Page:A transcript of the first volume, 1538-1636, of the parish register of Chesham in the county of Buckingham.djvu/15

 trade was needed for the large traffic that was carried on in manufactured goods, as well as for some of the simple agricultural operations of the period. The tanners are numerous; and so are the workers in woodenware, described as "turners," "shovelmakers," and "trenchermakers." The woodenware industry is still one of the most important in the town, but the last of the tanneries was done away with about fifty years ago. The millers, the maltmen or maltsters, and the tile-makers and potters represent occupations still carried on in or near Chesham; the dyers, the curriers and the cutlers have passed away. The number of smiths, and carpenters or joiners, seems to point to a considerable demand for craftsmen of these trades. It is somewhat remarkable that only two persons are described as "husbandman," for this class must have been a very large one. Those members of it, however, who needed to be distinguished from other persons of the same name were probably described as of Ashley Green, Chartridge, Latimer, etc., which would sufficiently identify them. The term "yoman," which is applied to three persons, has not been included in the list, because it probably implied social position rather than manner of livelihood. The occupations of pinner and sayer may be noticed as unfamiliar to us now. The pinner was the poundmaster, "pounder" or or "pinder,"—the officer charged. with the duty of impounding stray cattle on behalf of the lord of the manor. The sayer seems to have been the market-assayer, "sayman or "saymaster," whose business was to prevent unwholesome food from being sold in the market.

More than 900 distinct family names are found in the volume. The following are those which most frequently occur:—Byrch, Weedon, Cocke, Ga(a)te, Dell, Gardner, Grover, Harding, and Ware. Of these, Byrch is much the most common, having—counting all the instances of every Christian name-786 entries; and the others range in number of occurrences from 668 for Weedon to 343 for Ware. That these names should be so widely spread affords some indication of the prevalence of local inter-marriage, which has always been characteristic of the neighbourhood.

For the purpose of comparing the family names existent in the district from 1538 to 1636 with those found there at the  present time, I append (Appendix VI.) a list of the names. which occur both in this volume and in the Registers for the year 1900 of the parochial electors of the parishes of Chesham, Chartridge, Latimer, Ashley Green and Chesham Bois. The original parish of Chesham was in 1897 and 1899 divided into the four parishes first named, and the parish of Chesham Bois is included by me in the district because the connexion and intercommunication between Chesham and Chesham Bois has always been very intimate.

Of the nine names above mentioned as those which are most frequently found in this transcript, Birch is still common; Dell and Harding are fairly numerous; Weedon, Gardner, Grover and Ware have now few representatives; Cocke survives only in the patronymic Cox; and Ga(a)te has quite died out.

Of the other names now most common in the district, Gomm, Dwight and Brandom(n) do not occur at all in the transcript; Howard occurs in one entry; Darvell, Reynolds and Bates are found twice; there are a few instances in each