Occupations of Early Massachusetts Settlers

More Than 100 Types of Work Given for Colonial Immigrants

© Rosemary E. Bachelor

A list of more than 100 occupations and trades for Colonial Massachusetts settlers shows the most common were for farmers, carpenters, tailors, merchants and ministers.

Roughly 6,000 Colonial settlers are listed in Charles H. Pope’s 1900 book, Pioneers of Massachusetts, and occupations are given for about 1,725 of them.

More Ministers Than Doctors

The top 10 are planters, farmers and husbandmen (323), carpenters, joiners and housewrights (168), tailors (115), merchants and mercers (103), ministers (91), shoemakers and cordwainers (81), mariners and sea captains (75), weavers, say-makers and websters (62), coopers (54), and ship carpenters and shipwrights (52),

Next on the list are tanners and curriers (41), blacksmiths (39), fishermen (34), innholders, vintners and ordinary keepers (30), millers (28), bricklayers and brickmakers (23), physicians and surgeons/chirurgeons (21), clothiers (20), bakers (19), sawyers (18), whyeelwrights (16), schoolmasters (15), glovers (15), butchers (14), millwrights (13), boatmen, ferrymen or lightermen (13), sailors (12), rope or cord makers (11), masons and plasterers (11) and drapers (10).

Bakers and Candle Makers

The following occupations belonged to at least more than two of these early immigrants: malsters, gunsmiths, hatters, wool-carders, barbers, turners, brewers, chandlers, haberdashers, ironmongers, glaziers, lawyers, cutlers, scriveners, salters, pewterers, apothecaries, soap-boilers, locksmiths, starchmakers, armourers, glassmen, fishmongers, sail makers, skinners and painters.

There were two each for the following occupations: saddlers, notaries, tray makers, nailers (nail makers), potters, slaters, flaxmen, felmongers, pipe-stave makers, fullers, grocers and printers.

Where Are the Butchers?

For the immigrants listed by Banks there was only one each for these occupations: parchment maker, calinder, bookseller, beehive maker, plow-wright, stationer, dyer, farrier, girdler, sieve maker, oatmeal maker, ostler, goldsmith, confectioner, pin maker, bookbinder, artist (probably a surveyor), cannonier, upholsterer, thacker, distiller, fineryman, limeburner, cow-leech, chimney sweeper, clapboard ryver, collier and collar-maker.

An interesting aside is that Pope gives social class designations for 379 of the people listed in his book. They are: gentlemen, ladies, esquires and knights (117), yeomen (122) and servants and laborers (140).

Farmers Versus Planters

It would appear that Pope’s list is somewhat skewed, especially in the top categories. It would have been common for early ship passengers who were merchants, professionals or tradesmen to be listed with their occupations, but trades or occupations would not have been given for most of these passengers and, indeed, we do not have them for more than 4,000 other passengers listed by Pope. One can assume that many of them were farmers, or people who disembarked in Boston not knowing what work they would find.

It is also important to note the difference between planters and farmers. A large number of the “gentlemen” listed by Pope would have been planters. They came with enough money to purchase huge tracts of land, hoping that would establish them and their descendants as people of prominence and power.


The copyright of the article Occupations of Early Massachusetts Settlers in Colonial America is owned by Rosemary E. Bachelor. Permission to republish Occupations of Early Massachusetts Settlers in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.





Post this Article to facebook Add this Article to del.icio.us! Digg this Article furl this Article Add this Article to Reddit Add this Article to Technorati Add this Article to Newsvine Add this Article to Windows Live Add this Article to Yahoo Add this Article to StumbleUpon Add this Article to BlinkLists Add this Article to Spurl Add this Article to Google Add this Article to Ask Add this Article to Squidoo