Ancestors who learned trades might have become freemen to further their careers. Follow Judith Batchelor’s advice to…
Search livery and guilds records
Tradesmen who lived in provincial towns may have become a freeman of a guild or – if they worked in London – a livery company. These were established to regulate trades and crafts, to promote the interests of members, and provide mutual aid. Once admitted as a freeman, a member was qualified to be a master and could employ others.
There were several ways of becoming a freeman, such as serving an apprenticeship (servitude), paying a fee (redemption) or gaining admittance through your father (patrimony). For family historians, the most useful records are those that relate to apprenticeship and admission to the company, as they reveal family ties and biographical information.
Examine Ancestry’s London documents
Ancestry has a large collection of papers associated with freeman applications called ‘London, England, Freedom of the City Admission Papers 1681-1930’. Visit www.snipca.com/49334 then search by name, location, date and keyword (such as an occupation). You can also add a child or father to the results for more detail.
Searching for my ancestor John Whitford produced 26 results ( 1in our screenshot above), including the variants of Whiteford, Whatford and Watford. I found him listed as Johes Whitford (‘Johes’ is the Latin form of John 2 ), so clicked View Record 3to see the original document.
It shows that he was admitted by patrimony as a citizen of London on 27 April 1725. He was described as the son of William Whitford – a citizen and plasterer of London. The results also showed that William was originally a plasterer from Evesham, Worcestershire – providing evidence about the family’s origins.
Findmypast has records of apprentices and freemen for the following three City of London livery companies: Gunmaker’s 1656-1936 (www. snipca.com/49337), Haberdashers 1526-1933 (www.snipca.com/49338) and Ironmongers 1511-1939 (www. snipca.com/49339).
For guild records outside of London, search ‘Norfolk, Freemen of Norwich 1317-1603’ (www.snipca. com/49335) and ‘Scotland Burgess & Guild Brethren Index’ (www.snipca. com/49336).
Look through the London Roll records
You can search 11 more London livery companies at www.londonroll.org. Select a specific
