Archaic occupation 1700s-1800s
What was a besom maker?
A besom maker bound birch twigs to a handle to make besoms, the standard household broom before machine-made brushes. It was a heathland and woodland trade, so besom makers cluster in particular parishes and often double as general woodsmen. You will find the term in British records, mostly 1700s-1800s.
Hit a term like this in a record you are working on? AncestorIQ reads the record and explains terms like this in context. See how Deep Research works. Stuck on the ancestor as well as the wording? Start with how to work a genealogy brick wall.
Related terms
Browse the full genealogy records glossary for more occupations, causes of death, and legal terms.
FAQs
What is a besom maker in modern terms?+
A broom maker. Treat the match as a guide rather than a swap: tools and markets changed, so read the title against the record's own date (1700s-1800s).
Why do census occupation columns use words nobody says now?+
Enumerators wrote down whatever the household told them, spelled by ear, and local trade slang went straight onto the form. Directories, apprenticeship papers, and wills often carry the fuller wording for the same person.
Where do these definitions come from?+
They are drawn from period dictionaries, government archive glossaries, and standard genealogy references, cross-checked against each other; provenance is documented with the dataset. Inside AncestorIQ, Deep Research reads the record itself and explains terms like this in context, against your ancestor's own document.
Stop translating old records by hand.
AncestorIQ reads the record and explains terms like this in context: the occupation column, the cause on the certificate, the clause in the will. Add one ancestor and let Deep Research do the reading.
No credit card needed. Your tree stays yours.
