Daily AncestorThatcher
A thatcher roofed buildings with thatch, layers of dry straw, reed or rushes packed tightly to shed rain.
Thatching is one of the oldest ways of roofing. Straw, water reed, sedge, rushes or heather are laid in dense layers so that water runs off, and the packed material also insulates the house.
Thatching methods were traditionally passed down from generation to generation, and the craft was used in both tropical and temperate climates. In English-language records the word almost always means a roofer working in straw or reed.
As seen in a recordOccupation column of a British census, 1841 to 1911
Thos. Haines, 52, Thatcher
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Thatcher." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/thatcher. Last checked 2026-10-10.