what exactly did a wood turner or turner do?

[Forfarian]

I have never heard of a bodger.  The word does not even appear in my Webster's Encyclopedic Unabridged Dictionary of 1854 pages. 

Webster's is an American dictionary. It isn't likely to be authoritative on terms not used in American English.

The Oxford English Dictionary says, "Bodger ... In full chair bodger. A local name in Buckinghamshire for a chair-leg turner. Hence (chair-)bodgering , the action or process of chair-leg turning."

Edit: Sorry, hadn't realised that there was a second page of posts with the same answer, but I'll let is stand.

[youngtug]

A couple of versions of bodgers at work; http://youtu.be/nP5_OJxNccY

and;  http://youtu.be/_ZiRlXWUdF0

[Skoosh]

Green Valley, I think he might also have been making bagpipes, my own g't gramps learned his trade in the Heilans before he came to Glasgow. Dundee would have had bagpipe makers, the others might have had pipemakers also.
 Regards the beaver re-introduction, this has been a runaway success with the beavers running a long way from the reservations proscribed. Evidence of beavers felling aspen (favourite tree) on an island two miles off-shore in Argyle shows that salt water is no barrier, can they smell the trees? Ireland here they come?
 It has been a Lairds v Beavers struggle with some landowners vociferously trying to keep the beavers out, but unlike the good old days when the lairds had some clout in the House of Lords and would have had the programme killed off, they don't have any friends in the Scottish Parliament and the beavers apparently do.

Skoosh.

[greenvalley]

I have to say that I really like the idea that he may have been making bagpipes - not sure if he did, it was never mentioned, but it seems such a nice thing to make.

[TropiConsul]

Up the beaver!  Doun the laird!  There is a similar conflict resulting from the reintroduction of the gray wolf into Yellowstone National Park which is vehemently opposed by ranchers.  Maybe it is time to bring the wolf back to Britain.  That would help to encourage the perpetuation of the Irish Wolfhound, that elegant breed, which once faced extinction.  " Farewell! Othello's occupation's gone!"

[Rena]

One of my branches worked in the cotton trade and that's a possibility but I did wonder what on earth he would be doing in Kendal, Westmorland.   

There's no hint on the Genuki site for what the area is famous for (except for Kendal mint cakes) but I found a list of occupations of the population of Westmorland in 1841 and see that there were six turners & four apprentices who supplied the requirements of the trades in the whole area - e.g.turners would be needed by cabinet makers; chairmakers; Millwrights; Wheelwrights; sicklemakers(!); etc.  Whilst on this web page I noticed there was a lot of "army brass" listed so I wonder if he was stationed in the area, met a girl and went back for her.

See here

[greenvalley]

Thanks Rena,

the girl he met in Kendal came from Haddington, Scotland! I have no idea why he went to Kendal, married a Scottish girl there in 1840, had a baby a year later and went back to Scotland when the baby was just born. They are on the Census in Perth in 1841.

Maybe he did make things for the cotton trade, but decided it would be better to go back home.

[Hackstaple]

In the 1840's Kendal was the site of the UK's pencil manufacturing.

[GrahamSimons]

Plenty of bobbin mills in the general area... e.g.
http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/daysout/properties/stott-park-bobbin-mill/
http://www.lakeland-hideaways.co.uk/property.asp?id=552
http://www.geog.port.ac.uk/webmap/thelakes/html/lgaz/lk15845.htm

Stott Park is an interesting visit.