When most of us want to wake up in the morning, we do what comes naturally to us, we set an alarm clock. Alarm clocks have been used in some form or another for thousands of years but in the early 1900s, they were not so common. Since alarm clocks were not common in Ireland or Britain in the early 1900s, some people with an entrepreneurial spirit made a living waking people for work.
They were known as knocker-ups and they would be paid a few pence every week to make the rounds and wake people by banging on the windows with a stick. They would not move until they received confirmation that the client was awake.
When alarm clocks became less expensive and more reliable in the 1920s, the profession died out. A few specialized individuals, however, continued to work the profession for a few decades more.
1910
1915
1929. This is Charles Nelson of East London and he worked in this profession for 25 years. He woke people such as market traders, drivers and doctors.
1941. Doris Weigand worked for the railway, waking people up when they were needed on short notice.
Via: Mashable
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