Daily AncestorDriller
A driller bored holes for a living, in rock in a mine or quarry, or as the man in charge of an oil or water well drilling rig.
Wiktionary defines a driller as one who drills, and also as a person in charge of a drilling rig. Because the same title was used for very different work, the place of work matters when you read it.
The 1940 census instructions give "Driller, Oil well" as a model entry, with the job in the occupation column and the kind of work site in the industry column.
As seen in a recordOccupation and industry columns of the 1910 to 1940 census
Clyde Ambrose, 33, Driller, Oil well
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Driller." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/driller. Last checked 2026-10-12.