'journeyman'

[johnstonville]

On some of the census records for occupation it often says 'journeyman'
An example is
William Smith
Sheet Iron Worker
(Journeyman)
so what does this mean?
Thanks everybody  

[Janelle]

I googled …
A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification, and can then be hired by others, often by the day.

Janelle

[Forfarian]

It's from French 'journée', which means a day, and reflects the fact that a journeyman was originally paid by the day.

Once an apprentice had completed his training he became a journeyman, and was employed by a master craftsman. In due course he could go on to become a master himself, and could train his own apprentices.

[tonepad]

Journeyman is derived from the French journée, meaning "whole day".

Tony

[gaffy]

It's worth adding what it doesn't mean, for it's one of the most common misconceptions out there and keeps coming back like a weed.

It doesn't mean a travelling worker.  Rather it's as described in the previous posts, as in the system of apprentices, journeymen and masters.