Pauper Apprenticeships of Lewes

1652 - 1834

Below is a list of some 145 pauper indentures taken from the files at East Sussex Record Office -

ESRO par 414/33/1 - 100 - Parish of St Michaels

ESRO 415/33/1 - 69 - Parish of St Thomas at Cliffe

Apprenticeships were used as a method of relieving of the poor rates and the provision of a living for those children who were orphans or whose parents could not support them.  It really was a way of 'boarding out' so that the child could be trained and brought up in a different environment.  The list below contains some 32 girls who were mostly trained in housewiferey (i.e. Domestic Servants) and 113 boys who were bound to a greter variety of trades with Shoemaking being the most predominant trade, followed by Maritime training.

One of the advantages of Apprenticeship was that it conferred settlement and security in later life