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Some Special Interests => Occupation Interests => Topic started by: suttontrust on Tuesday 28 September 04 21:09 BST (UK)
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Does anyone have any idea what a "Chair Woman" was in 1881 in Sussex? Is it as prosaic as someone who makes chairs? Incidentally, by 1901, when she was 62, this woman was described as a nurse. 30 years earlier her mother, then 77, was also described as a nurse. Was this a catch-all term for a woman who might today be described as a home-help or carer?
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A CHARWOMAN was a cleaning woman.
:D
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Yes, I thought of that, but I'd like it to be something more interesting.
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I had one of those in my family too, and in 1881. I came to the conclusion it was a transcription error for char-woman.
Kazza.
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I have several female "Chair Bottomers" from Census residing in Wiltshire.
Newbie ;D
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I'm not familiar with the Sussex accent but maybe Char sounds like Chair?
Jill
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Suttontrust,
Have you made any progress here? I think it is an extraordinary coincidence I have a chairwoman as well if it is a mistake. Mine was in 1901, not 1881 so it seems even stranger. ???
Kazza.
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I sort of accepted that it was a transcription error for charwoman. Where was yours?
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As usual I will take a contrary view. I suspect that these chairwomen are to be found in seaside towns or resorts where there are hot springs. They were employed to push elderly and wealthy widows [and perhaps men as well?] in what was called a Bath Chair. That was a chair shaped like a bath but well upholstered. The occupant could steer it with a sort of rudder. I am not at all sure whether the name was related to the shape or whether it came from Bath itself or even because it could be pushed down a ramp into the hot springs? Self-propelled invalid chairs of the thirties to fifties were built in the same fashion.
I am sure this is all information you could do without 8)
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By the way - charwoman probably comes from chore woman. 8)
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What a lovely idea! I'm going to stick with the fact that she was a Chair Woman.
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Hackstaple,
Great idea, thank you. I am not sure if Cardiff was a spa in 1901, but suspect not. ;D Possibly an indoor spa of some kind though. I will have to invstigate further.
Kazza.
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It's not a transcription error. It's a version of “charwoman”, previously “chare woman” (related to “chore woman”) which was pronounced as “chair woman”. [1]
[1] Wiktionary (https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/chare), s.v. “Chare”.