It was in 1921, I was with my Grandma when a car came past us down the drive. It was our first. Looking back it was a strange looking object, with folding canvas roof and side curtains – which we never used. There were no windscreen wipers, mirrors, indicators, stop light. It had a self starter, but I never remember my Dad using it. There was a fixed starting handle in front which he always used ‘to save the battery’. He also had a paraffin lamp fitted ‘in case the others failed’. There was no mileometer or speedometer; you had a dipstick provided for finding out how much petrol was left. I don’t ever remember it having a service or an oil change, even though we had it for 10 years. It was one of only three cars in Christleton. I learned to drive on it – it was wonderful!
Petrol came from Stan Mayers’ garage – new Dickens Peugeot – and it cost then 10 pence a gallon! Equivalent to less than 5p. I went to school at the Infants, now turned into houses, and Mrs Fleet was our teacher, the wife of James Fleet the local blacksmith who charged about 10 shillings (now 50p) for a set of shoes for a horse – now they charge around £50. There were three blacksmiths employed there and there was also another smithy in Village Road.
Foot and Mouth disease was rife in 1927, most of the farmers in Christleton and Littleton lost their stock; the smell of burning was everywhere. Then there were many small farms, each with around 25 cows having to come through the village twice a day to be hand milked and the farmers did not carry plastic bags! During the winter the cows were kept inside and had to be provided with water, some from the village pump and some from The Pit.
There was a General Election around 1927; Chester had been a Conservative stronghold for many years, Sir Charles Cayer being the local MP, but a very popular Liberal, Aubrey Herbert, challenged him and won by one vote on the first count, but lost on a recount. Many of the ballot papers had been spoiled by messages of goodwill.
I attended Christleton Boys’ School at the time and Thomas Solloway was the headmaster. We had school elections and I was chosen as Liberal candidate and remember telling in my address of the candidate who was being heckled by a man who shouted ‘You have not a leg to stand on.’ ‘That’s why I want you to give me the seat,’ said the prospective candidate. Modestly I won.
We had an opening prayer at school, usually with a morning hymn. Bill Fleet and I were able to share the piano. Rev G M V Hickey was the Anglican minister at the time and he would occasionally come into school. He was a good friend of the then Wesleyan church, now the Methodist. The church bells were recast during the 1920s, some of us schoolboys collected money for the project. Sunday Schools were packed in those days and the trips to Rhyl were a wonderful event by open charabanc or train. The children were taken to Chester Railway Station by horse and wagon provided by the farmers from Cotton Thomas and Robert Peacock.
Z Woodfin started a local bus service to Chester and it cost four old pence return to Chester and two pence for children – one of his buses was on solid tyres. A year or two later, Crosville started on the same route and undercut the price to three pence return.
Electricity came to Christleton in the 1920s. The Boys’ School used to be lit by gas; if it was a cold day, it was lit to help warm the room, and if I remember correctly, Chester Waters was laid on about that time.
Joe Mosford (grandad of Jim Partington) was the village butcher. He slaughtered his meat where the telephone exchange now stands. There were no fridges, but the meat was always good. He used to slaughter pigs for local farmers at a charge of around 3/6- a time. Winters were much colder then, and people came from far and near to skate on our famous Pit.
EHB
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