The chimney sweep profession came into being during the early years of the Industrial Revolution, which ran from 1750 until 1914, when chimneys were made large enough for a man to crawl inside. During the 16th through the 18th century, the rooftops in Western Europe were very close together, allowing chimney sweeps access to crow-stepped gables, which led to roof lines of one chimney after another. The urban population increased, as did the number of chimneys, and the chimney sweep became a much sought after and respected trade.
During the Victorian era in the United Kingdom, the use of coal as a fuel for heating led to soot coating almost everything in sight. The chimney sweep profession grew rapidly, as the flues of chimney had to be cleaned often by orders issued from Queen Victoria herself. With the expansion of coal as a fuel source in domestic homes, the trade did very well. An interesting point to mention is many chimney sweeps during this time did not make money by charging for their services; rather, they sold the soot to farmers for a fertilizer mixing agent.
Young boys were often used to clean chimneys because of their small size. Because many British family were poor, parents encouraged their boys to go out and earn a living to contribute to household expenses, even though they knew it was a dirty and dangerous task. The Act for Better Regulation of Chimney Sweeps and Apprentices was passed in 1788, in order to reduce the number of apprentices a sweep could have and to limit the age of a sweep to eight. This Act was not well received and basically ignored.
It was Lord Shaftesbury's legislation that brought an end to this practice. It was called the "Act for the Regulation of Chimney Sweepers" in 1864. The Act fined any offenders with a