Memories from the Days of Steam Threshing

Courtesy of John Richmond of Ripon

Threshing days especially for smallholdings in the Dales was a time when neighbours came to “staff”the day which needed at least nine strong and willing workers.

The owner of the “Threshing Outfit” “provided the feederas shown in the Photo. standing lower in a small box-like trough next to the “band cutter”  -a job that was an art in it self, made much easier by the careful action of the “forker”.If the “forker” again Shown in the Photo with a shave of corn in Mid air. If the forker failed to drop Shaves (sheaves) at the right angle for the band cutter to pick them up, there was soon some muttering from both characters atop the threshing machine,  A few deft “band cutters” could pick up the “shav with a very sharp bladed Pocket knife aand in one action turn handing the contents of the sheave to the waiting arms of the feeder who let the eared corn drop drop smoothly into the fearsome drum—Hence he was “t’feeder”

Between the Steam Engine and Thresher was where the strongest young men assembled, where the corn appeared through slots into Hessian sacks, to be carried perhaps 50 or 60 yards up some stone granary steps to be emptied quickly floor and back at a very quick pace especially if it had been a very heavy crop

Some times in the case of wheat, the corn was to be bagged in in “Rail sacks” containing 16 stones in weight, what would health and safety officers of said?. At the other end of the Thresher was “T’Straw end” a dusty job as the straw was tied into “Battins” . Just as the binder out in the cornfield had a part of its wonderful mechanism a knotter and a tyer” (a miracle in it self) A similar double tying operation was on the Thresher. Either the straw was stacked close by or back into a part of the large Dutch Barn—-all this work done by hand. I must not forget…..Lads job was “cowlin’ caff” the chaff fell under the thresher and had to be kept clear, and so armed with a wooden Hay Rake, t’larl lad” raked as best he could, often into a corrugated small shed known as “t’caff-oile”, close by,as much as possible of the remnants.

A few further words of explanation. Threshing was a new venture in the Dales farming during the war when farmers were forced to plough out certain fields to grow corn to help with the war effort. most farmers would have only one days threshing, an exciting time for children like myself to hear the steam engine coming, often at least a mile away in semi- darkness

The head gear of the various individuals is yet another part of the story, it included the owner of the Thresher perched on the engine with the customary train drivers felt cap, which always had a liberal ammount of oil and grease set into the material. while the farmer near the steam engine had a better quality trilby than the workers on the stack!

Watching the adept manoeuvres of the driver of the steam engine in the flickering  lamplight of a stable lantern furnished me with a childlike determination that I one day, would drive a steam engine, which never came to fruition. I still attend steam rallies,just to get the smell and noise of those far away days.

Threshing time at a farm in Aberford Leeds in1936

By courtecy of the Yorkshire Post

 

Appletreewick

I went for a walk with my daughter Patricia. We set of from Appletreewick at the top of the village,up a small lane and after a few yards we turned right across the fields, where there are some of the most fascinating Stiles, one of the stiles is only just wide enough to allow one to squeeze through, and I wondered how the lambs were prevented from going through although the Ewes wouldn’t be able to get through.

Stile Appletreewick

After going through this Stile we went through a few  fields and Stiles the meadows  were full of Buttercups and looked lovely, a few years ago we wouldn’t have seen this scene as a lot of the farmers used weed killers which killed  all broad leave plants but did not kill the grasses but we have now to thank the farmers for looking after the country side helped by certain subsides.

Buttercups in May

As we continued across the fields the farmer started rounding up his cows ready for the afternoon milking, it was a grand scene to watch,  because the farmer was at  the top of the hill 0n his Quad bike and he sent his Collie to fetch the cows from I should say about a  quarter of a mile away, the dog did very well it quietly took the cows to-wards the farmer, but unfortunately it had missed one which was down near the Brook,any way the farmer sent it  back to fetch the stray cow. The collie raced down the hill and quietly and persistently took the cow back to the rest of the herd up on the hill

Rounding up the Herd

Watching the farmer and his dog round up the cows really made my day, because it brought back happy memories  of when I used to work with cattle and used to train dogs to work with cows, which can be more difficult to turn than sheep

As I stood there with my daughter it  took me back to my youth when in these same fields the hay was made by hand and was swept up to the barns where it  was forked into the out barns (which are still there to-day) these out barns would perhaps have  standings for perhaps halve a dozen milk cattle where the cows would be milked and the milk carried in what was called a Back can back to the village. I hope that you enjoy my reminiscing as-much as I have.

 

Young Farmers

Tuesday, 12 June 2007
Bradford Young Farmers Club

Just a few lines about the Young Farmers Club that was formed in Bradford in 1943. It was initiated with members of the National Farmers union (Bradford Branch) Members who formed the basis and where named as the advisory committee, where the following names Herbert Stott my father, and his friend Fred Watson who farmed at Greengates, then there was Harold Greenwood , he farmed at Eccleshill. then there was Edgar Greenwood, Poplars Farm, Kings Road. At the first meeting where the sons & daughters of the advisory committee who formed the Basis of the club official positions such as Chairman, Secretary Treasurer and Committee members. After a few meetings the club soon grew to upwards of a hundred members and was drawn from Sons & Daughters of farmers & farm workers, besides these their were members outside the farming community who were interested in farming and rural affairs. The Advisory, committee appointed a leader who helped with the running of the club, his name was Kenneth Moss an accountant who eventually became the President of the Bradford and Bingley Building Society.Add Image
The Young Farmers Club Was run democratically and held a annual general meeting where the officials were voted in by the members, but the Leader had to be elected by the advisory committee. the young farmers would hold meetings about monthly, at one of these a yearly syllabus would be drawn up, arranging meetings to be held through out the year, in winter meeting were mostly held in doors, perhaps at certain schools, In summer we would go to different venue’s, such as farms and any thing to do with agriculture, e.g.such as St Ives Grass Land Research Station, Nr Bingley.- Dairy’s such as Northen Dairies.-Egg Packing Station at Driglington.-and many other places. We would also get coach trips organized and go to various places, such has the experimental Farm at Higher Mowlthorp,another coach trip could be to the Dairy Show or the Fat Stock show in London which could include the Moter show
On a lighter note a few relationships not to mention marriages where formed and looking back and to the present day, a lot of these marriages were stable marriages, and quite a few have been successful in farming concerns.
If any past members read this I wish them well, and hope that they can send me any comments on the Bradford Young Farmers Club
John

 

Childhood Memories

I will now try to recall what childhood was like in the 1930’s one of the first things I remember is of a man called uncle Tom who came from Leeds, when I would be just turned four years of age and I remember he made me a Go Cart (bogey) Which I used to take the cattle food in buckets to the cows. Because we had a farm I always had plenty of friends and we used to play hide and seek and play Dare, which meant that we would challenge our friends to follow our example, when we do such things as climbing onto buildings and walking on wall tops, I also remember challenging my friends to go under a horses belly, I was lucky because being brought up with animals I had no fear of them,all though we were always told to keep away from the Bull. At the age of five I was taken to School by my mother, this was the only time that I was escorted by  mother, because we only lived perhaps 600 Yd’s away from the School. The head Mistress named Miss Boardman asked me if I wanted to go into the Babies or into form 1, because my cousin Barbara was in that form, I volunteered to go into that class, although I can remember feeling cheated, because I saw all the children having a lay down later in the day. the form I was in had its compensation though because their was a girl named Enid Jowett and as we were passing between the desks I can remember  us having a kiss, I am vain enough to hope she remembers that incident. Being on a farm had alot of advantages , because you could have all your friends and what a place to play hide and seek and of coarse when it was Hay Time we were able to have a ride on the hay wagon down into the field when the load of hay had been unloaded  onto the Hay Stack, even though we had to walk back home.I recon that I was a lucky Lad, because when I was Nine years old, my father  bought a second hand motor Wagon, it was a Chevorlet thirty hundred weight ( which meant the weight it could reasonably carry ) it cost  my father eleven Pounds,and for that it had a canopy built over the cab so that it would be able to carry more hay or corn, why I say that I was lucky was because I learnt to drive that vehicle shortly after my father bought it. What happened was that I had watched my father drive the motor Wagon, and one day when  he  had taken a load of hay of and he had gone in for his dinner climbed into the cab switched on the ignition, then pressed the starter button which was on the floor and low and behold the engine started, I couldn’t reach the clutch and brake sat on the seat, so I had to stand up, any way I managed to turn the motor wagon round ready for my father to go for another load of hay. So having proved  my self compitant it was my job after school to drive the motor wagon in the field while every  one loaded the hay, ( what a young life I had)                                                                                                                                                                                                                             Things I remember most.—Hens with chickens in the farm yard—Two young Kids which must have been a nusance, but I loved to watch them  caper across the roof tops.— My first Pet which was a two month old  sheep dog pup which had been given to me by my Dad and he had got from Harry Morphet who farmed at Huby, and was a close friend of my Dads, I named the Pup Judy, not a good name for a sheep dog —- Having my own Hiefer calf —- Playing whip and top —- playing at marbles —- Rolling Gas Tar —- Playing at Conkers —- Walking on wall tops —-climbing trees —- Riding my second  hand bike of  which I was very proud  —-  My Train set —- new  suit at Whitsontide —- Bonfire night —- Holidays with my Grand Parents at Appletreewick in Wharfedale —-These are just a few of my memories as I could write a book. 

John Carter Stott – July 2004
This article brought back happy memories for me when at the age of fourteen I was in a ploughing match at a farm which was owned by a farmer named Ian Grant. The farm was at Farsley near Bradford, which is now mostly housing and has been built on. At the ploughing match I had a pair of half legged bays – so called because they were usually half bred Clydesdale with not much feather (or hair) on their legs. The plough that I used was named a COOK plough which had a long mould board. At the Ploughing match, at which by the way I was representing Bradford Young Farmers club, I had no one to help me open out the first furrow, I had no lead man, and in spite of that I got a special prize, of which I was very proud. On looking back I think the prize would be for the youngest competitor, and not for any excellence, although at the time I felt I had made a reasonable job.

 

Favourite verse

The sun had set behind yon hills, Across yon dreary moor, Weary and lame, a boy there came Up to a farmer’s door: ‘Can you tell me if any there be That will give me employ, To plow and sow, and reap and mow, And be a farmer’s boy?

 

A Farmers Lad

 

It was the summer of 1938. my holiday from school, four weeks to be spent in the fields, for a lad of Nine this was certainly the life. It was July and the Hay time was in full swing. Father and mother were up early in the day, the cows were brought up from the fields, one by one they  would rise from where they had been Lying all night chewing their cud, and they would gradually appear through the early morning mist  making their way to the gate, then up the narrow lane, which had high walls that were covered with Lichen  and Moss and across the stone strewn lane, a stream gurgled through the wall, then disappeared beneath a great stone .on the opposite side of the lane. One by one the cows arrived at the farm buildings. Into the farm yard they would come their udders full of milk with the odd cow or two, milk beginning to stream from their teats. The cows first of all would make their way to a trough in the farm yard, where they would take their fill of water, what was remarkable was that in this trough  were  several fish which lived there, we had caught these fish quite a while ago in the local canal and placed them in the trough, they would now be about Six to eight inches long, they lived quite happily in there , even when the cows had almost emptied the trough, the fish would flick about until the trough was filled again. After the cows had their fill of water, they would then go into the mistal (cow shed) where they were tied up with a chain round the kneck, their were two cows to a stall, with a passage in front running the full length of the mistal this passage was called a Fotheram, Perhaps this was originally named  the Fodder them, because this is where the fodder was carried to the cattle when they were fed. Well the cows were now ready for milking, which was at that timed performed by hand, because milking machines, wher virtually unknown in the north. The cows would be fed and then milked, Mother would do the feeding, carrying the milk, letting out the cows after milking washing down the Standings,  finally washing up the dairy utensils .Father would do the milking, which would take about two hours to milk all the eighteen Shorthorn cattle. I can still remember the sound of the cattle being milked, first of all thet would be fed a mixture of Brewers grain, rolled corn with Linseed cake, then father would take his milking pail and three legged stool, he would place the three legged stool on the floor with the single leg at the rear so as when the cow moved about he was able to rock side ways.  

 

A farmers Lad 2

 

My father would then sit with the milking pail between his legs, and the sound and rhythm of the milk going into the empty pail was like music to me, and as the pail began to fill up the sound went from a high note to a lower softer note, and a through would build up on the milk, which some times when the pail was full the through would be inches above the pail rim with out any milk running down the pail. Many is the time I would take a pint pot and let my father fill it by milking the warm milk straight into the pot, then I would drink this while still warm, this I enjoyed, and I loved the smell of fresh milk. After milking the cows were returned to the field down the same old lane. We would all go into Breakfast, which would consist of cornflakes, followed by Ham and Eggs also fried bread. After Breakfast the horses would be fetched from the field, and given a feed of Bran and Oats, after they had eaten they would have their harness; they would then be taken to the field and hitched to the grass cutter.

 

SEE HAYTIME IN THIS BLOG. 

 

 

Farming Memories › Edit — WordPress

Farming Memories › Edit — WordPress.

 

Hay Time

Tuesday, 10 April 2007

Hay time at Eccleshill

Madge and I with Cousin Robert (the one in the middle)

Haytime

My first story will be about Hay Making when we used Horses for all the heavy work. Also a brief description of the water supply that quenched the animals.Imagining where Thorpe Edge estate is now, there were fields enclosed with stone walls, numerous clear water Springs, also two clear streams, one running from Five Lane Ends towards Greengates, this stream was the boundary between Idle and Eccleshill. The other stream ran out of an old quarry in one of the fields, to join the former stream in a field next to ours belonging to a family known as Pounds, who besides being farmers had a fleet of Hire cars and used to do Wedding and Funerals. The last Stream that I mentioned must have had an underground coarse because it fed numerous troughs on the farm where we slacked our thirst, and even to the this day I have never tasted water nicer. Besides these water troughs there was one in our first field down lands Lane, also one at the bottom of that field which was built in to the wall and supplied both the field and the Lane where the cows would drink as they were being driven home for milking. This water was so pure that Water Cress grew in the troughs.

In those days there were Hares, Corn Crakes, the sound of the Cuckoo, besides loads of common birds. The field names were as follows:-Three corner field.—Knowles, –Elm field,–Far field,–Pasture.–,–Six Acre,– Long field,–Hills,–Tom Smith.—Little Acre,–Red Gate,–First field,–Middle field.—and Harpers The field named the hills can still be identified because it was too steep to build on.We made hay in the following fields:- Long field, Knowles, Elm field, Far wood, Red gate, First field, Middle field, Harpers, Tom Smith, and Little Acre, the remaining fields we used for grazing.

Grass Mower�

 

Hay time usually started in late June and continued into early August. We as children would help for most of the summer holidays, we also had help from older people who mostly worked in the local mills during the day, and then came to help us in the evening and on Saturday after dinner. There would not be any work done in the fields on a Sunday even if the weather was fine.

Me on the Shaker

 

 

An old saying of my Grandfathers was as follows—-A wet and windy May fills the barns with corn and hay.

Some off the names of those who helped us Hay Make were as follows:- John and Wilson Parish, Albert Lonsdale, Eddie and Norman Mortimer, Eric Smith, and Jack Kirby, also Two Girls Barbara Walker and Jean Orton who were friends of my sister Marjorie.Before we could start hay making, there were many preparations to be done on machinery, the horse mower, hay turner, hay shaker, hay rake and the sweep. Carts and wagons had to be modified by adding wood shelving’s and hay hecks, these wood contraptions were to extend the perimeter of the carts and wagons so that they could hold more hay. We also had to prepare the ground where the haystack would be built by laying wood stakes on the ground to let the air circulate under the Haystack

Father on Horse Rake

.

It was quite exciting the first day we went to mow the grass, because it would be the first time the horses had been coupled together for quite a long time, they would be very high spirited, so the first time or two round the field could be quite dangerous if the horses got too near to the field wall. We would usually mow about five acres in a day. After the grass had been cut it would be left for a day or two to wilt, then for the next day or two it would be turned and teased out with the Shaking machine. When the hay was dry it would be raked into rows then loaded onto the carts and wagons, with one person on the load placing the hay so that it would not fall of as it was being transported up the lane to the farmyard. Those people who know Eccleshill , will also know how steep the bank is that rises from Greengates to Eccleshill, and of course Lands Lane which we had to take the Hay up was just as steep, so each load of hay had to have one horse in the shafts in one in the trace gear which was hitched up in front of the shaft horse, helping to pull the load of hay up Lands Lane. When the load of hay arrived at the farm yard, another load would already have been emptied, and that one would return to the field for another load, this was the high light of the day for us children, because we were able to scramble onto the empty cart, and ride back to the field.

Father Loading the Hay.he is the one on the load and Alfie forking the Hay

Building a Hay Stack was quite a skilled job, my father always performed this task, the stack had to be built with the sides sloping slightly outwards, and the middle of the stack had to be higher than the sides to keep out the rain, as any water penetrating the stack during the winter would cause the hay to go rotten. When the Hay Stack was finished, the sides would be trimmed off to make the stack look neat, finally it would be thatched to keep out the weather.

These were happy times, usually plenty of home made lemonade for the children, and home brewed beer for the men. The High light of the haymaking day was in the evening when the last load had been emptied, every one gathered round for home made teacakes and apple pie, Albert Lonsdale used to bring his piano accordion and as it was coming dusk he would sit on the wall and play some well known tunes. After this the horses, which had been fed and allowed to cool down, were taken to the field so it would be after mid-night when we finally got to bed.

I hope this gives you an insight into the Hay Making season at Bank Top Farm.

John C Stott

 

Harvest time

Tuesday, 22 May 2007

Harvest Time

Harvest Time

1940

Farming at Bank Top Farm became quite changed during the Second World War, my father had to give part of his grassland over to arable so as he could grow edible crops to help feed the nation. We were ordered to plough and sow six acres with Oats, which was when harvested to be fed to the cows to save buying in imported cow food, because all the merchant shipping had to be utilized for bringing from abroad food for human consumption, which the shortage of food had already resulted in food being rationed to the inhabitants of these Islands. Ploughing the grass land in those days was of course done by a single furrowed plough drawn by a pair of horses, these horses were of a lighter breed than the shires and had less feather (hair) on their legs, which made it easier to keep their legs clean. The amount of land that a pair of horse could plough in a day would be about one acre, depending on the length of the working day, because in our case we had to do the milking before and after the land work

Ploughing wasn’t a hard job! Although it would be possible to walk about fourteen miles in one day, the main job was to get the plough adjusted in the first place and then with a good pair of horses and good weather, what could be better, when all one could hear was the sound of the horses and the sound of the plough going through the ground

Photo by

Courtesy of Nick Perry

After the ploughing which was carried out in the winter months, come the spring the corn would be sown straight on to the ploughed land, the corn falling into the furrow seams.

The sowing was carried out by broadcasting the seed from a hopper which was carried in front of your body supported by straps or harness strung round your shoulders, the hopper would hold I should think about two or three stone of corn, which was rhythmically broadcast by hand first throwing with the left hand then the right hand, making sure that the corn was spread evenly,This operation could be quite hard work and hard on the feet, particularly as you were walking on uneven ground all the time, and also having to keep your eyes on a marker in the distance so that you kept a straight line .

The Photo below is of a Fiddle Drill which was another implement used for sowing seed, usually small seed such as grass or kale seed, it was very pleasant to use, because one could get into a rhythm when sowing and of course the seed didn’t weigh as much as did the corn seed

After all the field had been sown it was time to put the horses into the harrows and work the soil until you had a fine Tilth

This would involve quite heavy work for the horses and every now and then we would give them a rest.

Photo of Harrows

The Harrows wood be dragged a across the field by a pair of horses and perhaps about three times over so as to get a good tilth, After this the field would be rolled with a Cambridge roller This was a type of roller with perhaps about twenty five individual rings on one axle, this was to consolidate the soil so as to flatten out the soil to make it

easier to cut the crop later in the year and also retain the moisture in dry weather to aid the germination of the seed.

After all this work comes a period of waiting for the crop to start growing and in the thirty’s there was very little of to-days sophisticated Fertilizers and weed killers,although their were Lime And Basic Slag which was a by- product of the steal works and contained Calcium Phosphate. the main emphasis in those days was on the use of Farmyard Manure, which of course would have been put on before the land was ploughed. It wasn’t possible to get most of the weeds out but an attempt was made to pull out the wild oats which had no value, most of the weed seed was separated when the corn was threshed

One of my Grandfathers sayings, which of coarse applied

before their was any fertalizer other than cow muck

————

Go and look at your corn in May

you will come weeping and wailing away

Go and look again in June

you will come away whistling a different Tune

————

Depending on the weather the corn would be harvested in August this would be done with a Self Binder, which would cut and tie the corn into sheaves leaving the sheaves on the ground which were then put into stooks of eight sheaves or perhaps ten. A great pride was taken in making sure that the stookes looked neat in the field and they had to point North to South so has the sun caught each side of the Stookes. Before this I remember my father mowing a small one acre field with the Scythe, then my sister Marjorie and my self both in our early teens and still at School would follow my father as he cut the standing corn and collect the corn and tie it into Sheaves (Happy Days ? ).

Below is a photo of a Horse drawn reaper

After this came the leading of the corn to the Stack yard where the most experienced worker would build the stack , which when it was finished it would have to turn out the worst of the weather so finally it would be thatched.

During the winter the threshing Machine would draw into the Stack Yard and the final operation would be to separate the corn from the straw, threshing took quite a lot of man power so Men from neighboring farms would come to help, the strongest carrying the corn up the granary steps, these bags of corn could weigh up to sixteen stones (two hundred weight}. Threshing day was also a social gathering where there was quite a lot of gossip taking place and a lot of banter. We mustn’t forget the women of the house who would supply a very large dinner with drinkings (tea not beer!) in the morning and afternoo

Below is a photo of a threshing machine. the photo was taken on an open day, about Fifty years ago at Geoff Mortons Farm, Hasom Holme Farm, Drain Lane, Holme on Spalding Moor

I have taken you through from seed time to harvest, hope that you have enjoyed the journey,bearing in mind that ours was a small farm, and some one from a large arable farm would have a different story to tell.

 

Flitting

Sunday, 26 August 2007

Young Cowboys

 

I am Going back to 1944 when my father farmed at Bank Top Farm, Eccleshill Bradford, which is now all houses. At that time we were having a lot of vandalism on the farm, such has hay set fire to, walls and fences broken down not to mention gates left open and stock let out. So my father took the tenancy of a fifty acre farm at Hill Top Birkenshaw, which was about Eight miles away on main roads skirting the busy center of Bradford. Well we had to walk Twenty Cows along these roads as my father could not afford the carriage. so we set of at five am on February the second, it had rained during the night and when we set of it was dark and frosty but very little traffic that time in the morning. To drive these cattle there were my-self and two friends all three of us around Sixteen years of age we also had a dog Judy (what a name for a cow dog) but she was a very useful dog and new her stuff, has we were driving one of us would go on ahead shutting garden gates (A marathon) there were also road ends to watch, all went well until half way when the lead cow decided it had enough sliding about on the ice on the tarmaced road and it turned down a narrow passage way between two houses which lead to a dead end full of dust bins belonging to quite a few houses Well a few of the cows followed and you can imaging the pandemonium at Six-o-clock in the morning when the cows tried to turn round in such a small space. We eventually got the cows turned round and left behind crushed bins and spilled garbage to be on our way again before all Hell let loose, Things were going well until we got to a hill at Dudley Hill,here it was so slippery on road with the ice that the cattle were having a job to stay on their feet, and a car was coming towards us from the top of the hill, he put his brakes on and no way could he have stopped as he was sliding down the hill, how he missed every cow I shall never know, any way after a struggle we arrived at the top of the incline and continued on our way with out much trouble. were we glad to enjoy a hearty breakfast when we arrived at Hill Top Farm. Well we were only young and enjoyed the adventure

John

 

Introduction

1929 I was Born at Eccleshill, which in those days was a village on the outskirts of Bradford, but is now completely built up and is now engulfed into Bradford city. (To the right of the Victoria Hotel on the bit of spare ground, originally there were the farm buildings and the farm house where i was born.)

I was the youngest of two children, my sister being Two and half years older than myself, I was a delicate child and suffered a lot from pneumonia and bronchitis which I grew out of by the time I was Seven years old, and from then on I went from strength to strength. I was of a quiet nature and loved the country side and the out door life. Farming was my love and life, and as it be came my occupation, I enjoyed every minute, I also read and studied every aspect of agriculture. I married at the age of Twenty-Two to a lovely girl named Betty Denning from Birkenshaw.

We had three lovely daughters who are a joy to this very day. At the age of forty I decided because my health was not very good to leave farming and go into a lighter job. So with the family we bought our own house and moved into 84 West End Avenue, Harrogate, after West End Avenue we moved to our present address on Beech Rd where we have been for the last 26 years.

The reason I am writing this short History is because my Grandson Brendan is allowing me to use his Web Site, and I thought it would be nice if any one happens to read this that they would know a little about me.
I intend to write short episodes particularly about life in the 1930�s to 1960�s particularly pertaining to farming and village life.
Any one wishing to contact me can do so on the following email address < john.stott10@ntlworld.com>

 

Sunday, 26 August 2007
Young Cowboys

I am Going back to 1944 when my father farmed at Bank Top Farm, Eccleshill Bradford, which is now all houses. At that time we were having a lot of vandalism on the farm, such has hay set fire to, walls and fences broken down not to mention gates left open and stock let out. So my father took the tenancy of a fifty acre farm at Hill Top Birkenshaw, which was about Eight miles away on main roads skirting the busy center of Bradford. Well we had to walk Twenty Cows along these roads as my father could not afford the carriage. so we set of at five am on February the second, it had rained during the night and when we set of it was dark and frosty but very little traffic that time in the morning. To drive these cattle there were my-self and two friends all three of us around Sixteen years of age we also had a dog Judy (what a name for a cow dog) but she was a very useful dog and new her stuff, has we were driving one of us would go on ahead shutting garden gates (A marathon) there were also road ends to watch, all went well until half way when the lead cow decided it had enough sliding about on the ice on the tarmaced road and it turned down a narrow passage way between two houses which lead to a dead end full of dust bins belonging to quite a few houses Well a few of the cows followed and you can imaging the pandemonium at Six-o-clock in the morning when the cows tried to turn round in such a small space. We eventually got the cows turned round and left behind crushed bins and spilled garbage to be on our way again before all Hell let loose, Things were going well until we got to a hill at Dudley Hill,here it was so slippery on road with the ice that the cattle were having a job to stay on their feet, and a car was coming towards us from the top of the hill, he put his brakes on and no way could he have stopped as he was sliding down the hill, how he missed every cow I shall never know, any way after a struggle we arrived at the top of the incline and continued on our way with out much trouble. were we glad to enjoy a hearty breakfast when we arrived at Hill Top Farm. Well we were only young and enjoyed the adventure
John