Costermonger

A costermonger, coster, or costard is a street seller of fruit and vegetables in British towns. The term is derived from the words costard (a medieval variety of apple) and monger (seller), and later came to be used to describe hawkers in general. Some historians have noted a class hierarchy in which the costermonger sold from a handcart or animal-drawn cart, while the lower-level hawker carried wares in a basket. Costermongers distributed food rapidly from wholesale markets (in London: Smithfield for meat, Spitalfields for fruit and vegetables, Billingsgate for fish) to convenient locations for the labouring classes. Costermongers used a variety of devices to transport and display produce: a cart stood stationary at a market stall; a horse-drawn or wheelbarrow cart made the rounds; or a hand-held basket carried around light-weight goods such as herbs and flowers. Costermongers survived numerous attempts to eliminate their class from the streets. Programmes to curtail them occurred during the reigns of Elizabeth I and Charles I. Victorian times saw a peak in both their numbers and attempts to suppress them. However, solidarity among costers along with public support enabled their commercial survival until the second half of the 20th century, when they began to take up pitches in the regulated markets. They became known for their melodic sales patter, poems, and chants, which they used to attract attention. Both the sound and appearance of costermongers contributed to a distinctive street life that characterised London, Paris, and other large European cities, especially in the 18th and 19th centuries. Their loud sing-song cries became part of the fabric of street life in large cities in Britain and Europe. Costermongers exhibited their membership in the coster community through dress, especially the large neckerchief, known as a kingsman. Their hostility to police was legendary. Their distinctive culture and...