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What is a Master Craftsman or Woodworker? Last Updated:[7/24/2006 7:04:13 PM]
Interesting Question... Some people at rec.woodworking had this to say about it:
Frank McVey posted:
Your last couple of correspondents mentioned Trade Guilds in Europe.
In the past, a young lad was apprenticed to a Master.
Having served his apprenticeship he did a test piece which incorporated as many of the skills he had learned as possible, to demonstrate his ability to the Trade Guild and to future employers.
We have a tradition in UK of such apprentices making large toolboxes of fine timbers with beautifully veneered and inlaid surfaces, superbly fitted out with drawers, sliding tool wells etc, even secret compartments.
This was his "apprentice piece". He then worked as a journeyman - a fully qualified tradesman for a number of years until he had developed his skill enough to create his "Master Piece", which was assessed by his peers in the Trade Guild, before he could call himself a Master, after which he could form his own workshop and train apprentices himself.
Nowadays, with the end of the apprentice system, the meaning has become somewhat debased.
Another poster goes into more detail:
Dave Fleming posted:
To the best of my knowledge the Apprentice-Journeyman-Master designations began in the Middle Ages with the establishment of the Guilds to combat the churches trying to regulate who could or could not build or design a cathedral.
Guilds were soon formed for every craft besides the Stone Mason. Geographical areas were divided up and exclusive rights to practice a craft in that area were granted by the Guild along with the responsibility to train new people in the craft (Apprentices) and hire skilled workman as needed (Journeymen).
The apprentice was screened by the guild ( usually with some form of bribe :-) and then was allowed to serve with a particular Master for a designated period of time, 5 to 8 years. It was called the Indentureship. This was a legal binding document and if either party did not live up to it there were serious consequences enforced by the local law authorities. Run away apprentices if caught, were brought back, punished and made to work off the cost of the chase.
The Master had the responsibility of teaching-feeding-clothing-housing and at the end of the term to provide a "Journeyman's Kit of Tools" and a bit of traveling money. The Apprentice had the responsibility of learning the craft-doing chores for the Masters household-being a 'go- fer' etc..
There would be periodic visits to the Guild Hall for examination on progress. Upon nearing completion of his term, an Apprentice would be given a project in the craft to complete and present for examination by all members of the local Guild. The successful completion of this project signaled the end of the Apprenticeship. The Apprentice was granted his 'papers' and began his 'journey'.
He would theoretically 'journey' about the country seeking employment by checking in with the local Guild, presenting his papers for identification and getting a referral to the shop of some Master that had employment. The idea behind the journey was to expose the Journeyman to other ways of doing and other projects in the craft. This was thought necessary to broaden the skills so that when the Journeyman became a Master he was knowledgeable in different methods and could therefore pass these on to his workers.
When the job was done, he was on the road again. In this time in Europe traveling from place to place was not safe for most but the Guilds were so powerful that a journeyman easily recognizable by his tool kit was rarely bothered.
When the Industrial Revolution began there were some fundamental changes to the Guild system in that Journeyman usually did not have to journey but stayed in the area of their apprenticeship.
In Colonial times the Guild idea was of course used in North America due to the British influence. By the turn of the century most crafts were no longer Guilds but Trade Unions but the 3 tier system was still in effect in the Unions. Both World Wars with the demand for labor altered the pattern and it was never to regain all its practices.
The designation of Master in many trades became associated with the 'head craftsman' in a shop, most were Masters but some were really just a foreman type. Today to the best of my knowledge there are no Masters in any craft in the United States that I am aware of. Several Machine Tool companies maintain their own apprentice programs to ensure a supply of skilled well trained workers.
For example in the United Brotherhood of Carpenters and Joiners and the affiliated Union that I am a member of: The Shipwrights, Boat builders, Joiners and Loftsman there are precious few apprentice programs and the only one I know of personally is in Seattle.
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