Old Time Occupations beginning with the letter W

Ships passenger lists, census returns and other documents used in genealogy may give an ancestor’s occupation, this list gives more modern interpretations of those terms.

Wagoner – teamster not for hire
Wainwright – wagon maker
Waiter – customs officer or tide waiter; one who waited on the tide to collect duty on goods brought in
Walker – fuller; cloth trampler or cleaner
Webber/Webster – weaver; loom operator
Wharfinger – owner of a wharf
Wheelwright – builder/repairer of wagon wheels, carriages etc.
Whitcher – maker of chests
Whitesmith – tinsmith; worker of iron who finishes or polishes the work
Whittawer – one who tans skin into white leather
Wonkey-scoop – driver who operates a one horse scoop
Wright – workman, especially a construction worker ie. wheelwright

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