Old Photos of Bream and district

Old Photos of The Forest of Dean

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Old Photos of Bream & District

Ivy Dorothy Batten (nee Watkins) 1902 - 1986

Courtesy of :

Pauline Blythe, (transcribed by Malc Norris)

I remember Dad planting all the apple trees and Mother always working in the flower garden which was always kept very nice. We reared chickens, selling lots of sitting eggs, killing and dressing the chickens for shops and neighbours. We also kept pigs which we killed and sold, and salted sides of bacon for us in the winter, we always had bacon and eggs for our breakfast, and great joints of boiled ham. We had a big brown Jersey nanny goat which we used to milk like a cow, Mother would give some to the neighbours for their sick babies on which they would thrive, we also kept black and white pigs.
I remember when I was about 10 we had a farrow of 13 white piglets, it was my job to pop up and down to the pen every few hours to count them, and see that the mother pig hadn't laid on them. Sunday again I went to do my duty and count the little pigs, about a week later and I could see a little black pig that made 14 piglets. I went running up the garden to tell my Dad that there were 14 piglets, 13 white and 1 black, he told me to go back and count them again, and laughed and said "If there is a little black one I will give it to you for yourself". I ran back to the pigs and shouted to Dad to come and look, he came laughing and said that it must be a rat, not a little black pig. Then he saw that I was right and so I reared my little black pig and took it to Lydney market and sold it for a good price.
He gave Mother my little black pig money and I had some lovely new clothes for August. | Next Page |