Did people in the 1800s UK sometimes work two totally different jobs ?

[Jane Sharp]

Hi everyone !

I am wondering if my third great grandfather possibly worked interchangably as a "joiner / carpenter" as well as a "fustian shearer / cotton raiser / cloth finisher" ? - did people used to swap jobs like this ?

Or are there two families with the same first and last names, born in the same years, living in the same suburb ?

- - -

This is the man in question, my third great grandfather:

Thomas SHARP b abt. 1815, Manchester, Lancashire, England.

- - -

Thomas is listed as a "Joiner" on his son (my second great grandfather) James SHARP's marriage entry to Mary BROWN:

James SHARP b abt. 1855 Manchester, Lancashire
married 1878
Mary BROWN b abt. 1851 Manchester, Lancashire

- - -

I have found a James Sharp on the GRO Birth index b 1855 Manchester with the mother's maiden name TOWNLEY.

- - -

And there is a marriage entry for Thomas SHARP who is a Fustian Shearer and a Sarah TOWNLEY:

Thomas SHARP
married 1834 to
Sarah TOWNLEY b abt. 1816

But maybe Thomas wasn't married to a Sarah Townsley but I can't seem to find any other similar Thomas SHARPs.

- - -

The 1851 census lists a Thomas SHARP as a Joiner and a Sarah Sharp and they had children all born in Manchester - and with all but one have I been able to find their GRO and baptisms, and they have the correct parental names:

Margaret SHARP b 1839
Thomas SHARP b 1841
William SHARP b 1844
Robert SHARP b abt. 1846
Samuel SHARP b abt. 1849 (no gro / baptism)

- - -

The 1861 Census has a Sarah SHARP with the same following children but Thomas SHARP is not on that census so he may have died.

William SHARP b 1844
Robert SHARP b abt. 1846
Samuel SHARP b abt. 1849 (no gro / baptism)
John Henry SHARP b abt. 1852
James SHARP b abt. 1855

- - -

This is Thomas SHARP's work history that I can garner from Census, baptism and marriage entries:

WORK HISTORY:

Shearer 1834 - 1840
Joiner 1841 - 1844
Shearer 1845 - 1850
Joiner 1851 - 1859
Shearer 1860 - 1877
Joiner 1878 - ONWARDS

- - -

This is the evidence for each industry job:

FUSTIAN SHEARER:
1834 Sarah Townley marriage cert
1839 Margaret baptism
1845 William baptism
1848 Robert baptism
1860 Thomas marriage cert: cotton raiser
1870 Samuel marriage cert: cloth finisher

JOINER:
1841 Census with possibly wife Sarah incorrectly written as Margaret, and first child Margaret
1843 Thomas baptism
1851 Census with Margaret, Thomas, William, Robert, Samuel
1855 James baptism
1878 James marriage cert

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The addresses for all of them are in the same area of Manchester / Collyhurst and it seems that Thomas and Sarah first married whilst living on Collyhurst Road and then moved to Davisons Court, Redbank, and then when Thomas died she moved back to Collyhurst Road:

19 Collyhurst Road
Davisons Court, Redbank (which is a nearby road)
17 Collyhurst Road

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Anyway - I think this is driving me crazy so if you could help I'd really super appreciate it ! 

[ev]

The 1861 Census has a Sarah SHARP with the same following children but Thomas SHARP is not on that census so he may have died

Looking at the 1861 Census on Familysearch , that Sarah is noted as widowed.

Does any of the information you have after 1855 say that Thomas is deceased ?


ev

[ShaunJ]

It does look like the same family doesn't it - but per the GRO index the children's births have MMN Townley not Townsley.

Presumably he was a joiner by trade who also took employment as a fustian cutter from time to time.

[ev]

There is a possible death for a Thomas Sharp , Manchester , 2nd quarter 1858 


ev

[Jane Sharp]

There is a possible death for a Thomas Sharp , Manchester , 2nd quarter 1858 


ev

Yes, he's not in the 1861 Census with his wife and children. Thankyou for finding that death index.

[Jane Sharp]

It does look like the same family doesn't it - but per the GRO index the children's births have MMN Townley not Townsley.

Presumably he was a joiner by trade who also took employment as a fustian cutter from time to time.

My apologies Shaun - I meant to write Townley.

I think you're right. He must have done both jobs.

[Girl Guide]

That death shows Thomas as 44 so quite likely to be the right one

SHARP, THOMAS       44 
GRO Reference: 1858  J Quarter in MANCHESTER  Volume 08D  Page 212

[Rena]

If you look at all his neighbours, I think they'll probably work in the COTTON WEAVING TRADE and I think he did too.

Fusian Weaving is a task done in Cotton Mills:-

Fustian Cutter / Weaver
A person who lifted and cut the threads in the making of Fustian, formerly a kind of coarse cloth made of cotton and flax. Now a thick, twilled cotton cloth with a short pile or nap, a kind of cotton velvet. A long thin knife was inserted into the loops and the threads cut as it was pulled through, stretched between rollers. The cloth was then brushed to raise the pile. Fustian is the old name for corduroy / A weaver of Fustian

If you look up the occupations mentioned (such as "finisher"), they're all allied to lengths of cotton material

[AngelaR]

I'm a bit concerned about those two jobs as they are both normally "main" occupations in my experience (willing to be corrected though)

I would have thought it more likely that a census entry was wrongly copied from the notes but of course anything is possible. A number of my ancestors appear variously with more than one job but usually one was obviously skilled (e.g. tailor) and the other was a filler that lots of people in the area did from time to time (sold home brewed ale fro the from parlour)