Tracing Your Servant Ancestors

By Michelle Higgs

The lives of Victorian servants

Did you know that female servants usually had to pay for their own clothing, and that their employers could dictate their style of dress and hairstyle? Or that footmen were paid more if they were a specified height or had good calves?

You can find out more about daily life for Victorian servants in this new book. It describes the servants' world, and the conditions they lived and worked in, together with detailed information about the employers; the social hierarchy within the servant class; and the recruitment, training and responsibilities of servants. It also includes a comprehensive guide to the sources that can be used to trace servant ancestors.

Well illustrated with 40 images, this book is ideal for anyone with a servant in their family tree. It will also appeal to anyone interested in delving into Victorian social history.