We pick up again on John Darroch's story as he arrives in Glasgow to start his apprenticeship. Things must have felt very different, coming from the tiny village of Clachan to the largest city in Scotland. He made his way to the smithy where he would apprentice under a master blacksmith.
Blacksmith apprentices needed to meet stringent requirements. Each committed to “seven years at the hands of a master blacksmith…, be under total control of his master, remain single, keep his master’s secrets, and behave himself.”[1] In spite of the lengthy and rigorous training period, there were many advantages to being a blacksmith.
Blacksmiths were respected citizens. They were literate and proficient in mathematics in order to keep financial accounts. They understood measurements and the designs of tools and implements. Due to this education, they often served in community roles such as parish clerks or overseers of the poor. Blacksmiths themselves could anticipate a good income—about four times that of an agricultural worker. On top of all that, agriculture and industry ensured lots of work for a skilled smith.
There were also occupational hazards. Iron dust combined with the hot, damp conditions to trigger consumptive-like diseases, commonly noted on death certificates. Blacksmiths were susceptible to injuries from working around the forge or being kicked or crushed by a horse while doing farrier work. All considered, however, a seven-year apprenticeship was a sound investment in John's future. A bonus he might not have anticipated was meeting his future wife when she came later to work for the lady of the house.
The following vignette imagines what it was like for John to start his new career as a twenty-year-old apprentice. Many thanks to my mother, Beth Robertson, for writing this story.
As John walked through Glasgow, he was amazed at the number of people. Some walked and others rode trams drawn by Clydesdale horses. Displaced Highlanders and Irish formed a large part of the population. The smells, sounds, and sights enveloped John, in contrast to the quiet and clean air of his rural home of Clachan. At his feet, open sewers carried away odiferous human waste. The noise of shipbuilding rang out and the city was filled with the smoke of industry. Buildings rose up around him—stone churches, universities, and tenement houses. The sights presented a contrast between progress and squalor.
John eventually arrived at the shop of the master blacksmith. Young boys were peering through the darkened door of the smithy, where older men had gathered within. As John approached, the boys stepped back. He peered into the dim light of the shop. The forge was a central meeting place, even for those with no business to transact. The men scarcely glanced up as they continued their discussions. This would be his workplace for the next seven years.
As John entered, his nostrils filled with the smell of hot metal, the acrid scent of burning coals, and a steamy waft of scorching steel being plunged into water. Clanging hammers pounded red-hot iron into shape. It was here that useful pieces emerged: nails, horseshoes, wheels, scythes, cowbells, ploughshares, and kitchenware. Broken tools were repaired and utensils were given new life. Horses waited patiently to be shod. A heavy leather apron hung near the door as if inviting John into the trade. This would be his workplace for the next seven years.
In the ensuing months and years, John became familiar with the smithy and the master's house. In the adjacent home, young domestics worked. Fraternizing with female servants was frowned upon, but who can stop a young man and a young woman from casting a glance, sharing a shy smile, or perhaps, in passing, even risking a touch of the hand? John noticed a pretty, young domestic named Agnes. In time, he would catch her eye, and she would return his fleeting look.
Perhaps one day, he hoped, she would bring a cooking pot from the kitchen to be repaired.
John thrived in his chosen career. His master must have been pleased with John’s work as we will see in an upcoming post. The next one, however, will explore Agnes's work as a domestic.
References:
[1] Marcia Evans, The Place of the Rural Blacksmith in Parish Life 1500 – 1900 (Taunton: The Somerset & Dorset Family History Society, 1998), 5.
[2] Image from "The Life of a Blacksmith in the 1800s: (Role, Jobs, Tools & Clothing)" https://workingtheflame.com/blacksmith-life-1800s, retrieved December 22, 2022.