Tailoresses.

[benny1982]

Hi

My great, great grandmother Mary AK Roberts was a tailoress along with her sister Elizabeth in the 1881 census when they lived at No 9 Portpool Lane, Holborn, London. Mary was 17 and Eliz 13.

Due to falling on hard times in 1878 after losing money on a beer house, the Roberts ended up in the workhouse for a short while. Is it possible that Mary and Elizabeth learnt tailoressing in the workhouse to help support the family?

I do know there were a lot of tailors shops in that area of London eg Clerkenwell.

Ben

[Jan1954]

Click on the Workhouse website here: https://www.workhouses.org.uk/

Then, in the box on the left, click on "Workhouse Life" and then on "Work".

[benny1982]

Hi Jan1954

It is interesting that up to 22 people were sewers and knitters and 12 men worked in the tailors shop. So it is likely that maybe Kate and Elizabeth Roberts learnt their tailoress trade whilst in the workhouse then.

Ben

[Lenore]

Hi Jan1954

It is interesting that up to 22 people were sewers and knitters and 12 men worked in the tailors shop. So it is likely that maybe Kate and Elizabeth Roberts learnt their tailoress trade whilst in the workhouse then.

Ben

You don't think it was their rates of pay that put them in the workhouse in the first place? They got shocking pay, people in the clothing trades, particularly tailoresses. A girl couldn't support herself on that pay.

In Melbourne in 1882 the tailoresses had their piece rates cut three times during the year, and when the employers cut their rates again in December, they went on strike, and subsequently formed a union.

A 17 year old wouldn't still be at school, she probably would have been working for a few years unless she had to help at home. Tailoresses were cheap to train - you didn't have to pay them anything for the first 12 months because they were 'apprentices'.

Best wishes,

Lenore

[tiggerbrat]

one of my people was a tailoress don't ask me who lol would have to go search saw it today