1 Cover: Ralph Hoare of Mount Barton returns home, C. 1940 Back cover: Vera White and Ruby Manning washing their hair at Higher Lake Farm, late 1920s 2 Village Lives in Woodland, Broadhempston, Staverton, Landscove and Littlehempston Published by Parish News Editors 3 Contents Introduction Agriculture The Church Housing Village People Natural History The School The Shop War Time Ramblings and Curiosities Controversies Water Women’s Institute Acknowledgements 4 Sara Coish helping out the Mannings and the Webbers 5 Introduction The Editors of the Parish News were keen at Broadhempston and Woodland. In 1981 the to preserve and publicise some of the interesting parishioners of Littlehempston Church joined articles published over many years. These chosen the Parish News, followed in 1987 by Staverton items within give a wide and wonderful picture of and Landscove – the five combined parishes as village life, it’s people and society, it’s changes and represented in our magazine today. Since 1990 the even it’s controversies. They were published in the church has relinquished it’s role in the Parish News Parish News between 1975 and 2009, presenting production and it has been edited and presented a rich and varied picture of life in our five villages. by a group of interested parishioners. Among memories of wartime, for instance, are the Home Guard in an old chicken house on the Beacon, looking out for enemy aircraft; a young evacuee having to learn “manners” and eat in the kitchen before being allowed to join the family for meals, and the Women’s Institute receiving food parcels from Australia. There are descriptions of the blacksmith’s shop, of young Mary travelling from Ireland with her friend Bridie in 1929 to work in service at Gurrington House, memories of school days in 1930 and mention of the first solar panels in Broadhempston in 1980. In all, these articles give a fascinating insight into the way village lives have changed over the years. The oldest Parish News in the Broadhempston Archive is dated February 1971; simply a notification of Broadhempston Church services and information, neatly typed on a piece of A4, folded to present four typed pages. Over the years it expanded so that by January 1977 the Parish News had a designed cover, 20 pages of comments, articles and adverts, and cost 10p. At that time it represented the Churches 6 Chapter 1 Agriculture THREE GENERATIONS OF THE HOARE FAMILY AT who owned the land many generations ago. John MOUNT BARTON did much public work on agricultural committees and was Chairman of the NFU. John Hoare came to Mount Barton in 1903, a tenant of the Church Commissioners estate, from His son Ralph took over the tenancy of the farm Luscombe Farm in Buckfastleigh, with his wife, in 1936. His brother Christopher was a tenant of five daughters and three sons. Mount Barton was Hole Farm, Staverton. The Church Commissioners a mixed farm covering 350 acres. The fields were owned most of all Staverton farms and cottages. named after individual enclosures (smallholders) Ralph met his wife, Maude Wakeham from Ralph and Maude Hoare with their children Barbara, Colin and Pamela at Mount Barton Farm, C.1940 7 Cobberton Farm, Dartington at a hunt ball held in the barns at Mount Barton in 1919. Balls were held at Mount Barton until a fire in the barn; after that they were then held in the Court Room. Ralph and Maude had one son, Colin, and two daughters, Barbara and Pamela. Barbara now lives in Broadhempston; her eldest daughter Irene married Raymond Hill, formerly of Barkingdon Manor. Pamela lives with her family in Paignton. Ralph Hoare was a Chairman of Devon NFU, a member of the Wartime Agricultural Executive Committee, a member and past President of the South Devon Flock Book Association and South Devon Herd Book Society, Director of the Cornish Mutual Insurance Co., and Chairman of South Devon Farmers Ltd. He was Church Warden of Staverton for many years. He was a member of the Parish Council and Court Room Committee, and the Special Constabulary. The Rev. Drake Brockman was Vicar of Staverton in Ralph’s time. His wife taught at Staverton School. Drake Brockman wrote a wonderful history of Staverton called “Staverton on the Dart”. Ralph Hoare paying his workers. William Goss at the front, and behind them are Bill Maye, Walter Putt and Ralph’s son, Colin, farmed with his father and they Jack Knapman were well known breeders of pedigree South Devon cattle and pedigree South Devon Longwool orchards, the ground being especially good for Sheep. They won many prizes at agricultural shows. them. Picking up the apples was back breaking Colin then took over the tenancy when his father work, as the apples were picked by hand off the retired. Ralph and Maude built Mount View at the ground once they had fallen. They were then sold, top of the hill from Mount Barton, where they either to Whiteways or Hills Cider in Staverton. lived until Ralph’s death, when Maude moved to Colin married Betty, and they had four daughters, Paignton to be near her daughter Pam. Elizabeth, Sara, Caroline and Jane. At that time, the acreage was increased to around Colin was Chairman of the Totnes branch of the 450 acres and the milking herd changed from NFU. He was also a member of the Dart Vale & South Devons to Friesians. Modern times had Haldon Harriers Hunt Committee, the Totnes Show begun with new tractors and combines. Colin Committee, South Devon Farmers Committee and eventually gave up the milking herd in 1960s to Sheep Steward at the Devon County Show. He concentrate on a suckler herd, beef cattle and also rode many Point-to-Point runners, one very cereals. good one being Trapper, owned by his cousin Bob Hoare who then farmed at Hole Farm. Mount Barton also had several cider apple 8 The family always helped with the Church not fully recovered from the drought, grasses activities, especially with Rev. & Mrs. Cardale. Betty have died and weeds taken over. Re-seeding is helped with meals-on-wheels, collected from expensive; looking back on last year tells one who Landscove School delivering to the elderly; the is the master in farming. children always loved competing at the Staverton Garden Show. All four daughters were married at After the severely cold winter, the soil temperature Staverton Church. is still below average and growth of grass is slow, thus reflecting the price of grass at local grass sales Colin retired from Mount Barton in 1982. He and making up to 139 pounds per acre. Splashed on Betty now live near Harberton. An end of an era! one of the pages of a local newspaper last week, ”Are dairy products ruining your health?”. As a Elizabeth Hoare, January 2004 farmer’s wife, I immediately thought, “well, I’m 1 1/2 stone overweight, but put it down to middle- aged spread”, and sat down to enjoy bread, cream and jam at my next meal. Farming is this country’s FARMING NOTES main industry, but the press seem to enjoy knocking it at every possible opportunity. As we sit writing, the sun is shining, the temperature warmer but we still have a cool NW The countryside surrounding villages such as wind and it is very wet underfoot. Broadhempston has been made and moulded by the farmer, thus obtaining a fine balance between The cows are standing at the yard gate fed up, agriculture and nature. Let’s hope it remains that as though to tell us that they have had enough way. of silage and walking around on concrete for the past six months, wanting to get out to the green R. & I. T., May 1985 grass that surrounds them. Might we tell them the farmer is equally fed up by this time, running to their needs, trying to keep them happy and cleaning up after them. He will compromise; they EEC BUTTER are his main source of income. A very big ‘Thank you’ to Keith Beer, assisted At this time of year, before the milk quotas arrived, by Ann Read, for delivering 1lb. of EEC butter to the farmer could turn the cows out to grass every pensioner and one-parent family in the (weather permitting), cut back on the daily intake village on his one free Saturday afternoon. of concentrates and benefit from the higher milk It was a feast of organisation, going from one yield produced from grass. Not so now; the EEC end of Broadhempston to the other, sometimes does not want so much produced of what’s put needing to make a second visit when the occupier into that “lotta bottle”, that daily pinta which we was out. hope will never disappear from the doorsteps. On behalf of all recipients, Keith, thank you for your Last summer’s drought with no second-cut silage time and trouble. and a shortage of hay, many farmers had to start feeding what should have been their winter fodder Hilary Ford (Senior Citizen), April 1987 during the month of August, thus making their winter fodder supply short. Some pastures have 9 Staverton Bakery THE FARRIER IN BROADHEMPSTON of the day you were sure your back was breaking. Young Atwill was the son of an insurance agent, Once upon a time the forge was the most but his uncle, Harry Atwill, was the blacksmith at hospitable corner of a village. It offered a free fire Bridgetown, Totnes, so he was following a good where you could sit around and talk of prices or the tradition. By the time he had completed his five blimmin’ weather or better still, the government.