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Ambition and Work
Exploring
the ambitions of our ancestors
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Opportunity
Before the Industrial
Revolution, our ancestors worked in a rural world confined by immediate neighbourhood.
Their horizons were naturally limited. Journeys of even a few miles were
difficult. Opportunities for work were limited to the agricultural tasks of the
neighbourhood. Those who did not own or lease their own land, offered their
services to those who did. Thus many of our ancestors appear
in the census records as ‘agricultural labourers’. Sometimes they were forced
to take more desperate measures to survive, such as our ancestors poachers
in the fourteenth and fifteenth century who were fined, outlawed or even excommunicated
Yet even in the
fourteenth century, our family looked south from the valley of Farndale, and
emigrated to Sheriff
Hutton, York and Doncaster. Within a few
centuries of their serfdom in Farndale, three generations of Johannis de Farendale had found work as saddler, and butcher and become
freemen of the City of York from 1363. By 1355, William Farndale (FAR00038)
had become chaplain of Doncaster Parish and by 1396 was its vicar.
Military
opportunity …
Aspiration
John
Christopher Farndale the Elder (FAR00244) was born
in Whitby probably to a family who knew life at sea. His mother claimed a pension
from the Royal Hospital Chelsea after his father had died, so his father may
have worked for the Royal Navy, possibly as a carpenter. John Christopher would
become a Master Mariner, an ambitious sea captain commanding
collier brigs along the coast, and two of his sons would in time become
Master Mariners themselves, and another son was a ship broker’s clerk.
Emigrations
to Canada, Australia, New Zealand
…
Determination
William Farndale
(FAR00038)
was chaplain of Doncaster Parish by 1355. Doncaster was badly impacted by the
Black Death which hit the down in about 1347. William must have survived the
Black Death. Perhaps he was already a chaplain by the time of the Black Death
and his pastoral skills would have been tested to their limit. Perhaps having
survived the Black Death, he was driven to his future success.
Apprenticeship
Lark Rise, Flora Thomson, Chapter II, A Hamlet Childhood:
Edmund must be
apprenticed to a good trade—a carpenter's, perhaps—for if a man had a good
trade in his hands he was always sure of a living.
Laura might become a school-teacher, or, if that
proved impossible, a children's nurse in a good family. But, first and
foremost, the family must move from Lark Rise to a house in the market town.
John Chistopher
Farndale the Younger (FAR00308) became a
sea apprentice by the age of 15. As a teenager, it is perhaps not surprising
that he was not entirely focused on his future at that stage. The Hull Packet, 28 February 1845 reported: CAUTION TO APPRENTICES. JUSTICE ROOM, WHITBY. FEB
19. Before Thos Fishburn, and John Chapman, Esqrs. On
Saturday four sea apprentices, named Matthew Walker, John Christopher Farndale,
Isaac Wilson, and Thomas Hill, where charged with absenting themselves from the
ship Great Britain, belonging to Mr Joseph Tindale, of Whitby. The charge was
clearly proved by the master, and the lads failing to show any justifiable
cause for their misconduct, were committed to Northallerton for one month’s
hard labour. We hope this punishment will bring the young delinquents to a
sense of their duty, and act as a warning to others. It is notorious that the
owners of vessels in Whitby harbour, particularly the owner of the Great
Britain, have suffered considerably by the incorrigible conduct of their
apprentices; and Mr Tynedale is, in our opinion, worthy of praise for thus
stepping forward to put a check on such proceedings. Yet John clearly had
ambition because in time, he would become a master mariner and captained
vessels trading across the Baltic and to Russia.
Achievement
Joseph Farndale
(FAR00350B)
was born in 1842 in Whitby. His father was an agricultural labourer. By the age
of 19, in 1861, Joseph was working as a drainer at Eskdaleside and like his
father, he began work in the fields. The Sheffield Independent, 15 March 1899 told the story of his path to become Chief Constable of Birmingham
City Police: … His cousin, who still resides and works in the midst of those
rural scenes of Yorkshire which the smart member of the Farndale family quitted
to earn fame and fortune, tells that young Joseph Farndale was at work
in the fields one day, at the tail of the dung cart, when some word of
blame brought his natural dislike of the occupation to a head, and throwing
down the fork, he explained, “I'll go for a policeman!” No sooner said than
done. He joined the force in a neighbouring town that very day and soon became
a particularly capable constable. From Middlesbrough Farndale passed to
Chesterfield, now well on the path of rapid promotion. He was Chief Constable
of Leicester for a few years, and then obtained the valuable Birmingham
appointment. He was particularly respected from his rising ‘through the
ranks’ to become head of the Birmingham City Police. His nephew, also Joseph
Farndale (FAR00463)
similarly joined the Halifax Police as a police constable in 1884 and spent
nine years on the beat, though rising quickly to sergeant and detective, before
become Chief Constable of Margate, York and then Bradford Police.
Jim Farndale (FAR00607) was the
sixth born of a family of twelve to Martin, who farmed at Tidkinhow. He worked for local farmers, as a stockman,
and for a while as a miner, but opportunities were limited. In 1911, the year
before the Titanic sank on the same route, he crossed the Atlantic to follow
other members of his family to Alberta. He decided to move south into USA and
sought every opportunity to improve his education, finding a place at Valpraiso University (‘Valpro’)
in Indiana. He went to France in the army in 1917 and returned to find work as
a carpenter. He worked in an architect’s office for a while. Despite ill health
he worked hard and by the 1930s he was actively involved in the Boulder Dam Project,
fighting for the rights of those working on the project through the Carpenter’s
Union. By 1936 he was elected for the first of two terms on the Nevada Assembly
and from 1942 to 1946 he became state senator. In 1945 he wrote to his brother:
I enjoy this work very much as I have always very much interested in
political matters and matters concerning government. There is of course quite a
bit of honour in being a member of the Legislature. We don't meet every year
but once in two years, then only for 60 days. There is always a lot to do. Any
member can introduce bills and I always get more done than average, because I
work harder than most of them.