Builder in Middlesex

[Joe Walsh]

I've managed to trace my family to the late 1700's where this particular branch had William Till (17??-18??) who was definitely a labourer in 1819, by 1846 he had become a shopkeeper. His son, William Till (1819-18??), was a beerseller, then by 1846 he was a capenter, in 1881 census his occupation is builder. The next generation (1848-1???) was a carpenter. And my great grandfather (1876-1936) was a wood joiner.

They all lived in St. John's Wood, Middlesex. Was being a builder/carpenter a good profession in those days? Would it lead to a comfortable middle class lifestyle which my grandmother describers her father having had?

What about a shopkeeper and beerseller? Were they profitable and lead a good lifestyle? And I wonder how William Till went from a labourer to a shopkeeper. A labourer would be at the bottom of the social ladder I imagine and a shopkeeper considerably higher.

[notanotherminer]

Welcome to Brit-Gen Joe

While the occupation for many remained the same throughout their lives many of our ancestors certainly changed occupations and some increased their fortunes. I have an ag lab in 1871 and 1881 who in 1891 described himself as a "pea and potato seller" and by 1911 owned his own farm and was living with his family in a house with 14 rooms. Another was described as a sawyer in the the 1820's when his sons were baptised whose wealth accumulated steadily until on his death he was listed as "Grocer, Baker and cattle dealer"

Why not post some details of them (year of birth, family members etc) so we can track their fortunes through the census