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T21 Mrs Doris Hillary
Memories of Edenfield and running a butcher shop
Born 23/09/1915
Recorded 01/03/1998
Length 00:15:47
- Doris Greenwood was born in 1915 in Edenfield.
- During WWI, her father joined the forces, leading her and her mother to live with her grandparents.
- The family operated butcher shops, with her grandfather purchasing cattle for supply.
- Doris recalls the challenges of running a butcher shop, including meat delivery and home orders.
- She shares memories of church activities, Sunday school, and community events, highlighting the importance of family and tradition.
Here’s a detailed summary of the transcript from T21.docx — a personal oral history given by Doris Greenwood, born in 1915 in Edenfield, Lancashire:
Early Life and Family
- Doris Greenwood was born in 1915 in a butcher’s shop in Edenfield.
- In 1917, her father joined the armed forces during World War I.
- The family closed the shop and moved to Spring Bank, Bolton Street, to live with her grandparents.
- Her grandfather had four sons and one daughter; three sons went to war, and only two returned.
Family Business and Butchery
- After the war, Doris’s grandfather purchased butcher shops in Tottington and Greenmount.
- Each son managed a shop; Doris’s father ran the Bridge Street shop.
- The family lived above and behind the Bridge Street shop, which Doris described as modest compared to Spring Bank.
Life Above the Shop
- The family’s home was small but well-kept.
- The refrigerator (an ice box) was kept in the backyard and replenished twice a week with large blocks of ice, delivered by hand.
- Ice deliveries had to be made via a rear gate to avoid dripping through the house.
Move to Bolton Road West
- After two years on Bridge Street, they moved to Bolton Road West, to one of her grandfather’s properties.
- The house had modern improvements: a bathroom (rare for the time), electricity, and a brick-built kitchen.
- Despite modernization, washing was still done by hand using a dolly tub, posser, and rubbing board.
The Slaughterhouse and Trade
- Their slaughterhouse was nearby, on Bolton Road West.
- Doris’s grandfather and his sons slaughtered animals for their own shops and supplied smaller butchers who lacked facilities.
- Every Tuesday, her grandfather traveled to Manchester’s Mould Wheel Cattle Market to buy livestock.
- Animals were shipped back to Ramsbottom Station, then herded through town to the slaughterhouse.
- As her grandfather aged, he trained his sons to buy cattle.
- This continued until WWII, when home slaughtering was banned and meat processing moved to Bury abattoir under rationing rules.
Her Mother’s Role
- Doris’s mother helped in the shop and made deliveries on foot to large houses on Cross Lane and Holcombe.
- She carried a basket of meat orders covered with a white cloth.
- Wealthy customers, including a bank manager, often telephoned with extra requests, requiring her to walk back to deliver small items like two cutlets.
- Her grandfather was one of the first in Ramsbottom to own a telephone, but he had it removed because of nuisance calls and urgent orders.
Early Motoring and Local Life
- Her grandfather owned one of the first three motor cars in Ramsbottom — a Harold Johnson, from Haslingden.
- Doris’s parents rode in this car to their wedding in 1915 at Holcombe Church.
Meat Inspection and Delivery
- The slaughterhouse on Regent Street was inspected regularly by Mr. Shaw, the sanitary inspector, who wore a bowler hat.
- Meat deliveries were made using pony traps drawn by ponies named Bess and Kitty.
- Deliveries served Ramsbottom, Holcombe, Greenmount, and Tottington.
- After WWII began, meat had to come from Bury, delivered by Dodge van instead of horses.
Daily and Sunday Life
- Doris recalled being woken by St. Paul’s Church bells every Sunday morning.
- She attended Sunday school at 9:30, followed by church at 10:30, returning for more lessons at 2:00 PM.
- Children left before the sermon and donated their penny collections.
Church and Community Events
- Sunday school prizes were given out during the New Year’s Day Tea Party, which included concerts and plays.
- Doris fondly remembered Whit Friday walking days, where children dressed in white, carried flowers, and processed through Ramsbottom behind church banners, accompanied by brass bands.
- After marching, they enjoyed community meals in the school hall, feeding around 380–400 people.
- The day ended with sports events and races in a nearby farmer’s field, followed by refreshments, ice cream, and music.
- If it rained, festivities moved to the Drill Hall on Crow Lane, though it was “never the same” as being outdoors.
Overall Themes
The transcript paints a vivid picture of early 20th-century life in Lancashire, showing:
- Strong family bonds and intergenerational business traditions.
- The impact of both World Wars on small-town trades.
- The transition from manual, rural work to early modernization (electricity, cars, telephones).
- Deep community ties centered around the church, local trades, and shared events.
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