A mattress maker is called what? I'm looking for an older description, the oldest the better. Is there a name for this profession?
asked Oct 6, 2018 at 14:11
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There are dedicated words in other languages (Italian materassaio, French matelassier,...) - but not in English, I think. And if we didn't like mattress-maker (which appears as such in the UK 1931 "Census of Occupations"), we'd presumably have borrowed one of those foreign terms anyway.– FumbleFingersCommented Oct 6, 2018 at 14:26
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It depends on what you mean by old. Early ones were made of straw, feathers, wool, etc. But before mattress making became a thing, I would imagine that bed makers provided the mattresses such as they were.– LambieCommented Oct 6, 2018 at 15:11
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1 Answer
No special word. "Mattress maker" or "Mattress manufacturer" would be most easily understood.
Modern mattresses are made in factories by industrial processes. In the past and in craft contexts, adding cloth and cushioning to furniture is called upholstery, and is the job of the upholsterer, but they would be more concerned with adding cushions to seats than with making mattresses.
In the mediæval period, a mattress for all but the very richest would be a hemp sack (called a tick, but that meaning is not obselete), stuffed with straw, not requiring a skilled manufacture. - source
