by Frank Tough
University of Alberta
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Click the icon at left for the Table of Contents of this issue.
No.
Tasks Performed
Type of Labour
Post Servants
Post Servants and Indians
Indians
No. Days Task Referenced
Skilled and Specialized
General
Cooper
Tinsmith
Blacksmith
Carpenter
Boatbuilder
Sailmaker
Sawyer
Dog Driver
Fisherman
1
Serving regales/rations
✓
✓
55
2
Making or repairing kettle kegs and casks
✓
✓
54
3
Making or repairing tin kettles
✓
✓
52
4
Dressing staves for sugar kegs
✓
✓
43
5
Making packing cases
✓
✓
✓
54
6
Making windows
✓
✓
12
7
Making iron tracking pairs
✓
✓
2
8
Building or repairing boats
✓
✓
✓
172
9
Cutting boat wood
✓
✓
✓
109
10
Cutting (fire) wood
✓
✓
✓
✓
113
11
Sewing sails
✓
✓
✓
94
12
Fishing
✓
✓
✓
✓
40
13
Hauling wood
✓
✓
✓
105
14
Hunting
✓
✓
✓
99
15
Repairing dog harnesses
✓
✓
21
16
Making door handles and latches
✓
✓
10
17
River fishing
✓
✓
✓
154
18
Making knives
✓
✓
4
19
Making doors
✓
✓
✓
53
20
Making sauce pan handles
✓
✓
7
21
Making or repairing dog sledges
✓
✓
✓
✓
19
22
Making or repairing nets
✓
✓
✓
118
23
Making clasps
✓
✓
3
24
Making hinges
✓
✓
9
25
Hauling hay
✓
✓
26
26
Travelling for deliveries
✓
✓
✓
23
27
Making wood hauling tracks
✓
✓
17
28
Making Pomatum boxes
✓
✓
5
29
Tying quills
✓
✓
3
30
Preparing for fishing/hunting
✓
✓
✓
4
31
Making candlesticks
✓
✓
3
32
Making pans
✓
✓
✓
✓
68
33
Sweeping stove pipes
✓
✓
9
34
Ironwork for boats
✓
✓
✓
18
35
Investigating workplace issues
✓
✓
3
36
Repairing roofs
✓
✓
✓
✓
7
37
Repairing guns and traps
✓
✓
12
38
Repairing Indian guns and traps
✓
✓
9
39
Building and repairing stoves
✓
✓
20
40
Digging graves
✓
✓
1
41
Sundry ironwork repairs
✓
✓
36
42
Ice cutting
✓
✓
23
43
Hauling ice
✓
✓
6
44
Making tin lamps
✓
✓
7
45
Clearing snow
✓
✓
7
46
Plastering icehouse
✓
✓
1
47
Making glass cases
✓
✓
4
48
Packing fish and venison
✓
✓
6
49
Working in store or shop
✓
✓
✓
✓
80
50
Clearing wood hauling track
✓
✓
✓
15
51
Dressing wood for new house
✓
✓
91
52
Stowing wood
✓
✓
✓
8
53
Filling shot
✓
✓
5
54
Making stove pipes
✓
✓
30
55
Making oars
✓
✓
✓
18
56
Making cases for furs
✓
✓
15
57
Making gun cases
✓
✓
4
58
Making dog meat
✓
✓
4
59
Making putty
✓
✓
2
60
Making tea pots
✓
✓
✓
18
61
Making hunting skiff
✓
✓
7
62
Taking down woodcutting house
✓
✓
6
63
Repairing water buckets
✓
✓
4
64
Packing
✓
✓
20
65
Caulking new house
✓
✓
✓
11
66
Making pint porringers
✓
✓
✓
16
67
Filling whole pieces
✓
✓
6
68
Making drain boxes
✓
✓
10
69
Taking inventory of iron
✓
✓
1
70
Bundling iron for districts
✓
✓
4
71
Filling molasses
✓
✓
4
72
Making spears (blacksmith)
✓
✓
4
73
Working in the kitchen
✓
✓
2
74
Working at Schooner
✓
✓
✓
24
75
Working at sundry outside jobs
✓
✓
✓
8
76
Squaring wood for partition of new house
✓
✓
✓
1
77
Making wedges
✓
✓
7
78
Making or repairing ironwork for boats
✓
✓
28
79
Preparing rafting party
✓
✓
3
80
Carting manure or soil to gardens
✓
✓
16
81
Supplying provision shed
✓
✓
5
82
Packing feathers
✓
✓
3
83
Hauling seine
✓
✓
2
84
Unloading rafts
✓
✓
26
85
Digging gardens
✓
✓
✓
18
86
Oiling boat covers
✓
✓
3
87
Sweeping Fort
✓
✓
18
88
Varnishing schooner decks
✓
✓
3
89
Cleaning blubber house
✓
✓
3
90
Doing indoor work
✓
✓
3
91
Piling logs
✓
✓
2
92
Laying drain boxes
✓
1
93
Clearing off chips
✓
✓
2
94
Rafting wood
✓
✓
✓
✓
24
95
Preparing wood for repairing ships
✓
✓
2
96
Making/reparing goose casks
✓
✓
17
97
Making furnace
✓
✓
3
98
River mourings and riggings
✓
✓
6
99
Planting turnips
✓
✓
6
100
Putting down small ships
✓
✓
6
101
Working on schooner rigging
✓
✓
4
102
Repairing hay carts
✓
✓
1
103
Repairing tools
✓
✓
✓
7
104
Making blubber boxes
✓
✓
14
105
Making waterboard for a new house
✓
✓
4
106
Making coffins
✓
✓
3
107
Building new house
✓
✓
98
108
Haymaking
✓
✓
✓
50
109
Preparing for travel
✓
✓
6
110
Weeding gardens
✓
✓
6
111
Whaling
✓
✓
10
112
Cutting wood for houses
✓
✓
1
113
Going off for blubber
✓
6
114
Branding stoves
✓
✓
3
115
Discharging schooner
✓
✓
13
116
Working in the gardens
✓
✓
6
117
Assisting tinsmiths
✓
✓
2
118
Painting windows
✓
✓
1
119
Making firestarts
✓
✓
6
120
Repairing river bank face
✓
✓
✓
9
121
Loading hay
✓
✓
2
122
Filling turf around buildings
✓
✓
11
123
Putting up a beacon
✓
✓
4
124
Travelling for hay
✓
14
125
Scraping spar and blocks
✓
2
126
Working on ballast
✓
✓
3
127
Pickling geese
✓
✓
2
128
Loading boats
✓
✓
1
129
Working mud for new oven
✓
✓
4
130
Building and repairing ovens
✓
✓
19
131
Hauling up boats
✓
✓
15
132
Digging root vegetables
✓
✓
8
133
Carrying root vegetables
✓
✓
9
134
Tearing down summer mess room
✓
✓
6
135
Making drain at sawpile
✓
✓
6
136
Sewing or repairing shot bags
✓
✓
24
137
Hanging fish
✓
✓
✓
3
138
Assisting blacksmith
✓
✓
1
139
Making lanterns
✓
✓
6
140
Recovering body from drowning
✓
✓
8
141
Mudding houses
✓
✓
4
142
Housing cattle
✓
✓
1
143
Clearing ice house
✓
✓
6
144
Slaughtering [unspecified]
✓
✓
11
145
Preparing and building firewood shanty
✓
✓
11
146
Cutting up beef
✓
✓
4
147
Making wooden ox sledges
✓
✓
6
148
Making or repairing firewood sledge
✓
✓
12
149
Making curtain rods
✓
✓
6
150
Making brasswork for windows
✓
✓
10
151
Dressing wood for dog sleds
✓
✓
4
152
Making springs for doors
✓
✓
3
153
Dressing weatherboards
✓
✓
4
Totals
97
7
8
21
19
8
1
3
2
5
140
9
20
2825
Percent of tasks
83
5
12
Percent of actual number days working on tasks
92
2
6
Page revised: 22 February 2021