Tennis Bat Maker

[rosas84]

Hi Everyone,

My boyfriends ancestors are listed as Lawn Tennis Bat Makers in London, we were wondering what sort of a job this would of been like and whether it was a good occupation at the time (late 1800's).

I knows its a bit of an unusual one but we've thought it pretty interesting (makes a change from my ancestors all being Agg Laborours  )

Thanks

Amy

[stanmapstone]

They are actually called racquets not bats. This is the description of the job from "A Dictionary of Occupational Terms"
A racquet maker turns the handle on a lathe, glues it to the racquet frame and clamps the whole in a frame to dry; trues and smooths racquet with knives, rasps and files; drills holes and cuts grooves for gut; drives screw through side of frame and handle; and cleans up racquet with sandpaper; sometimes also strings and polishes, and finishes racquet; sometimes specifically designated according to type of racquet, e.g. tennis racquet maker, squash racquet maker.


Stan

[rosas84]

Hi Stan,

Having played Tennis myself I'm also more familiar with them being called racquets  , the reason I used the term bat is because on the census it states that the occupation is "Lawn Tennis Bat Maker".

Thanks for the definition. I wonder whether this would of been a well paid job at the time?

Amy