to part-time militia. It could refer to Yeomen - i.e. farmers. I suspect his inclusion was probably under the general heading of "Gentry" if he held a post of some importance, as appears likely from the advertisement. Ruth in Hampshire > -----Original Message----- > From: [email protected] > [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of David Gobbitt > Sent: 18 June 2012 15:44 > To: [email protected] > Subject: Re: [SFK-UK] Clergy, Gentry and Yeomanry > > advertisement in the 14 Dec. 1839 > edition of the Ipswich Journal. A steam engine from a River > Orwell dredging barge was to be sold by auction on the > Ballast Wharf in Ipswich, by direction of the Committee of > Management of the Ipswich Wet Dock. Prospective viewers were > invited to apply to engineer James FRISTON at the Ballast Quay. > > He was clearly not a retired gentleman at that time, and I > don't suppose he was a clergyman either. If he farmed a > little land as a sideline, that was apparently not in Albion > Street and certainly not his main occupation in 1841, so I > suspect his inclusion under "Clergy, Gentry and Yeomanry" in > 1839 was the result of erroneous or lazy classification. > > Incidentally, some members of the Yeomanry forces in the > early 20th century, if not before, were never yeomen in the > traditional sense. I've yet to spy a tinker in their ranks, > but I have seen a tailor and a watchmaker. While the army > would always welcome suitable volunteers who could shoot > straight on horseback, a shortage of recruits in the years > after the Boer Wars obliged the Suffolk Yeomanry to accept > increasing numbers of men who didn't bring their own horses > to the annual training camps but had to hire them or borrow > them from relatives. > > David