We’re holding a conference on the afternoon of the 17th of October in the University of London, followed by a reception, to give our BIFMO audience the opportunity to discover and engage with our online resource and participate in a discussion about future developmental plans. The four-hour conference will include brief presentations from three members of BIFMO staff describing the work they are carrying out.

Early modern London gave birth to opportunities for middle class women to work beyond the domestic sphere. Single women were employed in service industries such as coffee houses and inns, and as shopkeepers, while married women often worked side-by-side in business with their husbands, buying and selling and managing company affairs. In order to work in a skilled occupation or trade in London, however, membership in a City livery company was required. The most common method of gaining this was through apprenticeship or patrimony, both of which were mostly in the reserve of men.

by Laurie Lindey (BIFMO Research Officer), 20 May 2019.

Welcome to the BIFMO blog where you will find news about the ways the project is developing, recent discoveries of British and Irish furniture makers, and potted histories.