Sail maker and Electrician

[pinevista]

My great grandfather was a sail maker in the Battersea area. Does anyone know anything about this trade?

My grandfather was in the Royal Field Artillery and served during the war. After the war he was an electrician and belonged to the union. I would like to find out when he joined the union as well as any internship he experienced in order to become an electrician. I attached a recommendation he received from the union prior to his immigration to the US.

[stanmapstone]

You could Google Sailmaker  to see a number of entries and images.

Stan

[pinevista]

This I've done but what was it like in the 1800's.

[youngtug]

You may find this interesting; http://youtu.be/429_sw4tc4k

[stanmapstone]

Apart from the introduction of mechanisation, i.e. sewing machines,  I don't expect the basic process has changed much. There is a Google Book "A Day in the Life of a Colonial Sailmaker" although you can't see the whole book, it has some interesting extracts. Also there are other books, do an advanced search for "Limited preview and full view" books. 
Stan