Dictionary of Old Occupations
Click here to return to the index page of the Dictionary of Old Occupations
Definitions of jobs Clay Maker - Clothier
Clay Maker: mixed clay for the pottery industry.
Clay Pressman: loaded clay into canvas bags to press out the moisture.
Clay Puddler: lined canals with a watertight material known as puddle, which is based on clay. Layers of puddle were built up at the bottom of canals. The material had to be kept wet to remain waterproof.
Clay Temperer: a pottery industry worker who loaded clay onto plaster slabs which absorbed moisture prior to pressing to make tiles.
Clay Treader: a pottery industry worker with the unenviable job of treading clay barefoot.
Clay Wedger: used wire to cut clay into wedges which were then beaten together to remove air.
Clay Worker: something of a generic term, this could refer to any one of a number of jobs involved with preparing clay for use in the pottery industry.
Clayman: worked in clay pits.
Cleric: a member of a religious order; a clergyman.
Clericus: a clerk or cleric.
Clerk: in medieval times this occupational title referred to a scholar. This evolved into record keepers and then into people who performed administrative tasks.
Clicker: commonly refers to shoemaking, referring to the person who cut out the leather uppers by hand. Can also refer to a doorman who clicked a handheld counting device every time a person entered shop or entertainment premises in order to count visitors. May also refer to a supervisor or foreman in the printing industry responsible for accounting and billing as well as laying out the type.
Clipper: a criminal who removed the edges of coins in order to steal some of the precious metal from which coins were made.
Clipper On/Off: worked in the coal mining industry, responsible for attaching or removing carts to and from the line used to haul carts between lifts and the coalface.
Clockmaker: Artisan who made or maintained clocks. This occupation dates back several centuries. Up to the end of the 17th century a master clockmaker would be in charge of a shop, where his team would make and assemble all clock parts by hand. Gradually over the next two centuries clocks used parts which were interchangeable, and factories took over.
Clod Hopper: slang term for a Ploughman.
Clog Dancer: a folk dancer, such as a morris dancer or a step dancer. In England the practice is thought to date back to the 15th century, at which time the dancers wore wooden clogs. Clog dancing is thought to have migrated from Wales to England.
Clogger: made clogs, wooden shoes worn by the lower classes.
Closet Maker: a pottery worker who made ceramic pans to go in water closets.
Copyright: Jane Hewitt. This dictionary is authorised for use on www.familyresearcher.co.uk only.
Cloth Dresser: skilled workers in the textile industry who cut woollen cloth with huge shears when it was ready to leave the mill, or sheared the nap from it.
Cloth Lapper: a textile industry worker who transferred yarn between machines.
Cloth Linter: a textile industry worker who picked out unwanted lint and threads from cloth after the weaving process.
Cloth Picker: an alternate term for a Cloth Linter, who worked in wool weaving.
Clothesman: alternate term for a Clothier or Habadasher.
Clothier: a haberdasher; a merchant selling clothing.
This dictionary is my own work, and copyright Jane Hewitt. I sometimes find unauthorised (i.e. stolen) copies of my website content appearing on other people's websites. If you should read a group of identical glossary definitions elsewhere on the web, consider whether such sites are reputable or not.
Victorian Staffordshire Pottery Religious Figures: Stories on the Mantelpiece Hardcover by Stephen Duckworth
The first title to describe Victorian religious figures in the context of their times
A comprehensive illustrated catalogue of well over 200 figures with an assessment of their dating and rarity
Individual descriptions of the figures in their biblical or historic settings
