Conversation with GORDON COSTAR of Downs Rd., Standlake 29^th July 2005

PB Gordon, I am interested in hearing about your memories of Standlake, because I understand you have lived in the village all of your life.

GC Yes, apart from a period during the war.

PB So, when and where were you born?

GC On 5^th February 1918, at Underdown Mill. My parents were Bert and Alice Costar. She came from Beckley (nr. Oxford), and that is where they got married. My dad was from Standlake, and he was born at Glebe Farm.

PB The Costars have been in Standlake for some time then?

GC At least 200 years, and always farmers. My grandfather died when dad was just 4 years old. In fact, grandmother was left with 3 boys to bring up. So, it was a hard life for her - she was

small but tough! Then, later on, both of dad’s brothers emigrated to New Zealand.

PB So your parents, Bert and Alice, were at Underdown Mill when you arrived, and what kind of enterprise did they run?

GC Well, it was a working mill with a smallholding attached. Dad used to grind corn for local farmers, and I remember we would deliver the sacks of flour back to them with a horse and cart.

PB Can you give me another early memory?

GC Well, I suppose that would be walking to school each day. You have to remember that our next door neighbour on this side of the road was Church Mill, on the other side was the Church and Church House. The farm yard and buildings on the far side of Church belonged to Eagle Farm (we called it Bullocks Farm), then you came to the School.

PB How many pupils at the school would you say?

GC Oh, 50 or 60 – remember the children came from Northmoor as well. The school was run by the headmaster and his wife, Mr. and Mrs. Cull – she took infants and he took the top class. There was another teacher in-between, but I can’t remember her name.

PB Did you enjoy the village school?

GC Yes, the teachers were kind. So far as the education went, we all used slates to write on and the lessons were very much the “3 R’s”. One thing we did still baffles me though.

PB What was that?

GC Well, they used to give us bits of scrap cloth, then we had to pull them apart thread by thread. When we finished, they put it all in a bag and took it away – but never told us why!

PB Can we talk about the rest of the village buildings? Obviously, there were very few compared to today.

GC Well, carrying on from school past the rectory and down Rack End, I can only remember one thatched cottage, which was Knipes’. Then there was a smallholding belonging to Teddy Long who was the wheelwright, then you came to Gaunt Mill.

PB So, that’s the Downs and Rack End, what about High St. and Abingdon Rd.?

GC Well, going up from the Green on the left you came to Eagle Farm, then the Bell, then Florey’s Stores (further on from where the shop is now). You then came to the Manor, Horcutt Farm, Linclon Farm, the Black Horse and, on the corner of Abingdon Rd., Manor farm run by Mr. and Mrs. Hirons. Going back down High St. on the opposite side, you had Stones Farm opposite Lincoln Farm,run by Mark Florey, then you had Jack Knipe the milkman, he kept some cows and used to deliver the milk in a horse and tub – you took your jug and he would ladle out of a churn for you. Further down again, Mrs. Eileen Coles father, Lewis Tuckey, was the baker – and lovely bread he baked too!

On Abingdon Road, of course, there was no Garage in the 1920’s. Where Hugh Browne lives was Fletchers Farm, on the opposite side where Peter Saxel is now it was a farm run by Jesse Fox, then Bert Fox at Magdalen Farm, then across the road again to Horns Way House which was a farm, then Weavings Farm. Further along, on the corner of Martin’s Lane, where Mike Cantwell is, was Croft Farm & Fred Bourton the butcher, and he used to sell meat out of a wooden shed in his yard!

PB There seem to have been a lot of farms in Standlake

GC Yes, it was very much a farming community, and in those days most of the farms were small. Mind you, I haven’t finished yet! Next up (across the road) was the Johnsons Globe Farm, and they also sold milk. Yew Tree Farm was always “the big farm” of course, then there was our Glebe Farm, followed by Fred Timms the Blacksmith, then Barnes’ who carried out cycle repairs. Finally, at Brighthampton, Manor Farm and Mr. & Mrs. Ravenhill. In about 1930, the Ravenhills got two motor buses and started trips to Witney and Oxford – almost the first motorised transport in the village.

PB But, presumably, in the early 1920’s, you didn’t see many cars or buses?

GC We didn’t see ANY cars! I told you about the wheelwright and the cycle repairer, and they were kept busy. I think the first car in the village arrived in about 1928, and that belonged to the Pickfords at Yew Tree Farm.

PB How did you travel about then?

GC Well, we had “Carrier Douglas” who took us on his horse and wagon to Oxford via the ferry at Bablock Hythe. It took some time, but it was the same to anywhere – the road to Witney was just a flinty track then.

PB Well, that’s the village described, but what about you? What sort of things were you getting up to as a young chap?

GC Well, with no cars about and so much countryside – the village was really an open air playground for us children. I used to fish a lot, and I had a great collection of bird’s eggs. Of course, that would be frowned on now, but I enjoyed building it ! Of course, Christmas was a wonderful time. We had a big party at school, with a tree, tea and presents all given by the teachers. Mind you, the party I really looked forward to was given by Mr. Lovett, the Rector. I’m afraid that there were a “chosen few” children that he invited, and we had a super spread, prepared by his cook and served by his two maids, and then we played charades and sang carols.

PB This was in the Old Rectory of course

GC Yes, and it was very cold and draughty in those days!

PB Were you also a choir boy, by the way?

GC No. Actually, Mr. Lovett suggested it to my father, but dad said “you’ve got enough duds in the choir already, what do you want another one for?” That wasn’t a nice thing to say about your own son was it? Still, Dad was a member of the choir, and also a bell ringer, for over 60 years. At least I followed him as a bell ringer – I started when I was 11 years old, and only gave up around 6 or 7 years ago. I remember, before the war, that Bertie Johnson, who had a Bullnose Morris car, took us bell ringers into Oxford each year for our AGM (at Christ Church College), and then after the meeting we went around the various college bell towers to have a good ring!

PB Now, the years are passing by – you must have left the village school at about 11 years old I suppose.

GC Yes, and my parents paid for me to go to Witney Grammar School. I was there for 4 years, but I didn’t enjoy it – and the headmaster didn’t enjoy me! In the end he wrote to dad to explain that, as my heart was obviously at home with the farm, it would be better to stop wasting money on my education and let me stay there. So, I left school in 1933, which was also the year my grandmother died and we moved from the mill to Glebe Farm.

PB 1933 was the time of the Depression as well wasn’t it?

GC Yes, it was a tough period, but nevertheless by 1936 we managed to get ourselves a tractor and plough, and it was actually my responsibility to pull the arable side of the farm around, because it had been a bit neglected.

PB Were you successful in that?

GC Yes, we did OK. Then the war came along, and we had to plough up quite a bit of the grassland as well in order to grow more crops. Anyway, in 1942 I was called up to the army.

PB Yours wasn’t a reserved occupation then?

GC Well, no. The funny thing was, though, that they wouldn’t take my brother, and he was desperate to join the navy! I wasn’t so keen, but I’m very glad I did go because it was quite an experience and I made some very good mates. After 3 months here they sent us to Cairo and North Africa, then to Sicily. We came home in 1943, but then we went to France on D Day + 3 (we were a signalling unit by the way). I really saw some fighting there. I remember Caen in particular, because the Germans resisted strongly there and I think it took about 2 weeks to shift them.

PB So, did you remain with the forces pushing the Germans back?

GC Oh yes, we ended up in Bremerhaven, and didn’t come home until late 1945, and then I was demobbed in Spring, 1946.

PB Happy to be back, I suppose?

GC Well, I really looked forward to coming home, of course, but it was so quiet and such a different life, that I did take some time to settle down to it again.

PB Had the farming life changed?

GC No, because the Government still wanted us to grow as much cereal as possible, and it was a few years before we were able to let some of the land revert to grass. Then, my brother Bernard concentrated on arable, and I started a dairy herd (Fresians) from scratch, including having a milking parlour built. This was my real interest, and we made good progress (although TB hit us badly once), having a herd of about 35.

PB Meanwhile, you were building a family too, I expect.

GC Yes, I married Jean in 1947 (in Aston church), and Suzanne arrived in 1949, Steve in 1950.

PB And the village was changing?

GC Yes, the first 4 council houses were built just down the road, and then the steady addition of housing estates continued through the late 50’s and the 60’s. Of course, the quality of services went hand in hand with this. I mean, for about 4 years after the war, we still relied on oil lamps and oil stove cooking, and had no running water (apart from the river!). I remember, it was my job on a Monday to fill the copper for Jean so she could do the washing.

PB Well, I suppose we are getting up to the 1970’s now, and relatively up to date. Did anything else really noteworthy happen about then do you recall?

GC For my family, yes. Floreys sold the Lincoln farm land and Mr. Back had some, and so did we. However, in 1969 Dad died and we unfortunately had a large sum in death duties to pay, so we then had to sell land for gravel extraction. Yes, that was a blow, but still left us with a viable business.

PB Well, thank you very much Gordon.

Phil Birkett