Cleveland Museum of Art

Covent Garden Labourers

John Thomson

Date

1877

Medium

woodburytype

Culture

England, 19th century

Department

Photography

Institution

Cleveland Museum of Art

Covent Garden workers, whose day started before 5 a.m., were divided into job-workers or odd-men—who were paid for each parcel they delivered and thus received little income in the off-seasons—and a much smaller group of salaried workers who were paid year-round to create arrangements and stock and help run the stalls. The wholesale flower market at Covent Garden contained over 500 stands that employed around 4,000 men as growers and deliverymen.

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