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Living in Cawston in the late 1920’s was vastly different to the life and
conditions we know today. My first thoughts are about transport and how
people moved around in those days.
We had a very good train service with at least five trains each way daily
excepting Sundays. Passengers bought a ticket at a little wicket hole in
the entrance hall of the station, and if it was cold weather they waited
for the train in front of a fire in the waiting room until it arrived in
the station. On arrival all was hustle and bustle, the porter running up
and down opening' and closing doors, the guard unloading and loading
parcels and mail bags, the, station master watching to see that everything
went smoothly, lastly the guard waved his green flag to inform the engine
driver all was ready. In the meantime the station master handed over a
special brass staff which had to be changed over at each station by the
engine driver.
The station yard was a wonderful place for the youngsters of the village,
always something going onto watch, so many things were transported by rail
in those days, sugar beet, coal, bricks, cattle, trees, and one could
always tell when the fishing season was at its height, the fish manure
made itself known.
At the end of the station yard stood the signal box, a very important
place with its rows of shiny levers, telephones and morse keys, many a
happy hour was spent with the signalman, one of whom played the flute and
clarinet in his spare moments, they were happy days.
A good
bus
service passed through the village from Norwich to Blakeney, the fare to
Norwich was the same as the train Is. 9d return needless to say it was
rather a red letter day when we travelled on either of them.
A private
bus owned by Mr. Green of Cawston ran a parcels service into Norwich and
surrounding districts, also taking the school children to Aylsham for
cookery and carpentry classes.
| At that time I can only remember three people having cars in the village
one of them a bullnosed Morris with a dickey seat at the back, another one
an old Lanchester, a large impressive car, the other one an early Austin,
the rest of the population either had to cycle, (which could be bought for
around £3 from the local cycle shop,) or travel by shanks pony. |
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First Car in Cawston |
At that
time I can only remember three people having cars in the village one of
them a bullnosed Morris with a dickey seat at the back, another one an old
Lanchester, a large impressive car, the other one an early Austin, the
rest of the population either had to cycle, (which could be bought for
around £3 from the local cycle shop,) or travel by shanks pony.
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One other
form of transport must not be forgotten, the horse and cart, Wagons and
tumbrils were used mostly for farm work, gills for moving trees to the saw
mills and station yard, and the pony and trap for travel and pleasure,
Grocers etc. were taken round the surrounding villages with covered wagons
... kettles and saucepans tied around the outside, a paraffin tank fitted
to the front, it was like Woolworths on wheels. |
| Cairey, Knackerman,
Eastgate |
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Life then
was much slower, but dare I say it, more enjoyable.
Ivan. G. Purdy.
(2007)
To Top
Pocket
money in the last 1920s and early 1930s was hard come by. It was no good
asking Mum or Dad, they had difficulty enough in making ends meet, and
as for offering to do something around the house for an extra penny,
that was unthinkable. Jobs around the house were expected to be done as
ones contribution towards the household.
Thinking
back,
there were jobs in the village when pocket money could be earned,
although in very small amounts, and sometimes in kind, rather than in
money. For example, here are some of the jobs I did as a schoolboy.
Tom
Hammond, a well known character had a grocery, provision
and general shop in
Chapel Street, he would employ boys after school to weigh up sugar into
one, two and four pound bags. Other jobs included skinning cheeses,
dry-cleaning currants and sultanas. The reward was usually a bag of
sweets. My regular Saturday morning job was with Mr. Marshall
Howard. I had to clean the knives on the knife
board,
clean the shoes and boots, collect wood shavings from the
carpenters shop, fill the copper and light the fire, scrub down the
concrete steps which led to the High Street; all this for the princely
sum of four pence (predecimal).
Weeding
gardens was another occupation. Two-pence an hour was the going rate at
the Poplars in the High Street, the home of Miss Florence and Mr. Horace
Wells, and at Rev. Marsh's in the
rectory.
It took seven and a half hours of weeding to purchase a pair of
plimsoles (one shilling and three pence; six and a half pence today,
these being a 'must' to get a job in the bowling green as a bowls wiper.
Each player in matches and tournaments paid us two pence, it was
possible to earn one shilling and sixpence (7.5p) in an evening!
When I
see
a
field
of corn being gobbled
up by a harvester, my mind goes
back to yesteryear,
when boys
could earn themselves
a
shilling or
two. After cutting with a self-binder drawn by
horses,
the stooking
of the sheaves
would come the carting.
Boys
would ride on the horses
pulling
the wagons
from stook to
stook
and at each move would shout "Hold You" to the man on the top of the load.
This
was
known as 'Hollerin
Holdya' .
Riding on
the
horse-rake collecting
up the loose
corn was
another favourite. At the end of the day we would hang on to the back of
the last load going
to the
stack
yard. We would get
smothered
with earwigs,
spiders and
other insects,
falling out of the corn from
the jolting wagon.
Although
rewards were small we were never bored or resentful of others and always
had a sense of achievement, even if it only meant an extra penny!
Sid Dack (1990)
Related Link: Decimal conversion
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