 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
 |
Farming |
Until the early 20th century there were many farms within the boundaries of the old borough of Warrington. It was only with the great expnasion of the built-up area from the 1950s that much of this farmland was lost to development. In the Warrington area there are several distinct types of soils and landforms, so that agriculture was varied. North of the River Mersey around Woolston, the edge of Chat Moss, Risley and Culcheth, the extensive mosslands were reclaimed for farming from the 16th century onwards. Once drained and fertilised the land here was excellent for intensive market gardening for growing crops such as celery, leeks and cabbage. These crops were then transported for sale at Warrington Market. The whole family often worked together on these smallholdings. The work of sowing, weeding, hoeing and harvesting was very labour intensive, backbreaking toil. |
 |
Ploughing at Padgate in the early 1900s before the tractor replaced |
Dairy farming was important from the medieval period onwards. Farms in the parishes of Grappenhall, Stockton Heath, Walton, Sankey and Martinscroft supplied the town with fresh milk as the industrial centre grew in the 19th century. The sight of the horse-drawn milk cart, laden with churns, was a familiar sight right up until World War Two. |
For the many people who worked on the farms their lives were dictated by the cycle of the seasons. The labourers and their families worked long hours for very poor pay. Irish workers were relied upon to help with the harvest and vegetable picking. They travelled from farm to farm to find work at least until the late 19th century before mechanisation meant that farmers no longer had such a need for this type of labour. They would be accommodated in 'paddy shants' on each farm. This was an outbuilding where they could eat and sleep after their long hours of working in the fields. |
| < back |
Terms & conditions | Privacy policy | Acknowledgements
