Daily AncestorHousekeeper
In the census a housekeeper was someone paid to run or clean a household, not a wife keeping her own home.
Census instructions from 1870 onward reserved housekeeper for women who received wages or a salary for the work. A wife or daughter caring for her own family was to be entered differently, for example as keeping house.
Enumerators did not always follow this, and in practice a widow keeping house for a brother or son may still appear as housekeeper. Check the relationship column.
As seen in a recordOccupation column of the 1870 to 1940 census
Ellen Shea, 45, servant, Housekeeper, Ireland
Sources
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Housekeeper." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/housekeeper. Last checked 2026-10-01.