Ever heard of a knocker-upper? A fewiller? How about a wonkey-scooper? No? It's because they've vanished. Like countless other once-common occupations, these jobs have been rendered obsolete by the rapid technological advances of the last century or two. So many things that we take for granted today—and rely on—didn't exist until very, very recently in the broad timeline of human history. Ever wonder how people got by without things like alarm clocks, electric lights, and ice cube makers? The answer is that it was someone's job to wake you up, to light your street lanterns, and to cut your blocks of ice (in this instance: a knocker-upper, a lamplighter, and an ice cutter). This Obsolete Jobs Quiz includes quaint occupations like these, as well as some that sound pretty grim and/or dangerous, and others, just plain silly. And some were jobs worked by children, since that's just the way it used to be.
Ready to Play?
Whether or not you know anything about old jobs or history in general, I promise this quiz will entertain and inform—and make you count your lucky stars that these jobs are safely in the dustbin of history. Especially the really crappy ones. Literally. Since, you know, your ancestors didn't exactly have toilets either. Consider yourself warned. Now, come on in!
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One of the best history quizzes. ?
Thanks for your kind comments!
Very challenging. I’m learning a lot from the questions.
Great!
Very interesting