Interview with G W Pierce – Head Master 1905 – 1931
This little village, before the advent of the motorcar, electricity, or mains water, was a very remote part of the Hampshire countryside.
Set high on the Hampshire hills, it is exposed to the elements on all sides. In the 1800’s there was a baker’s cart, which called twice weekly, and the village boasted two small shops, and its own bakery.
(Mr BUNDY’s bakery was on the roadside by Pitcot Lane).
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| Chestnut House |
There were six wells, each worked by a treadmill (there is still one in existence here today at Chestnut House).
The village had its own mill (the windmill was in the field behind “Old Mill House”) and here was ground flour for the housewife, also pig meal – for almost every villager had a pig in their back garden!
There were two forges, one of which was a double one.
Most of the farm implements were made in the village by the combined efforts of Blacksmiths, Sawyer, and Wheelwrights. Children’s iron hoops were made by the Blacksmith, and their ‘tops’ by the Sawyer.
The village also had its own Shoemaker – not always made to measure!
The school, along with houses and gardens were made of flints; many of these collected by children who ‘skipped’ school to earn an extra penny or two to help the family.
In 1834 7/2d (approx. 35p) was paid by the Church Warden for picking 22 loads of stones for a wall and fence!
The first car owned in the village belonged to MR PERCY COBB owner of Old Mill Stores, and was the village taxi.
MR AUSTIN DOVEY also owned a vehicle which was used to take villagers to Winchester. Before that, it was the carriers’ cart, with old worn out horses – it would take two or three hours to get back from Winchester stopping at every house on the way.
Many of us used to walk. AUSTIN DOVEY was the first to have a motor as a carrier.
When the old horse died a collection was made around the village to buy another old horse, villagers couldn’t afford to buy a good horse, so they were worn out before they started.
JACK KNIGHT, WILL LEE, BOB BUNNEY (carriers). WILL LEE lived at Pond Cottage; he was the Sexton and Gravedigger.
I remember staying with MRS FROUD, whilst I went to visit our house.
The house was in a shocking state, no one had been living in it, and the windows were full of holes, stones on the floors inside. The kitchen grate was covered in rust, stone floors, no back garden, the door opened onto a yard. (Old school house)
Farm labourers earned about 14/- a week.
They had a piece of land from the farmer, who ploughed the potatoes in for them, and most farm workers kept a pig.
There was a pig club, a kind of pig club insurance, they paid 1/- per pig and if the pig died, they’d get the value of the pig out.
When the pig club closed, we had an outing, some men had never been outside the village, and we took them to Portsmouth by boat via So’ton.
We had lunch at Lowman’s and some of the men called the waiter “Sir”. We lost one man – he didn’t catch the boat back!
E. H. |