My Mother's Diaries
1948 at Hiltonbury Farm
1948 is where My Mother’s Diaries begins. These handwritten entries take us into the everyday life of the Vining family at Hiltonbury Farm — through changing weather, visitors, children, cattle, farm work, outings and all the small events that made up family life in post-war Hampshire.
January began with worry about Father, who had been quite poorly, while ordinary family life carried on around him. There were trips to Winchester, new shoes for the children, Heather’s Polyphotos and seemingly endless rain. Then came the shocking news that Gandhi had been assassinated — a major world event appearing almost casually among the everyday happenings at Hiltonbury.
Snowdrops began to appear, John went to football, and Saints beating Newcastle 4–2 brought some welcome cheer.
February brought snowdrops in extraordinary numbers, with eight dozen bunches picked. Leslie Willis arrived for a month’s training with John, Jennifer celebrated her birthday with a new kilt and a lively party, and there were the usual rounds of washing, cooking, pig killing and farm work.
But concern for Father increasingly dominated the month. He was taken into hospital after another slight heart attack, while bitter cold and deep snow made travel difficult. The pump froze, the kitchen beam caught fire twice, and yet farm life continued. A shorthorn bull arrived, along with 150 Rhode Island Red pullets — small signs of new life during an anxious winter.
January & February 1948
March began with bright spring weather, long walks with Heather, daffodils at Flexford and the familiar routines of washing, cows, chicks and spring planting. But concern for Father remained constantly in the background. On 12 March he died, after weeks of illness. Five days later nearly fifty family and friends gathered for his funeral at St Boniface Church, and he was laid to rest in Pine Road cemetery. Remarkably, that same day Lassie gave birth to seven puppies — new life arriving alongside loss.
Life nevertheless carried on. Potatoes were planted, rooms spring-cleaned, birthdays celebrated, and at the end of March little Heather managed twelve whole steps.
April brought cold rain, gardening, painting and endless household jobs. Andrew celebrated his birthday with a much-loved toy jeep, while chicks, ducks, broodys, goose eggs and puppies kept everyone busy. There were visitors for tea, sewing, planting, trips to Eastleigh and Winchester, and the Royal Silver Wedding celebrations. By month’s end the children were back at school and Hiltonbury life was moving steadily forward again.
March & April 1948
May brought new life and plenty of activity around Hiltonbury. The last of Lassie’s puppies went off to new homes, while ducks and goslings hatched in the yard. Some needed helping from their shells, and one goose egg was even kept warm on the kitchen stove. John was talking seriously with Norman Cooper about establishing the Hiltonbury pedigree Jersey herd, while heifers were turned out to fresh pasture and the vegetable garden began to flourish.
There were visits, school dancing, trips to Winchester and Eastleigh, and the children enjoyed the warmer weather. At the end of May, John and I went to the cinema to see The Best Years of Our Lives.
June was much more unsettled. Rain and gales alternated with bursts of sunshine, but haymaking began and the crop was safely gathered just before more rain arrived. Janet celebrated her birthday with a bicycle, and we enjoyed a family day at Mudeford despite the car breaking down.
Later in the month we attended the Royal Counties Show, where Norman Cooper won best Jersey herd. Hursley Imp — “Little Willy” — served his first cow, an important step in developing our own Jersey herd. June ended with strawberry jam, chicks, broody hens and Sooty’s five kittens discovered snug in the stable hay.
May & June 1948
July was busy with farm work, visitors and children’s activities. Oats and vetches were cut at Flexford, bantams hatched, cherries were bottled and the children performed their school play. There were bees swarming, birthdays, trips to the cinema and plenty of summer visitors. Most excitingly, water pipes arrived at Hiltonbury — the first sign that running water might finally reach the farmhouse.
August became the month of harvest. Oats, wheat and barley were cut and gathered whenever the weather allowed, with rain repeatedly threatening the work. At Flexford, threshing produced eighty-five sacks of grain and 181 bales of straw.
Then came a real milestone: on 19 August, running water finally reached Hiltonbury Farmhouse. After years of carrying water, heating kettles and washing hair elsewhere, a proper bath and water from the tap felt like extraordinary luxury.
There were wedding preparations, plums picked by the dozen, fifty pounds of plum jam made, and the barley harvest was safely finished just before the weather broke again.
July & August 1948
September began with the Romsey Show — “a jolly good show” — before attention turned firmly to Betty and Fred’s wedding. There were bridesmaids’ dresses to finish, a wedding cake to ice and endless arrangements to make. On 15 September, the wedding day arrived with beautiful weather, and the family travelled to Winchester to see the happy couple off.
Back at Hiltonbury, autumn work continued. Potatoes were lifted, apples gathered and fruit bottled. Gas was installed in the bedrooms, bringing another small touch of modern life to the old farmhouse, while builders finally replaced the troublesome burnt kitchen beam with a cement one. The first frost arrived on 22 September, suddenly killing the dahlias and begonias.
October brought colder weather, gardening and autumn sowing. John drilled oats and wheat while potatoes were safely stored in the cellar. There was also a rare weekend away in London, including the theatre and cinema, before returning to the children and farm.
September & October 1948
November arrived with rain, half-term children and the first real feeling of winter. John had good reason to celebrate when he won cups at the Growmore competition for the farm’s corn and root crops, while the Rhode Island Reds also began producing enough eggs for their first proper sale to the packing station.
There were bonfires and fireworks for Guy Fawkes, dances and dinners, and on 14 November the wireless announced the birth of Princess Elizabeth’s son, Charles. One frightening moment came when little Heather wandered out alone onto Hursley Road — John quickly erected a fence to make sure it could not happen again.
December was dominated by preparations for Christmas. Puddings were made, twenty-four chickens plucked for customers, barley threshed in the rickyard and presents wrapped. Christmas Day itself was quiet and happy, with goose for dinner and the children enjoying their presents. Boxing Day brought the Hursley Hunt at Romsey, followed by John’s birthday.
And so 1948 ended — a year of harvests, animals, friendship, family celebrations, running water at last, and the steady rhythm of life at Hiltonbury Farm.
November & December 1948