Daily AncestorWigmaker
A wigmaker made, dressed and sold wigs; in colonial records the same trade often appears as peruke maker, from the French word for wig.
Wigs, also called periwigs or perukes, were fashionable for men in the 1700s, and wigmakers in colonial towns also dressed hair and sometimes shaved customers.
As wigs went out of fashion around 1800, many wigmakers became barbers or hairdressers. A wigmaker ancestor therefore points to a town setting and often to the 1700s.
As seen in a recordColonial deeds and newspaper notices
Jno. Cox, peruke maker, of Philadelphia
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Daily Ancestor. "Wigmaker." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/wigmaker. Last checked 2026-10-01.