Sound Recordings, Cambridgeshire

Description

[Collector announcement]; George Warby and Olive Warby [continued from tape LAVC/SRE/A667r], recorded in Elm on the 27 June 1974; talk about the Charity Dole for agricultural workers from Elm and Fridaybridge; flour and coal in the past; now five pounds in money; eligibility; originally means tested; GW talks of other charities and the harshness of working/living conditions sixty years ago; molecatching and talk of Arthur Randell; [informants' names and location announced]; skating matches and prizes; Fenland skaters; recollections of harsh winters; cost of living; [informants' names and location announced]; talk of a Gypsy Traveller woman's grave. [Tr. 1]


[Collector announcement]; Joe Anderson, recorded in Gorefield on the 28 June 1974; talks about the village; its declining population; the decline in agricultural employment and the shift to factory work in Wisbech and Peterborough; wages and farming costs; lists local firms; wages pre-World War One (doubled by the end of war to 35 shillings); strawberry pulling and plugging - compares price of punnets; potato picking - hours/wages compared, past and present; harvest time; the cost of animal feed. [Tr. 2]


[Collector announcement]; Alfred Maddock, recorded in Gorefield on the 28 June 1974; talks about a steam-powered threshing machine; lists different makes; informant operating one 1928-1930; steam cultivator for ploughing (bigger engine described); [informant's name and location announced]; Steam Engine Rallies. [Tr. 3]


[Collector announcement]; James Chapman, recorded in Wisbech on the 28 June 1974; talks about pig keeping; baking in brick ovens; working life, fruit growing and gardening; bicycles; first cars in the village; horse and traps; horse shows - prizes for trotting; digging and hoeing the land (one year's seeding is seven years' weeding); [informant's name announced]; informant's house; growth of the town; informant's fruit orchard in Elm; recreation - cricket, swimming, skating; marriage and weddings. [Tr. 4]


[Collector announcement]; Edith Mattless, recorded in Guyhirn on the 1 July 1974; talks about working on the land; describes the village [?of Guyhirn]; skating matches on the river; floods; schooling; toys and games. [Tr. 5]


[Collector announcement]; Harry Wykes, recorded in Wisbech St Mary on the 1 July 1974; talks about the local railway line, train services and railway station; the closure of the line in 1963. [Tr. 6]


[Collector announcement]; William Johnson, recorded in Wisbech St Mary on the 1 July 1974; relates the story of his aunt meeting a supposed witch; talks of (hare, dog) shapeshifting; local horse races; [informant's name announced]; father and uncle's work on the railway (laying and taking up track); the village brick kiln; tunnel connecting two houses in the village; fruit picking and pickers; describes the games of skittles and Five Stones; local blacksmiths; [informant's name announced]; water supplies and village wells; cistern water [collected rainwater]; school on Ash Wednesday - ash in the shoe to prevent bad luck; weather rhyme (Ash and Oak); weatherlore; beliefs associated with full/new moons; objects in the house to bring good luck; corn dollies for good harvest; corn stacking; protection against witches; horseman/toadman and belief in the powers of toad bones. [Tr. 7]


[Collector announcement]; Hanna Pearson, recorded in Manea on the 3 July 1974; talks about the village's situation, and the distance travelled to reach a doctor and a school; keeping lodgers; lighting; water supplies; home remedies; illnesses and accidents; the cost of living; house cleaning. [Tr. 8]


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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.

Physical and technical conditions

9.5cm/sec. Copy tape. Print through audible.

Related material

Typed Tape Table of Contents and informant biographies are held in file LAVC/SRE/ARI/052.

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