This paper examines the changing occupational profile of Torphichen, West Lothian over a period 1841 -1891 and the effects of those occupational changes. The census Enumerator’s Books are the main source. Pre 1840 agricultural occupations and associated trades prevailed along with coal mining and limestone quarrying. Later, industrial work, in the form of a paper mill, became available in the neighbourhood village. This, and the decline of mining had an effect on both the composition of the workforce and the socio-economic structure of the village. Research drawn upon includes that of Donnachie and MacLeod (1974) McKay (1975) and Treble (1990)