Occupation - Bookkeeper - exactly what??

[Philezra]

Hi.

I have an 18 year old ancestor in 1851 who is a Bookkeeper. What would this have entailed as he seems very young to be involved in something which I would have imagined required some academic background?

Phil

Thank you

[Trishanne]

Around that age it would be compulsory to attend school until about 10 years of age, so at 18 he would be quite advanced.

[youngtug]

Not until 1880 was it compulsory to attend school from 5 to 10 years of age. The earlier act of 1870 allowed exemptions. Not that all children went to school after 1880 though. I do not see any problem with him being a bookkeeper at age 18 , if he had an education. the age of starting employment was much earlier then.

[youngtug]

Not until 1880 was it compulsory to attend school from 5 to 10 years of age. The earlier act of 1870 allowed exemptions. Not that all children went to school after 1880 though. I do not see any problem with him being a bookkeeper at age 18 , if he had an education. the age of starting employment was much earlier then.

[Philezra]

It was 1861 - my mistake. It's just that most of the family/relatives seemed to be Weavers/Tailors. No reason for him to follow though!!

Thank you

[Maiden Stone]

He would have been good at arithmetic, careful, neat and methodical. He might have worked for a small business, or, under supervision, for a larger one. As already stated, he had probably been working a few years by the age of 18.

[Rena]

I've just read an article about the start of what we've come to know as accountants. A largish company would employ bookkeepers to enter all their receipts and payments into various ledgers.  Interestingly, I now see that solicitors used to do their clients books! 
Bookkeeping is the first step on a ladder of exams towards being an accountant.  He'd have to have a good knowledge of maths and he would have to enter invoices and receipts into various ledger books then make sure the columns added up correctly.

From an article I see that the mid 19th century onwards was a burgeoning time for bookkeeping and accountancy:-

"Modern professional accounting.
n July 1854 The Institute of Accountants in Glasgow petitioned Queen Victoria for a Royal Charter. The Petition, signed by 49 Glasgow accountants, argued that the profession of accountancy had long existed in Scotland as a distinct profession of great respectability, and that although the number of practitioners had been originally few, the number had been rapidly increasing. The petition also pointed out that accountancy required a varied group of skills; as well as mathematical skills for calculation, the accountant had to have an acquaintance with the general principles of the legal system as they were frequently employed by the courts to give evidence on financial matters. The Edinburgh Society of accountants adopted the name "Chartered Accountant" for members.[33]

By the middle of the 19th century, Britain's Industrial Revolution was in full swing, and London was the financial centre of the world. ..."
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_accounting
 

[Andrew Tarr]

I have an 18 year old ancestor in 1851 who is a Bookkeeper. What would this have entailed as he seems very young to be involved in something which I would have imagined required some academic background? 

I think you might allow for the possibility that people may have exaggerated the apparent importance of their occupation.  Clearly he must have been literate and presumably able to write clearly, but 'keeping a book' may involve little more than copying into a ledger - methodically of course.

Remember that some remarkable individuals attained elevated positions at what seem to us a very young age - for example Daniel Gooch became Locomotive Superintendent of the GWR (responsible for design and building engines) at only 21, about 1840.

[Philezra]

Thank you. I think this was my point in that "bookkeeper" meant 'what' exactly?

He just seemed a trifle young unless he was bookkeeper for his father!!

Phil