The occupational distribution of foundling apprentices during the English Industrial Revolution

This article presents a new analysis of the distribution apprenticeships brokered by London Foundling Hospital, England’s pre-eminent charitable foundation in eighteenth century for orphaned and abandoned children. It explores similarities differences between charity apprenticeship parish systems supplying pauper children’s labour during critical first phase English Industrial Revolution, within wider European context. The results this illustrate that foundling children were set to work agriculture, mainly northern England, variety small manufacturing retailing industries area. For short time, girls sent batches textile factories North Midlands, but practice was soon ended over concerns welfare. extensive patronage networks Hospital Governors inspectors, location provincial branch hospitals up cope with high volume so-called ‘General Reception’ children, gendered expectations life courses labouring poor most significant factors determining where as apprentices, how they employed.