My Mother's Diaries
1952 at Hiltonbury Farm
The diaries for 1952 follow another eventful year of family and farming life at Hiltonbury. The death of King George VI and the beginning of Queen Elizabeth II’s reign brought historic change to the country, while life on the farm continued through the familiar rhythm of livestock, crops, school terms and changing seasons. Mother recorded the children’s birthdays and outings alongside endless washing, sewing, cooking and visitors arriving for tea. There were new calves and puppies, difficult cattle tests, sporting occasions, village gatherings and preparations for the approaching Coronation year. Together, these everyday entries preserve a warm and wonderfully detailed picture of post-war family life in Chandler’s Ford.
January & February 1952
January and February brought bitter weather, family birthdays and momentous national news to Hiltonbury Farm. Heather started school, Andrew returned to St Probus and Jennifer celebrated her birthday on the very day King George VI died. The country entered mourning, with the King’s funeral followed closely on the wireless and in news films. Farm life nevertheless continued: calves were born, oats were threshed and five cows sadly failed their tuberculosis test. Mother battled coughs, sewing and endless washing while making herself a green taffeta evening dress. Lassie produced four puppies, but the family lost their much-loved cat Smudge on the Hursley road. As February softened towards spring, the children picked and tied one hundred bunches of snowdrops for sale, bringing colour and hope back to Hiltonbury.
March & April 1952
March and April brought difficult weather, spring planting and concern about John’s continuing ill health. While he attended hospital appointments and received treatment in Winchester, Mother kept the household moving through sewing, dancing classes, gardening and caring for the children. A visit to London’s Ideal Home Exhibition offered an exciting glimpse of modern household life—although Hiltonbury still had no electricity. Snow briefly returned, allowing the children to enjoy sledge rides behind Smokey, before spring finally arrived. Andrew celebrated his birthday with a new bicycle, while hundreds of chicks, five kittens and a valuable Jersey heifer brought new life to the farm. Oats, peas, dredge and potatoes were planted, and the Easter holidays ended with riding, kite-flying and a visit to the beautiful bluebell woods.
May and June brought a welcome Bournemouth holiday, summer haymaking and continuing concern over John’s health. After weeks of rain and hospital appointments, Mother and John enjoyed sunshine, shows, bathing and new friendships by the sea. Back at Hiltonbury, builders began work on the kitchen and bathroom, filling the farmhouse with dust and disruption. Jennifer saw the Duke of Edinburgh playing polo, Janet celebrated her birthday and the children enjoyed school events and summer outings. As the weather grew hotter, the family picked gooseberries and strawberries, made jam and helped gather and bale hay at Flexford. There was hope when a specialist offered treatment for John’s painful back, but great sadness followed when Wings of War, one of their finest Jersey cows, failed the cattle test and had to leave the herd.
May & June 1952
July & August 1952
July and August brought visitors from Canada, family adventures and the demanding summer harvest to Hiltonbury Farm. Mother watched the magnificent liners Queen Elizabeth and United States from boats on Southampton Water, while the children enjoyed sports days, Pony Club camp, gymkhanas and Southampton Carnival, where the Odd Bods won first prize. At home, decorating continued and the house had to be put back in order, while John’s painful back remained a concern. On the farm, haymaking was completed before the oats, peas, barley, wheat and dredge were gradually gathered. Watching the combine working at Ramalley offered an exciting glimpse of farming’s changing future. Despite uncertain weather, the harvest was safely finished by late August. The summer ended with a Jersey-cross heifer calf, a difficult calving successfully resolved and the first egg from a Rhode Island Red pullet.
September & October 1952
September and October carried Hiltonbury Farm from the last days of summer into a wet and increasingly chilly autumn. Mother salted beans, gathered sloes for gin, planted bulbs and wallflowers, and finally completed the long job of painting the farmhouse frontage. John spent many days threshing wheat, both at Hiltonbury and for neighbouring farms, while still struggling with back trouble and severe headaches. He also endured having all his remaining teeth removed and new ones fitted. The children returned to school, began confirmation preparations and enjoyed fireworks, parties and family outings. Cattle testing brought anxious memories of losing Wings of War, but nearly all the herd passed, to everyone’s great relief. October ended with a cow calving, the cattle escaping and Andrew returning for half-term—whereupon the entire household became “Monopoly mad.”
November & December 1952
November and December brought confirmations, Christmas preparations and important progress at Hiltonbury Farm. Mother spent weeks sewing special dresses for Jennifer and Janet’s confirmation at Mottisfont, while also making Christmas puddings and cakes, attending school concerts and preparing presents. A hand-operated egg washer was installed beside the kitchen sink, and John began building a large new poultry house as the egg business expanded. The family visited the Smithfield Show, enjoyed Guy Fawkes Night and heard the startling sound of an aircraft breaking the sound barrier above Hiltonbury. The happiest farming news came when the final doubtful cow passed her tuberculosis test, making Hiltonbury an officially attested herd. Around seventy chickens were prepared for Christmas before the family gathered for church, presents, parties, a pantomime and a lively New Year’s Eve with friends.