John & Mary James, Part III

In 1900, John and Mary lived in Hutchinson City, Reno County, Kansas. His daughters Leonita and Maude, and sons Elmer and Claude, also lived at home. John worked as a day laborer. Elmer was a farm laborer, Maude and Claude were in school. Leonita is listed as a “domestic”. No occupation is listed for Mary. The census indicates that everyone in the home was able to read, write and speak English.

According to the enumerator instructions for the 1900 U.S. Census, someone who worked as a “day laborer”, such as John, was typically at work for the city, town, or at odd jobs. This was not supposed to include people who were “farm laborers”. The census taker had specific instructions to record the type of work performed by the person employed as a day laborer. The enumerator who listed John failed to follow these instructions. So, we can't be sure of what type of work John was performing.

A “farm laborer” is a person who works on a farm for a stated wage (in money or its equivalent). This is also different from a the person who owns the farm, who should be listed as a farmer. We know from prior census records that John was a farmer for a while.