19th century blacksmiths

[Trees]

Hi Christopher,
that was my thoughts too BUT this one is at a smithy for 2 previous censuses and seems to be The smith employing his sons as strikers I thought it strange that he isa jobbing smith after twenty plus years what do you think?
Trees

[LizzieW]

I have a blacksmith amongst my ancestors who moved from Suffolk, to Durham, to Sunderland to Hull and finally to Ipswich, so they obviously did move around.

Lizzie

[Christopher]

Hi Christopher,
that was my thoughts too BUT this one is at a smithy for 2 previous censuses and seems to be The smith employing his sons as strikers I thought it strange that he isa jobbing smith after twenty plus years what do you think?
Trees

Hi Trees,

I was thinking of a journeyman.

This may help although it's a different trade.
JOBLING GARDENER
One employed on a casual basis. Also Jobbing.

I think the jobbng blacksmith wasn't under contract to anyone and could take on any work that came to him.

Christopher

[Trees]

once again thank you Christopher seems logical,
Lizzy it sounds like your Blacksmith was specialising possibly with forging for mining industry. Every mine needed a forge to make and repair equipment used underground just thin of the miles of track laid to push the drams of coal to the shaft and of course the horses must have been shod to. not so sure about Ipswich though! Were they Dock Blacksmiths just a thought lots of chain etc.
interesting migration for that family when were they moving to each place? Could be an interesting look at the social situation at the time.
trees

[LizzieW]

Hi Trees

That's interesting information.  My blacksmith was my g.gran's brother.  His moves seem to have been between 1871 and 1891.  I was able to trace him not only from the census, but also by the births and, unfortunately a death, of his children.

On the 1871 census he is living at Barrack Yard, Halesworth, Suffolk.  His occupation is given as a blacksmith. 

On the 1881 census he is living at 4 Johnsons Place, Hull with 4 children.  His occupation is still a blacksmith.

On the 1891 census he is living at Vine Cottages, St Georges St, Ipswich as a blacksmith and shopkeeper. 

On the 1901 census he is living and working at The Drift, Brittania Rd Ipswich as a blacksmith.  Living with him are his wife, his son and a lodger who are both coach painters. 

Between the 1871 and 1891 census, he had moved from Halesworth, to Edmundsley, Co. Durham where his first child, a girl, was born in 1874, to Sunderland where his second child, also a girl was born in 1876 to Hull where his third child (a boy) was born in 1879 and a fourth child (another girl) was born in 1881 and then to Ipswich where his fourth child died aged 9 in 1900.

I don't know what work he was specialising in.  He started in Halesworth where he had lived most of his life, why he went to Co.Durham and then Sunderland I have no idea.  It is possible that he moved to Hull because his sister (my g.gran) had also moved there from Suffolk.   Ipswich was where his wife was born, so maybe she didn't take to Hull and preferred to be back amongst her own family.

Lizzie

[Trees]

Hi Lizzie the move to Edmundsley certainly says coal field to me and I like the theory leading to a return to Ipswich. We tend to have a picture of the  village blacksmith under his spreading chestnut tree but several of mine end up in factory forges mine heads etc several return asp to village live when the father dies and they take over his rural smithy it certainly wasn't all horse related. I have a family with the Black smith ,2 striker sons a wheel wright (don't forget the metal tyres) son and a farrier son between them they had the whole spectrum covered but then their children spread out to neighboring villages and three end up in a factory forge one as a railway fitter and two in gas works but as I say one dashed back to take over in the village when dad died so it must have offered a nicer way of life.
Have you found anything about The Drift that must have a story behind the name could it have been a pub? I have two families of Smith publicans. I notice you have a shopkeeper blacksmith I was surprised to find my Dolton Devon Blacksmith had a grocer& drapers shop seemd a strange combernation then researching further found exactly there same mix a few miles up the road with a different smith not on my line. Sadly that one ended up in a debtors prison so perhaps my lot attracted more customers 
I'll be interested to hear what you find I'll let you know when I get my Blacksmith research on my sitetoo
Trees

[LizzieW]

Trees

I don't know what The Drift was/is.  The couple listed before my ancestor on the census lived at Drift Cottage.  I did a google search and there seem to be a lot of "Drifts" in Suffolk, so I suppose it is a Suffolk word.  There is a tale on google part of which states:

All the people in the carriage were wearing heavy clothing so when the carriage tipped over into the pond, they sunk to the bottom. Everyone drowned including the horses.  If you go down to the drift on New Years Eve at, 12:00 you will hear the people screaming and the horses neighing.


So presumably a Drift is a large pond or lake.

Lizzie

[Trees]

Fascinating living here on the edge of the S Wales coal field a drift is a mine which is dug into the mountain/hill so entered by a sloping track rather than a deep mine entered by a shaft if you can picture it like following a fault line in and slightly down I wonder if the Ipswich drift was a flooded fault line ? Let me know what you turn up its interesting
trees

[meles]

Not many mountains or hills in Suffolk! 

"Drift" also means a set of fishing nets. I guess that in Suffolk, that might be a more likely derivation.

meles