Abstract copyright UK Data Service and data collection copyright owner.

The database provides a comprehensive index of the apprenticeship bindings for the Merchant Taylors' Company, London's largest guild, from 1583-1800. The records are a unique and substantial source of information about the social, geographical and familial background of each apprentice, providing the name, trade and parish of the father of each apprentice, the location in London of the master, and in many cases the trade in which the apprentice was to be trained. The index contains over 63,000 entries and is substantially the largest of the London companies operating in the early modern period. It provides an invaluable resource for economic and social history. The Excel file includes a user guide on one of the worksheets, so is documentation as well as data Although based in London, the company drew its apprentices from across England and sometimes further afield, giving the data a national scope. The data has been published in hard copy by the British Record Society.  Making it available online in electronic form will facilitate academic analysis. 

Main Topics:

Apprentices; early modern history; urban history; employment training

No sampling (total universe)

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