Dictionary of Old Occupations

Definitions of jobs Faber - Feather Driver

Faber: a smith, craftsman or iron worker. Faber is Latin for 'Craftsman', but the title may also derive from the French name Febre meaning 'smith'.

Fabricator: a generic term for a person who made goods.

Fabricshearer: pleated fabric and trimmed nap for customers.

Factor: an agent or broker, who bought and sold goods for commission, or a mercantile agent who bought and sold goods on behalf of another. In Scotland a Factor managed a property or estate on behalf of the owner or landlord.

Factor Agent: alternate term for a factor, who bought and sold goods on behalf of another.

Factory Boy: a young boy working in a factory performing low responsibility tasks, often quite dangerous ones.

Factory Labourer: performed manual work in a factory or trading post.

Factory Packer: a factory worker who packaged manufactured goods into crates for storage or transport.

Fagetter: sold firewood. Derives from the word ‘faggot’ which was an archaic measurement for a bundle of branches or sticks.

Faker: the person who added fake colours to black and white photographs.

Falkner: a falconer who breeds and trains falcons or hawks.

Famulus: a scholar’s attendant.

Fancy Man: a pimp, procuring or pandering prostitutes.

Fancy Pearl Worker: a craftsman who made items out of nacre, also known as mother of pearl. Nacre was commonly used to make buttons, and to decorate items such as knives, guns, jewellery and watches.

Fancy Woman: a working girl or prostitute.

Fanner: separated grain from chaff (winnowing). From 1837 a winnowing machine called a Fanner was developed in Scotland and widely sold.

Copyright: Jane Hewitt. This dictionary is authorised for use on www.familyresearcher.co.uk only.

Fanwright: made fans or baskets for winnowing grain. From the early 18th century winnowing machines used a rotary fan to generate wind for separating grain from chaff.

Farandman: an itinerant pedlar or merchant.

Farm Bailiff: collected rent from tenant farmers and inspected their work.

Farm Grieve: found in Scottish census records, a manager on a farm overseeing the work of other workers.

Farmer: then as now, worked in agriculture. May have owned the land or been a tenant farmer.

Farrier: specialised in caring for horses hooves, including making and fitting horse shoes, trimming hooves and general medical care.

Faulkner: alternate spelling of falconer, who breeds and trains falcons or hawks.

Faunist: studied fauna (animals).

Fawkner: alternate spelling of falconer, who breeds and trains falcons or hawks.

Fear-Nought Maker: produced fear-nought, also spelt 'fearnaught'. This was a heavy woollen cloth used to make warm jackets and overcoats.

Feather Beater: responsible for cleaning feathers which would then be sold.

Feather Dresser: alternate term for a Feather Beater, who was responsible for cleaning feathers.

Feather Driver: alternate term for a Feather Beater, responsible for cleaning feathers.

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