gprhomes

It was quite acceptable for children to work as soon as they were able to do so. only rich children had the benefit of an education.

In the countryside little children started work early scaring off birds from newly sown seeds or keeping an eye on the animals. In the towns they ran errands or were employed in simple tasks in shops.

Orphans (both parents had died) or pauper children (their parents could not afford to look after them) usually went to the workhouse and might be sent on from here to live and work at one the new manufactories.

There was great demand for small boys to sweep chimneys. Coal had replaced wood as the most widely used fuel for heating. Fireplaces and chimneys were smaller. But the poor boys suffered cruel treatment from their masters. Their knees and elbows rubbed raw and bled. Fires were often lit under their feet to encourage them up the chimney and they were frequently beaten. They lived in dreadful conditions - often sleeping under rags in an attic.

What is the boy carrying?

		Georgian Homes for the not so rich In early industrial England a number of people lived in great poverty. There were no trades unions. Men could be put out of work at the whim of the boss. In the countryside wages were low and enclosures taking away common land where people had grazed a few animals. TheWorkhouse Act in early Georgian times created somewhere for the poor to go, but they were very grim places with strict rules and little food. What is happening in the picture? Click the picture for an answer.
In the new and growing industrial towns whole families were squashed into one or two rooms.
It was quite acceptable for children to work as soon as they were able to do so. only rich children had the benefit of an education. In the countryside little children started work early scaring off birds from newly sown seeds or keeping an eye on the animals. In the towns they ran errands or were employed in simple tasks in shops. Orphans (both parents had died) or pauper children (their parents could not afford to look after them) usually went to the workhouse and might be sent on from here to live and work at one the new manufactories. There was great demand for small boys to sweep chimneys. Coal had replaced wood as the most widely used fuel for heating. Fireplaces and chimneys were smaller. But the poor boys suffered cruel treatment from their masters. Their knees and elbows rubbed raw and bled. Fires were often lit under their feet to encourage them up the chimney and they were frequently beaten. They lived in dreadful conditions - often sleeping under rags in an attic. What is the boy carrying?
		You would see lots of chimney sweeps and their boys as you walked along the street of a Georgian town.
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