Domestic?

[mugwortismy cat]

This is possibly a very silly question, but I do ponder it quite often, especially when (like now) I am transcribing numbers of servants in Hotels, Pubs, Private Households, and in Institutions of all kinds. They are all noted as servants in the relationship column, some of them merely General Servants, others are Housemaids, or Butlers, or Waiters. They are then all further noted as Domestic.

If they weren't Domestic what would they be? I wondered if the alternative was Inistitutional, but servants in Institutions are also noted as Domestics. Other silly words spring to mind, such as Industrial but factory hands aren't described as servants. It's obviously not to do with 'living-in' as those living-out are still domestic.

I assumed they were Domestic Servants as opposed to Civil Servants, but Civil Servants are Customs men and such like who would hardly be confused with a poor Kitchenmaid.

What is the answer?

 

[Doug]

I have seen farm labourers described as outdoor servant.

 

[Archie's Mum]

I would think that a ‘domestic’ was someone in ‘domestic service’, encompassing all areas of domestic work in a household. Someone in domestic service could be, housemaid, laundry women, parlour maid, kitchen maid, anything at all really. Butlers and chauffeurs also would be in domestic service but higher up the ladder and so would be referred to as such rather than domestic servant.
Wouldn’t Civil Service be government, utilities, or council employees?

 

[Daft Bat]

I have seen the term "Servant - not domestic" on a census as well.

As far as I'm aware, "Servant (Domestic)" refers to someone who was employed by a household eg Cook (domestic) who would be the cook for a household, either the one where they were living or perhaps one that they went to daily.

"Servant (not Domestic)" refers to a non-domestic/household servant. They could be employed by a company such as a hotel for instance, but not in a domestic dwelling situation - if you see what I mean...

I have a "Coach-Driver (Domestic)" in my ancestors, who was living and working for a household in London. A couple of censuses later, her was a "Coach Driver (Not Domestic)" and so working for an independent employer along with other coach drivers..

 

[mugwortismy cat]

It occurred to me last night that I had also seen apprentices etc described in the relationship column as servant, but they wouldn't be counted as Domestics, just as 'staff' of some kind.