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Very occasionally a premium consisted partly of goods as well as cash. In one case an apothecary in Wiltshire received £60 and four hundredweight of cheese valued at £5 (which was also taxed). In another case a pauper girl in Warwickshire took a feather bed as part of her premium. | Very occasionally a premium consisted partly of goods as well as cash. In one case an apothecary in Wiltshire received £60 and four hundredweight of cheese valued at £5 (which was also taxed). In another case a pauper girl in Warwickshire took a feather bed as part of her premium. | ||
'''Finding a Master''' | '''Finding a Master''' | ||
An appropriate master was usually found amongst one's friends and relations on personal recommendation. In some trades, like the London printing trade, there were complex networks of acquaintance and relationship. Some kept apprenticeship very much in the family and their whole expertise became a monopoly of a small handful of connected families, as it did in the Mint. | An appropriate master was usually found amongst one's friends and relations on personal recommendation. In some trades, like the London printing trade, there were complex networks of acquaintance and relationship. Some kept apprenticeship very much in the family and their whole expertise became a monopoly of a small handful of connected families, as it did in the Mint. | ||
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'''Apprenticeship in decline''' | '''Apprenticeship in decline''' | ||
With the growth of population at the end of the 18th century <span id="fck_dom_range_temp_1229602496980_463" | With the growth of population at the end of the 18th century <span id="fck_dom_range_temp_1229602496980_463" />and the greater demand for goods, opportunities for work became more widely available and the use of formal apprenticeship, except in some skilled trades, began to decline. Because the 1563 Act had carefully listed all the trades to which it applied the lawyers held that it did not extend to trades which had not existed when it was passed. In some trades the use of indentures, except for paupers, had become much less common and in many areas the Statute was clearly not enforced. | ||
The traditional forms of apprenticeship were inflexible, taking seven years to produce a skilled worker, and ill-matched to rapid change in either the economy or society. The boy had little or no say in his career, which was largely dictated by the financial situation of his father. The ill-treatment and exploitation of so-called apprentices as cheap labour in factories and the sweated trades helped to bring the system into disrepute. | The traditional forms of apprenticeship were inflexible, taking seven years to produce a skilled worker, and ill-matched to rapid change in either the economy or society. The boy had little or no say in his career, which was largely dictated by the financial situation of his father. The ill-treatment and exploitation of so-called apprentices as cheap labour in factories and the sweated trades helped to bring the system into disrepute. | ||
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'''The tax on Apprenticeship Indentures 1710-1811''' | '''The [[England Apprenticeship Indentures 1710 to 1774 |tax ]]on Apprenticeship Indentures 1710-1811''' | ||
The discovery of the main record of apprentices in the past, that of the tax on apprenticeship indentures between 1710 and 1811, was due to the professional genealogist Gerald Fothergill (1870-1926). He was active in lobbying for the preservation of records and one of his hobbies was to read acts of parliament and then consider what records would have resulted from them. Some time in the 1920s he found the Act imposing this tax and went to the Inland Revenue Office at Somerset House and asked if the records still survived. They did, and he then persuaded the authorities to tranfer them to Public Record Office (now The National Archives, at Kew). | The discovery of the main record of apprentices in the past, that of the tax on apprenticeship indentures between 1710 and 1811, was due to the professional genealogist Gerald Fothergill (1870-1926). He was active in lobbying for the preservation of records and one of his hobbies was to read acts of parliament and then consider what records would have resulted from them. Some time in the 1920s he found the Act imposing this tax and went to the [[England Apprenticeship Indentures 1710 to 1774 |Inland Revenue Office ]]at Somerset House and asked if the records still survived. They did, and he then persuaded the authorities to tranfer them to Public Record Office (now The National Archives, at Kew). | ||
Between 1710 and 1811 a stamp duty of sixpence had been levied on each apprenticeship indenture, but more importantly the premium itself had been taxed at sixpence for every £1 of the premium and a shilling (twelve pence) for every £1 above £50. The resulting centralised record shows the name of the apprentice and of his or her father or guardian, the name and place of residence of the master, the trade to be learned, the term of years, and the premium paid. The entries do not, however, show the name of the apprentice's father or guardian after about 1752. The books record the money received until 1811 but the last indentures recorded were signed in 1808. | Between 1710 and 1811 a stamp duty of sixpence had been levied on each apprenticeship indenture, but more importantly the premium itself had been taxed at sixpence for every £1 of the premium and a shilling (twelve pence) for every £1 above £50. The resulting centralised record shows the name of the apprentice and of his or her father or guardian, the name and place of residence of the master, the trade to be learned, the term of years, and the premium paid. The entries do not, however, show the name of the apprentice's father or guardian after about 1752. The books record the money received until 1811 but the last indentures recorded were signed in 1808. | ||
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The typescript transcripts and indexes are also available at The National Archives at Kew and at the Guildhall Library. They have all been published and are widely available on microfiche. Users should note that there is a large appendix of extra entries after the letter "Z" at the end of the first series, and that the deadline for payment of tax was a year after the expiry of the indenture, so an entry might well be seven or eight years later than expected. | The typescript transcripts and indexes are also available at The National Archives at Kew and at the Guildhall Library. They have all been published and are widely available on microfiche. Users should note that there is a large appendix of extra entries after the letter "Z" at the end of the first series, and that the deadline for payment of tax was a year after the expiry of the indenture, so an entry might well be seven or eight years later than expected. | ||
The early entries for five counties (Bedfordshire, Surrey, Sussex, Warwickshire and Wiltshire) have been printed and typescript abstracts of those for Cambridgeshire for 1763-1811 are available. After 1774 the large unindexed volumes naturally take time to go through. They have been microfilmed to 1811 by the Genealogical Society of Utah. | The early entries for five counties (Bedfordshire, Surrey, Sussex, Warwickshire and Wiltshire) have been printed and typescript abstracts of those for Cambridgeshire for 1763-1811 are available. After 1774 the large unindexed volumes naturally take time to go through. They have been microfilmed to 1811 by the Genealogical Society of Utah. | ||
[[Category:England]] | [[Category:England]] | ||