The Porter

In their time

Porters carried goods by hand, on their backs or by barrow between quays, markets, warehouses and shops, and in larger towns they were numerous. In some busy ports, notably London, they came to be organised in fellowships with fixed charges for set loads, though formal licensing was mostly a later development. The work was unskilled but steady, and porters answered to the merchants who hired them and to town rules on fees and conduct.