}
Pedlars
English, Scottish and Jewish pedlars were a common sight in the 1800s. They carried their goods in a box, and walked from town to town. Pedlars often sold cheap but attractive or useful goods, such as hardware, haberdashery, silver and jewellery.
The Jewish pedlar is the stereotype, although there were as many English and Scottish pedlars as Jewish. The Jewish community in Bristol was small at this time, although it was able to support a synagogue by the 1750s. Many of those who came to Bristol at this time seem to be from Germany, Poland and Russia. Most came as itinerant pedlars and made a living from selling old clothes and small goods such as haberdashery, ribbons, quill pens and jewellery. This was an easy choice for many of the poor immigrants because it required no apprenticeship, a pedlar's licence was cheap and the stock could be bought for a small sum of money.
A pedlar's life was precarious; they were open to attack physically and verbally. Sometimes this may have been racist : other times simply because a pedlar was alone and carrying a stock of goods worth stealing.
Some pedlars went on to greater things: Lazarus Jacobs came to Bristol from Frankfurt-am-Main in about 1760. He started as an itinerant glasscutter and seller of second-hand goods and cloth at Temple Fair. By 1774 he had set up a glass-engraving business Temple Street, and his son Isaac began manufacturing the iconic 'Bristol Blue' glassware.
The Jewish pedlar is the stereotype, although there were as many English and Scottish pedlars as Jewish. The Jewish community in Bristol was small at this time, although it was able to support a synagogue by the 1750s. Many of those who came to Bristol at this time seem to be from Germany, Poland and Russia. Most came as itinerant pedlars and made a living from selling old clothes and small goods such as haberdashery, ribbons, quill pens and jewellery. This was an easy choice for many of the poor immigrants because it required no apprenticeship, a pedlar's licence was cheap and the stock could be bought for a small sum of money.
A pedlar's life was precarious; they were open to attack physically and verbally. Sometimes this may have been racist : other times simply because a pedlar was alone and carrying a stock of goods worth stealing.
Some pedlars went on to greater things: Lazarus Jacobs came to Bristol from Frankfurt-am-Main in about 1760. He started as an itinerant glasscutter and seller of second-hand goods and cloth at Temple Fair. By 1774 he had set up a glass-engraving business Temple Street, and his son Isaac began manufacturing the iconic 'Bristol Blue' glassware.