|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Living at
Strickley in the 1930's were four young Robinsons, Henry Wilson
(born 1916), William Arthur (born 1920),
Abigail Isabella (born 1922) and Margaret Frances (born 1924) They probably all kept diaries, and William Arthur's from 1940 gives an insight to the daily work on the farm, as well as a record of the weather for the whole year.
|
|
Click here
for a month by month account of life at Strickley during the early days
of the war.
|
|
The elder son, Henry Wilson Robinson was a prolific diarist, and these extracts are taken from diaries beginning written in 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939 Wilson was married in 1938, and from then on the diaries also refer to his life at Over Bleaze. The fields at Over Bleaze are now (2006) part of Strickley. Grateful thanks to Wilson for allowing me to publish these extracts and apologies to those who don't know the farm or family and may be puzzled by some of the references Click here to see all the field names. |
| 1938 |
| JANUARY |
| 1st Dad went to Quarter Day |
| 3rd Killed pig and skinned gimmer hog |
| 11th Set 2 hens. Cleaning tank out |
| 14th Started hedging at Over Bleaze. 2 folk |
| 24th At Kendal at bank |
| 30th Willie to town for new suit |
|
31st Last Suffolk lambed. 7 lambs
|
| FEBRUARY |
| 1st At Holme Park sale. Two of us |
| 3rd Rabbitting. Got 1. Very few about |
| 22nd Cat went with one chick |
|
23rd Shot cat. Gone with two
chicks
|
| MARCH |
| 1st Carting and sorting sticks at Over Bleaze. Making gap into Bleaze Meadow |
| 2nd Spout House sale. Bought hen house and 4 zinc bins |
| 3rd Started ley ploughing in Bleaze Meadow. Willie helping me all day |
| 4th Cutting gutter out and ploughing in Bleaze Meadow |
| 5th Finished ley ploughing in Bleaze Meadow. Levelling holes off by beck side in Bleaze Meadow. Half-bred ewe had 4 lambs all alive |
| 10th Set incubator for 48 RIR from Woodhouse. 56 WW mine and a few from yard |
| 11th Went to Spout House to pick up hen house |
|
12th Fine. Very hot. |
| 16th At Woodhouse for chicks pullets |
| 18th W Proctor here to value calves |
| 22nd Set hen on 4 duck eggs |
|
25th Attending to cows water
bowls
|
| APRIL |
| 2nd I was at Kendal. Business in Lowther Street |
| 6th Hogg day at Kendal. Foot and Mouth restrictions on. Bought 11 Swaledale ewes |
| 7th Dad at Dalton Old Hall sale. |
| 12th Dad helping R Gibson |
| 13th Over Bleaze sale |
| 16th 2 cows from Bridge House |
|
30th Wilson & Willie to town
|
|
MAY from about now, the diary refers to life and work at both Strickley and Over Bleaze, with the emphasis shifting to Over Bleaze
|
| 1st Fine, cold, droughty. Heifers fed outside at OB. Hen and 10 chicks out. % ducklings added to yesterdays lot, total 12 |
| 2nd Moved hen hut from Strickley and got 5 rabbits and 1 rat from underneath. Carted Spout House hut down |
| 3rd Putting hen house up at OB. My cows out to grass |
| 4th Wilson & Phyllis got married. Fine day |
| 10th Back from honeymoon |
| 11th Moved Gibsons to Oak Dean, Oxenholme. Moved furniture from Strickley to Over Bleaze |
| 12th Moved to Over Bleaze. Put hen house up for chicks. 34 hens from Woodhouse. Burrows brought furniture. 3 animals up from Woodhouse |
| 15th Laid 2 milk cows out |
| 16th At auction. Sheep worrying in neighbourhood |
| 19th Laid 3 Woodhouse heifers out |
| 21st At Strickley. Clipped all tups & 15 hoggs gimmers |
| 22nd. Sunday. At Woodhouse |
| 24th Went for nest boxes and old milk kits on sled and horse ran away. Badly bruised |
| 25th In bed. Went to doctors. James and Mary here for first time |
| 26th Up again but unable to bend leg and unable to milk. Woodhouse cow aborted |
| 27th Wet day. Jan here in afternoon. Bill and Dot here. Fred Bent washed cart |
| 28th Fred Bent washed another cart. I washed 1 cart I had at beck. I am getting no better. Nurse here. |
| 29th. Sunday. In bed again. Nurse here |
|
30th In bed. Nurse here. Got up
|
| JUNE |
| 1st - 9th Hoeing turnips Strickley most afternoon and mornings at OB |
| 10th Started thinning turnips at Strickley, but I am unable to, cannot bend leg |
| 17th Nora to Proctors. WP started hay |
| 18th Thinning. Clipped 7 sheep after work |
| 19th Sunday. Clipped 6 sheep and cut lambs and pilled them at S & OB |
| 21st Janet came |
|
22nd Cleaned hen hut out. Janet
helping out.
|
| JULY |
| 6th At home to hear Bramwell Evans |
| 10th Sunday. Holmescales and Woodhouse |
| 13th Started hay at Strickley |
| 17th Sunday. Proctors and Strawberry Bank leading |
|
30th Very heavy rain. River Kent
in flood
|
| AUGUST |
| 3rd Started haymaking at OB. Cutting Front Bank |
| 4th Finished haymaking at Strickley |
| 8th Thunder but still haymaking. Bad cold astir |
| 12th Still haymaking at OB. Started at Strickley again |
| 13th Mowing at Strickley again |
| 25th Finished hay at OB |
|
30th Frosty. Haymaking at
Strickley
|
| SEPTEMBER |
| 3rd Mowing around Bleaze Meadow |
| 7th Cut corn in Bleaze Meadow |
| 8th Finished hay at Strickley |
| 12th Finished harvest. At auction |
| 13th Helping Holmescales to haytime |
| 14th Canny Brow thrashing |
| 15th Very hard frost. Kendal Show |
| 16th T Robberts here |
| 18th At Stricklandgate and Challon Hall Harvest Festival |
| 19th Mrs Gibson here for flowers and plants etc |
| 20th Robberts lambs went. Turned into fog |
| 21st Ducks started laying. Hatched May 22nd |
| 22nd Sold HB gimmer lambs for 25/6 |
|
29th At S.A.M. Mr & Mrs Brown
here
|
| OCTOBER |
| 10th T Metcalfe & Sons here to look at fireplace |
| 13th Laid cows in |
| 15th Pulling mangolds up. Dad here to help |
| 19th Joiner here to put windows in. Walling between Long Rigg and Far Long Close |
| 25th Benthams tup in |
|
26th At Low Garths all day. Fire
burnt all one barn down
|
| NOVEMBER |
| 1st Thrashing at Strickley |
| 11th Dipping at Strickley. Dipped 40 all day |
| 18th Cows in altogether |
| 22nd Cementing pig hull wall. Cementing to stop water running into corner hull. |
| 23rd Gravel onto garden path |
| 25th Rabbitting, got 3. Got stuck with ferrets at top of bank head |
|
26th Went to Holmescales Cottage
for chest of drawers
|
| DECEMBER |
| 5th Rent Day. At auction |
| 7th Look out for biggest heifer by Bents bull |
| 14th Thrashing at Holmescales. Finished after 25¼ days. Got 10 bales of straw |
| 15th Carting into Brimms |
| 20th Snow showers all covered 2 inches. Bickerton here to test cows for TB |
| 22nd Very strong wind. Snow drifting 2 feet deep. Bickerton here again to test. Daylight slipped her calf |
| 24th Cows finished testing. One reactor |
| 25th At Woodhouse |
| 26th Drizzle. All covered with snow. At Strickley for Christmas dinner |
Extracts taken from diaries written in 1935, 1937, 1938, 1939
