Stories of the Working Village
This section consists of memories of the Post office and Bake house in this village, the village pub, the Doctors, and the Doctor's servants. The stories are recalled for us by many villagers past and present, who have written for this website or were interviewed by the Longworth and District History Society.
Where History Society interviews are used, permission has been sought to place these interviews online.
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Working Life
- Baker & Postmistress - A story about the Bakehouse and the Post Office and the well known Garrett family.
- Doctor Woodward - Obviously a popular doctor as he is remembered here and at Cumnor where he also held a surgery.
- Fred Holland - Fred Holland - Huntsman. Stories recalled about him and his times.
- Hinds Head Pub - Violet Viney's parents had kept the Hind's Head and now Violet and her husband found that they too had to become the publicans.
- Farming Hops - Mrs Blanchard tells what it's like to farm hops
- Hop Picking - Rose Young and Jean Mitchell talk to Jill Muir
- Mr & Mrs Farmer - Mrs Farmer arrived here some years after she married and lived in 3 School Lane in a row of cottages that have now been demolished.
- Three Little Maids - Ann Ryder's aunt was a servant at Stone House, Kingston Bagpuize. The inheritance of her aunt's postcard collection gave Ann the inspiration to write her story.
- Village Doctors - The doctors, the dispensary and the nurse/midwife are recalled.
An insight into a much earlier English village, the village labourer, the village hierarchy can be read here. The Village Labourer 1760-1832, the village before Enclosure. Authors: John L. &Barbara Hammond. You can also download The Village Labourer here.
Interesting facts and information about the Elizabethan Village Life can be found here. This includes clothing and recipes.
Medieval sources on the Internet is a very good site.
Primary Sources the English Manorial Documents is here - "From English Manorial Documents, Translations and Reprints from the original Sources of European History, E. P. Cheyney, tr., vol. 3, no. 5 (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania, 1907), pp. 3-32". Shows examples from several parts of the country, including Essex, Durham and Norfolk.
When researching Family History it is surprising how many people married several times. Economic reasons often lay behind these marriages. Often a young wife died in childbirth and with no mother to care for the baby and perhaps other small children it was very important for a man to find a new wife quickly, so that he could continue to go to work.
It was also really easy to become poor with no breadwinner in the days when there were no Government doles.
Here are some factors that could lead to Poverty
- Old Age
- Loss of Major Breadwinner - husband or son/s
- Illness
- Low Wages
- Unemployment
See our Links if you wish to find out more about the Work House.