Real and Personal Estate Value by Occupation

The 1860 Census lists ninety-five occupations for white adult males. The most common occupations are farmers (33%), day laborers (8%), coopers (3%), teamsters (3%) farm laborers (2%), and merchants (2%). The prevalence of these occupations is a testimony to the prominence of agriculture in and around Port Washington. There are numerous skilled craftsmen practicing a variety of skills, such as blacksmiths, carpenters, masons, millers, shoemakers, tailors and wagon makers, among others. These collectively indicate that Port Washington was a self-sufficient community. There is a small cadre of administrators. A small number of occupations attest to the modest waterfront activity on Lake Michigan – two fisherman, seven sailors and a ship’s carpenter. The local newspaper industry includes three editors, six printers and two printers apprentices. The town’s financial and legal establishment consists of two bankers and eight lawyers.

Occupations of women include two washerwomen, two midwives, three milliners (hat makers), four schoolteachers, five farmers, and one each of lighthouse keeper, clerk, dressmaker, servant girl, and working woman. Forty-four of the women (7%) worked as domestics (housekeepers and/or servants for other family households).  Most women (89%) do not have an occupation listed. These women worked primarily as housekeepers, assisting their husbands with their professions (for example, farmer’s wives), and raising children. Some of the women are older women in the care of their families.

The 1860 Census lists real estate and personal property values for 475 people, which is 38% of the adult population. The average combined real and personal estate value is $1,497 per adult person having assets listed in the census. The wealthiest person in Port Washington at that time was Barnum Blake, a merchant (from Massachusetts) who had $30,000 in real estate and $10,000 in personal property.

As would be expected, some of the lowest paying occupations are laborers, although day laborers tend to make more than laborers who work exclusively on other people’s farms. Other farming related professions such as teamsters and coopers are also low pay occupations. Skilled workers such as masons, shoemakers and carpenters are paid better for their specialized craft skills. If we consider those with combined real estate and personal property above $1,000 (and this is a designation based upon the sample provided here), farmers in Port Washington at this time can be considered as having middle class status. The average farmer had about $1,200 in property. In actuality the holdings of farmers span a large range of net worth, many have little to nothing, to a few wealthy farmers, such as Isaac Loomis ($8,000), Leperecht Petzold ($9,000) and Orlando Watrons ($10,000).

Other well-paying occupations in Port Washington in 1860 include millers, saloon keepers and physicians. Tavern keepers are doing substantially better than saloon keepers, having nearly $1,000 more in net worth on average. If we consider those with combined real estate and personal property above $3,000 (and again, this is based on the sample provided here), we can define those occupations with wealthy upper-class status. The best paying occupations in Port Washington in 1860 are lawyers, saw millers, brewers, merchants and bankers.