| Collection | Winstanley Oral History Collection |
| Description | Mrs. F. L. Hodgkin, born 1910, interviewed in Marsden. Her father was a wheelwright and carpenter, her mother an ex maid. First job was a maid in Kent, came from a family of five, theree boys and two girls.
Summary: [01:35:46] [00:00:03] Introduction to interviewee F.L. Hodgkin and where she lives. [00:00:43] brief description of where her father was born. [00:01:44] Detailed description of her father’s job as a wheelwright and carpenter, detailing his wages and general responsibilities. [00:03:55] Brief description of how her father would travel to work during seasons of bad flooding. [00:04:41] Description of her childhood home and the rent they would pay when she was a child. [00:06:00] Brief description of what her mother’s role was on the farm. [00:07:00] Mention of the kind of farm her father worked on. [00:08:44] Description of how her father learnt to be a wheelwright and carpenter from his father. [00:09:50] Detailed description of what the farm was like and the privileges of working there. [00:13:49] Detailed description of how the family would acquire meat, leading into an explanation about the deliveries from grocers at [00:18:26]. [00:20:43] Mention of her mother’s background, upbringing and schooling. [00:23:42] Brief mention of her grandfather renting part of Lord Cornwallis’ estate. [00:24:00] Detailed description of her mother’s role in service until she was married. [00:25:16] Description of what houses in the villages had servants. [00:26:50] FH explains why it was so hard to get servants after the first world war. [00:28:20] Description of the lack of other employment options for young women in the twenties. [00:30:41] FH describes the kinds of exotic fruits available to her when she was a child as well as tinned fruits and meats. [00:34:08] Brief explanation of tinned milk, followed by an explanation of how they would get milk during her childhood. [00:35:50] Detailed description of who would deliver the milk and the kinds of milk available such as skimmed milk. FH also detailed what kind of milk was more popular and affordable. [00:37:36] Description of what other tradesmen would deliver across the village. [00:39:28] Detailed explanation of the hop picking and the wages fruit pickers would earn. [00:41:57] FH describes how her mother would buy food and then how her grandparents would buy sacks of flour and yeast for bread making. [00:45:19] Detailed description of whether people were able to borrow money and pawnbrokers. [00:46:44] Description of people who would visit the villages to sharpen scissors. [00:47:25] Detailed description of the rag and bone men that would go around the village to collect rabbit skins as well as descriptions about rabbit poaching. [00:50:53] Detailed descriptions of gypsies that would visit the villages and how the police would deal with them. [00:53:14] FH explains how butchers would slaughter their animals and what kind of meats were available during her childhood. [01:00:55] Description of the fish available in the village. [01:02:17] Brief description of what breakfast options were available. [01:03:14] FH describes how they would travel to Maidstone in the carrier van or how the van would deliver their shopping. [01:06:24] Description of where people would shop and how people would get there. [01:08:07] FH describes the use of the railway in the village for both work and days out. [01:13:08] FH describes the conflict between the trades people and hop picking and how the hop pickers benefited the shops in the village. [01:14:29] Brief description of how the village accommodated the hop pickers and how they would dress. [01:15:45] Detailed description of hop picking and whether villagers would engage in hop picking. [01:20:21] Briefly describes how hop picking changed after the first world war and her brief memories of the war. [01:24:30] Briefly describes the holidays and days out they had to Margate once a year. [01:26:12] Description of time off on Good Friday and Easter in the 1920’s and the 1930s. [01:27:40] Description of the popularity of bicycles and her first bicycle her husband bought her. [01:30:14] Detailed description of Sunday school and church. [01:31:34] FH describes what kind of children were sent to grammar schools and scholarships that were available to gifted students. [01:33:40] Description of what she would wear to school as well as the kind of exams available. [01:34:45] FH describes how the school system was set up including exams, headmasters and how the villages viewed the teachers.
Summary created by Olivia Bauckham, volunteer, in 2025.
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