Table 4.3.1
Turn of the nineteenth century
Washing Earnings per customer: 15-25s.
Purchasing power (either/or)
| Customers | Earnings/season | Pork(bbl.) | Bread(cwt.) | Flour(bbl.) | Butter(lb.) | Molasses(gal.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | £2.5-£3.15 | 0.3-0.6 | 1.3-2.2 | 0.8-1.4 | 38.6-64.3 | 16.4-27.3 |
| 5 | £3.15-6.5 | 0.6-1 | 2.2-3.7 | 1.4-2.3 | 64.3-107.1 | 27.3-45.5 |
| 10 | £7.10-12.10 | 1.2-1.9 | 4.4-7.4 | 2.7-4.5 | 128.6-214.3 | 54.5-90.9 |
Seasonal wages of youngster (for comparison): £15-£18
Sample package of provisions for high-end earnings of £12.10
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork (1 bbl.) | 6 | 9 | 0 | |
| Bread (1 cwt.) | 1 | 14 | 0 | |
| Flour (1 bbl.) | 2 | 15 | 0 | |
| Butter (10 lb.) | 0 | 11 | 8 | |
| Molasses (7 gal.) | 0 | 19 | 3 | |
| Total | 12 | 8 | 11 (1s. 1d. remaining) | |
Table 4.3.2
1820 Washing Earnings per customer: 18s.
Purchasing power (either/or)
| Customers | Earnings/season | Pork(bbl.) | Bread(cwt.) | Flour(bbl.) | Butter(lb.) | Molasses(gal.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | £2.14 | 0.5 | 1.9 | 1.4 | 46.3 | — |
| 5 | £4.10 | 0.9 | 3.2 | 2.3 | 77.1 | — |
| 10 | £9 | 1.7 | 6.4 | 4.6 | 154.3 | — |
Seasonal wages of youngster (for comparison): £14
Sample package of provisions for high-end earnings of £9
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork (1 bbl.) | 5 | 5 | 0 | |
| Bread (1 cwt.) | 1 | 8 | 0 | |
| Flour (1 bbl.) | 1 | 19 | 0 | |
| Butter (6 lb.) | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| Molasses | — | |||
| Total | 8 | 19 | 0 (1s. remaining) | |
Table 4.3.3
1818 Washing and sewing combined Earnings per customer: £2.17.6
Purchasing power (either/or)
| Customers | Earnings/season | Pork(bbl.) | Bread(cwt.) | Flour(bbl.) | Butter(lb.) | Molasses(gal.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | £8.12.16 | 1.3 | 4.6 | 2.5 | 104 | 38.5 |
| 5 | £14.7.6 | 2.2 | 7.6 | 4.1 | 172.5 | 63.9 |
| 10 | £28.15 | 4.4 | 15.1 | 8.2 | 345.0 | 127.8 |
Seasonal wages of youngster (for comparison): £12-£15
Sample package of provisions for high-end earnings of £28.15
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork (2 bbl.) | 13 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bread (2 cwt.) | 3 | 16 | 0 | |
| Flour (2 bbl.) | 7 | 0 | 0 | |
| Butter (32 lb.) | 2 | 13 | 4 | |
| Molasses (10 gal.) | 2 | 5 | 0 | |
| Total | 28 | 14 | 4 (8d. remaining) | |
Sample package of provisions for earnings of £20.2.6 (7 customers)
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork (2 bbl.) | 13 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bread (1 cwt.) | 1 | 18 | 0 | |
| Flour (1 bbl.) | 3 | 10 | 0 | |
| Butter (10 lb.) | 0 | 16 | 8 | |
| Molasses (4 gal.) | 0 | 18 | 0 | |
| Total | 20 | 2 | 8 (2d. short) | |
Table 4.3.4
1818 Washing and sewing combined Earnings per customer: £1.9
Purchasing power (either/or)
| Customers | Earnings/season | Pork(bbl.) | Bread(cwt.) | Flour(bbl.) | Butter(lb.) | Molasses(gal.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | £4.7 | 0.9 | 3.2 | 2.1 | 74.6 | 38.7 |
| 5 | £7.5 | 1.5 | 5.4 | 3.5 | 124.3 | 64.4 |
| 10 | £14.10 | 2.9 | 10.7 | 6.9 | 248.6 | 128.9 |
Seasonal wages of youngster (for comparison): £14
Sample package of provisions for high-end earnings of £14.10
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork (2 bbl.) | 10 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bread (1 cwt.) | 1 | 7 | 0 | |
| Flour (1 bbl.) | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| Butter (10 lb.) | 0 | 11 | 8 | |
| Molasses (4 lb.) | 0 | 9 | 0 | |
| Total | 14 | 9 | 8 (4d. remaining) | |
Sample package of provisions for earnings of £10.3 (7 customers)
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pork (1 bbl.) | 5 | 0 | 0 | |
| Bread (2 cwt.) | 2 | 14 | 0 | |
| Flour (1 bbl.) | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| Butter (6 lb.) | 0 | 7 | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 3 | 0 | |
Table 4.3.5
1820s Sewing Piece rates per customer: 3s. 6d.-6s.
Purchasing power (either/or)
| Customers | Earnings/season | Pork(bbl.) | Bread(cwt.) | Flour(bbl.) | Butter(lb.) | Molasses(gal.) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3 | 10s. 6d.-18s. | 0.1-0.2 | 0.4-0.7 | 0.3-0.4 | 9-15.4 | 4.7-8 |
| 5 | 17s. 6d.-£1.10 | 0.2-0.3 | 0.7-1.1 | 0.4-0.7 | 15-25.7 | 7.8-13.3 |
| 10 | £1.15-£3 | 0.4-0.6 | 1.3-2.2 | 0.8-1.4 | 30-51.4 | 15.6-26.7 |
Seasonal wages of youngster (for comparison): £14
Sample package of provisions for high-end earnings of £3
| £ | s | d | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Flour (1 bbl.) | 2 | 2 | 0 | |
| Butter (5 lb.) | 0 | 5 | 10 | |
| Molasses (5 gal.) | 0 | 11 | 3 | |
| Total | 2 | 19 | 1 (11d. remaining) | |
Notes: Throughout this table, earnings and prices have been converted to the format of pounds, shillings, and pence.
The sections of this table falling under the head "purchasing power" indicate the portions of foodstuffs that could be purchased by washerwomen and seamstresses with their earnings. The scenario is based on an either/or selection. For example, at the turn of the nineteenth century, a washerwoman with 10 customers could purchase 1.2 to 1.9 barrels of pork, or 4.4 to 7.4 cwts. of bread, or 2.7 to 4.5 barrels of flour, or 128.6 to 214.3 pounds of butter, or 54.5 to 90.9 gallons of molasses. Foodstuff measures have been rounded to the nearest tenth.
The sample package of provisions, by contrast, shows a combined package of provisions that could be purchased. For example, at the turn of the nineteenth century, the same washerwoman with 10 customers could purchase 1 barrel of pork, 1 hundredweight of bread, 1 barrel of flour, 10 pounds of butter, and 7 gallons of molasses from her earnings and still have 1s. 1d. remaining.
There were slight variations in prices of provisions from district to district on the southern Avalon in any given year, so average prices for the area have been used to calculate the quantities of provisions that could be bought with specific earnings.
Sources: This table is derived from the data in tables 4.1 and 4.2.