Dan, Jade, Melissa and Olly, students from Bournemouth University are bringing us a series of blogs about their work with some of our Oral History interviews.
Part one: Meet our new bloggers
Part two: From Dairy Farmer to the Dorset Game Larder
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Welcome to the third blog post from the students at Bournemouth University. With the stresses of dissertations firmly behind us, we are excited to bring you news that they will be holding “A Journey Through Sound” on the 11th of May at Priest House Museum in Wimborne to display some of our research into the Bankes Archive interviews! The interviews have been incredibly interesting and have encouraged us to take a thematic approach to this event, exploring the importance of farming and gardening in the local community, as well as the evolution of home life on the estates.
Anyone up for some farming?
Farming and gardening were imperative to the thriving of the Bankes estate, and through the oral history interviews we have discovered many interesting stories about the experiences of locals. Mrs. Ann Burden, who grew up in Pamphill tells us in her interview that
“Grandfather used to grow lots of potatoes, vegetables and flowers such as Asters and Dahlias for the agricultural show at Kingston Lacy”.
Agriculture, allotments and kitchen gardens remain, to this day, a key part of life on the estate. Indeed, the National Trust are currently undertaking a huge amount of work to redevelop the Kitchen Garden at Kingston Lacy demonstrating the continued importance of local produce, as well as gardens as a relaxing place to escape to.
Mrs. Burden also stated that “if you saw a car you got excited” and spoke about her experiences with King Edward VII, which included shooting at Kingston Lacy. Mrs. Burden’s great-grandfather was the head game keeper for H.J. Ralph Bankes, which establishes a tangible link between the locals and the head of the Bankes family.
The stories told in these interviews exude the essence of rural living, and they create a window for us to better understand and envision what everyday life was like for the residents of the Kingston Lacy estate. We are keen to project this to our audience at the sound event, so that they can delve deeper into life on the Bankes’ land.
This month we have visited Dorset History Centre again, to select images from the archives to accompany our sound event, and we have some great images for you to enjoy! The images that we have selected for our event reflect upon the various themes that we’ve identified in the interviews.
Rats on the roof!
We also discovered that pride in people’s houses was also incredibly important, not only to Mr. and Mrs. Burden but to all the interviewees, and this will be another central theme that will be explored at the event. Housing and family are two aspects of life on the Bankes estates that were discussed frequently in the interviews. In her interview, Mrs. Burden stated that she used to hear rats running across the roof in her old house, which shocked us!
Another interviewee, Mrs. Marge Cherrett exclaimed that her mother would spend the entirety of Mondays cooking and cleaning. This is a striking difference to the fast paced lifestyle that we experience in the present day. Our interest in these contrasting lifestyles has prompted us to explore the developments, changes and continuities in life on the Kingston Lacy estates, and how these may have impacted those inhabiting living there. The interviews are a great way of bringing to life the experiences of the people who lived and grew up on the estate and Dorset History Centre hopes that our event will further revitalise their memories, and encourage others with interesting stories to come forward.
Finally for this post, another former resident, Mrs. Pam Bachmann heartwarmingly discussed her experiences during the Second World War, which included her receiving hamburgers and nylon stockings from the Americans stationed at the former American Hospital in Kingston Lacy’s grounds. We found it fascinating that hamburgers and tights, which were then novelties, are now readily available on every high street!
Stay tuned for more updates on how the students are getting along, and more information about what can be expected at the event in May.