Sound Recordings, Kent and London
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Users are advised that content in this section may include accounts of discrimination and the expression of opinions and/or terminology that would now be considered unacceptable.See the Access and usage section below for further details.
Details
Type of record: Archive
Title: Sound Recordings, Kent and London
Classmark: LAVC/SRE/A222r
Creator(s): Kemp, P K
Site Location(s): Subject - Maidstone, Kent, England, United Kingdom( 51.2667, 0.51667 ); Subject - Stepney, London, Greater London, England, United Kingdom( 51.5175, -0.04292 )
Date(s): September 1969
Size and medium: 1 x 12.7cm open reel spool; Duration: 60' 39".
Persistent link: https://explore.library.leeds.ac.uk/special-collections-explore/414272
Collection group(s): Leeds Archive of Vernacular Culture
1 - Hop-Picking
Description
Bill Selsdon, recorded in Maidstone, describes hop picking in Headcorn (Kent) as a child with his family; accommodation in Hopper Huts; travelling from London (on the Hopping Train); hop picking season; sleeping arrangements; pay; mother and children picking - father working in London, visited at weekends; evening singsongs; attitude of locals to hop pickers; Gypsy Traveller communities; Tallyman; Tally Clerk; Bin Man; paid at end of picking; pay offs for leaving early/dismissal; rules and regulations; religious services for hoppers - local St. John's brigade Mission; 'complaints' (gout); describes hop picking day (visitors not allowed to pick during World War One - started again c. 1925); season's wage pre-World War One, £6-7; lists songs sung (Boer War songs); hop picking song (gives first line); occupational sayings/language; visiting tradesmen; preparations for hop pickers' arrival; machine picking and costs; thoughts on end of hop pickers and rise of mechanisation. Recorded 2
September 1969. [Tr. 1]
Mr. A. J. Roberts, recorded in Stepney, talks about Guinness Farms, c. 1947, in Bodiam (East Sussex); the establishment in 1948 of a Mission for hop pickers, financed by the Guinness brewery; camps of hop pickers and their amenities; attitude of farmers to the Mission and its welfare work; attitude of hop pickers to the Mission; pickers from Hastings (East Sussex) working on a daily basis; Whitbreads brewers; work of the Mission on the camp - channelling grievances of workers; can't estimate number of workers; Borough Homes in Tower Hamlets and Stepney; population of Stepney. Recorded 26 September 1969. [Tr. 2]
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Notes on terminology and spellings
Please note that there may be differences in the terms used to describe the particular communities represented in this collection, many of which have changed over time and may continue to change.
At the time this catalogue was created there are many definitions that identify different cultural and ethnic groups with their varied histories, traditions and associations with a travelling life.
These can include but are not limited to those that have been recognised in UK law as ethnic groups; English and Welsh (Romany) Gypsies, Irish and Scottish Travellers; and non-ethnic groups that consider themselves distinct even if these have not been recognised in UK law, e.g. New Travellers, Showmen and Bargees. Outside of the UK 'Gypsy' may also be considered offensive and ‘Roma’ is often used instead as the universally preferred term although this term also represents a wide range of distinct groups, (e.g. Sinti, Manouche).
It is our intention to respectfully and (where possible) accurately refer to these different communities in the catalogue. For this reason we ask you to note the following with regards to the descriptions in this catalogue that have been based on these current definitions:
1) As many of these definitions have only come into being since the collection was created/1st catalogued, please be aware that original descriptions may not accurately reflect the group to which it refers, (e.g. the word 'Gypsy,' may have been used to describe those now recognised as Irish Travellers/Roma). Therefore it is worth searching under various terms, e.g. 'Romany' and 'Traveller,' to broaden the scope of search results as well as using the alternative historical spellings, 'Gipsy,' 'Gipsie,' or ‘Romani.’
2) Where no original description exists and it is not possible to properly identify a distinct group they will be described as "Gypsy Traveller" (within UK setting), "Roma" for those living/recently originating outside the UK or "Gypsy, Traveller, Roma " for origin/locations unknown. References to any non - ethnic groups will similarly be capitalised to respectfully acknowledge all groups.
Users are advised that content in this section may include accounts of discrimination and the expression of opinions and/or terminology that would now be considered unacceptable.
View the Cultural Collections sensitivity policy
This material is in copyright. Photocopies or digital images can be supplied by the Library for research or private study. It is the responsibility of the researcher to obtain the copyright holder's permission to reproduce for any other purpose. Guidance is available on tracing copyright status and ownership.
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