Daily AncestorWiper
A wiper was the most junior worker in a ship's engine room, or in a railroad roundhouse, who cleaned engines and machinery.
On a ship the wiper cleaned the engine spaces and machinery and helped the engineers as directed. It was the lowest rate in the engine room and served as an apprenticeship to becoming an oiler.
Railroads also had wipers who cleaned locomotives, called cleaners in Britain. The industry column of a 1910 to 1940 census shows which kind of wiper you have.
As seen in a recordOccupation and industry columns of the 1910 to 1940 census
Nils Berg, 19, Wiper, Steamship
How to cite this page
Daily Ancestor. "Wiper." Dictionary of Old Record Words. https://dailyancestor.com/dictionary/occupations/wiper. Last checked 2026-10-10.