Part 7

A Memory of Middle Rainton.

There was no running hot water, no gas, no bathroom and no flushing toilets. Electricity was used for lighting and if you were lucky, a wireless set. Most sets were run from accumulators, a sort of battery, which you had to take to the shop and pay to be recharged.
Bath time was when the tin bath hanging up outside was brought in, placed in front of the fire and filled with water heated from the range. Two or three or more would use the same water to bath in and you were just unlucky if you were last. There was also strange belief among many pitmen who although bathed daily, refused to wash their backs as they thought washing would weaken it. (It got really black after several years).

There were only two types of soap, Fairy and Lifebuoy. Fairy was green, and Lifebuoy was red, both came as solid bars, about 9 inches long, and say three inches wide by 2 inches thick.
This was all we had, no washing powder, toilet soap or shampoo. It was shaved into flakes for the clothes wash. Into small squares, for hand wash, baths, and hair, shaving, washing up dishes, floors and everything else and we never seemed to suffer from skin complaints or dandruff.

Most families consisted of between 2 – 12 children and money was always short. There were very few cars, transport was mainly by horse and cart or bus; Lorries were used for commercial goods. Only the doctor and vicar appeared to own a car, but then people didn’t really travel far in those days. Most of the shopping was done at Rainton Gate Co-op because the prices were cheaper, they provided “tick” and there was always the divi to look forward to!
Many more people attended church services than do now and mostly in family groups. We all walked to St Michael’s and back every Sunday (3 miles each way), old and young, rain and shine.

Food: We kept chickens primarily for eggs, and when they stopped laying – we ate them. We also kept White Leghorn cockerels, which were bought young and raised to be sold to order at Christmas time. We kept between 4 and 8 Flemish Giant rabbits that went the same way.
We normally kept 2 pigs that again were raised to be eaten. Once big enough, the butcher would come from Carrville and take them for slaughter. When the carcasses had been returned they were said to be “cured”. They would then be hung in the cellar to be cut and used as needed. The blood was turned into Black Pudding, and the liver, heart and kidneys were all made good use of. The lack of refrigeration meant that we would eat what we could and share the rest with the neighbours.
The pig’s heads were boiled (somehow) and turned into “brawn” which we ate on Stottie Cake. Other delicacies were tripe eaten raw with salt, pepper and vinegar followed by Leek Pudding, leeks rolled in suet pastry to form a sort of Swiss Roll and boiled, wrapped up in a cloth.
Most families kept hens, ducks or rabbits, although they may have started their relationship as pets, all would be cooked and eaten in time. A few people kept nanny goats for milk and their meat; likewise a sheep could be kept. The catching of wild rabbits to eat or sell was a punishable offence, but that didn’t deter anyone from ferreting for them.

Cooking, baking etc was all done on the kitchen range that housed a built-in oven and had a small tank for hot water.

Milk was collected and paid for fresh from the farm in a Billy can (pint or gill).

As it was just after the war everything seemed to be on rations, and you needed ration coupons to buy most goods, (if they had them in) sweets were nearly unknown, even if you had the coupons
Even furniture was rationed and this was of an inferior type called “Utility”
As children we were given Malt (not bad) orange juice (ok) and cod liver oil (Yuk)
To help make up vitamin deficiency
And of course our third of a pint of milk a day at school.

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