Sepia Saturday: Working horses

Women's Land Army, England, WW2

My photo this week is one I purchased several years ago. It was in an album of family snapshots taken in England in the 1940s and some of a family living near Perth in Western Australia. As there were no surnames in the album I have no idea who the people were but I have uploaded them to my Flickr page so maybe someone one day will recognise a friend or relative.

There were about ten interesting photos of Women's Land Army activities in the album, including this one. The women appear to be wearing the land army uniform and would have been employed in using the horses to prepare the fields. As the same women are in several of the photos I assume the land army was organised so that the same women worked together over time. 

The smiles seem to indicate genuine enjoyment, the women having fun together on a summer's day and enjoying each other's company as well as the hard work. Hopefully the horses were happy on their food break as well.

To see more working horses I suggest you trot on over to Sepia Saturday's webpage and follow the blog links.

Sepia Saturday: Horses and carts

A great photo for the theme for this week's Sepia Saturday. It's sharp, it's funny, it has mystery and it's very detailed. We Sepians have a lot to choose from. I was tempted to go for the driver of the coach peering around the corner to see what is going on. I was tempted by the loads of luggage. But in the end it was the combination of horses and vehicles that won out.

The following photos are a miscellaneous collection from my albums. All were taken in Victoria in Australia, and show horses pulling various types of carts and wagons used in the country. How long does it take to get a horse and cart ready for transport? And then, at the end of the day, it has to be done in reverse. Such a lot of work.

Spring cart outside the Commercial Hotel, Mitiamo

A wagonload of loose rye grass being stacked on the Alford's farm at Mologa, 1941.

Various carts and wagons at Kooloonong. Dave Larkin is in a spring cart, smoking his pipe.

About eight years ago we visited a very popular tourist site in Ballarat called Sovereign Hill. It is a reconstructed gold mining town. These three photos were taken on that day. I'm always surprised that horses stand so patiently when they are in harness.

I suggest you clip clop on over to Sepia Saturday to see some more fabulous old photos.

Sepia Saturday: Horseriding for pleasure

The above scene must have been such a typical one a century ago in Australia. By law the land selected by the farmers in the late 1800s had to be cleared of its natural vegetation, had to be ploughed and planted to pasture or crop, fences and dams had to be constructed and homes built. For the most part the farmers were  were happy to comply with the regulations because they had families and stock to feed, and they needed a roof over their heads. A number of my farmer ancestors would have felt very much at home in this scene. But of course we know now that the environment suffered enormously. Just look at the picture above - tree stumps and stark eucalypts that have been ring-barked prior to felling.

While many farming families owned horses for transportation to church, school and shopping, and as work animals, one of my husband's families truly enjoyed their horses. The Alfords knew a good horse when they saw one and were called on to act as judges at rural shows. They rode for enjoyment and they bred fine horses for work and for pleasure (including trotters).

Ralph Alford on 'Splinter' and Dick holding 'Old Dan'.

Thomas Alford at 'Myall Marsh' Mologa, 1903.

Thomas Alford with his granddaughter Mary on 'Cob' at 'Myall Marsh' Mologa.

Mary Alford

George Alford and his trotter 'Alarm Bells' at Brighton, Victoria c1920.
Photo from Museum Victoria No. MM002081.

If you want to read and see what other Sepians have posted for this theme trot on over to Sepia Saturday.

Sepia Saturday: Outside the country store

The theme photo for this week's Sepia Saturday is a shopfront and I found a photo to match the theme in our family's album.

A small country town in the early part of the 20th century needed a good general store because the nearest big town was Bendigo and getting there and back took all day. Not exactly convenient, especially in the days when horse-drawn vehicles were more common than cars. In Mitiamo the store was run by Charles W Sims and then his son-in-law Roy Phelan. As well as food and haberdashery they provided everything from petrol to insurance and delivered around the local farms every fortnight. There was a train station in Mitiamo so they were able to bring their goods to town on the rail system. It was a very busy place.

During WW2 the shop and the adjoining residence burnt down but I'll save that story for another day.

Outside Sims store, Mitiamo

Charles William SIMS, son of Samuel SIMS and Elizabeth CARTER was born on 21 May 1869 (Coliban, Victoria, Australia). He died on 20 Apr 1942 in Mitiamo, Victoria, Australia. He married Euphemia YEAMAN, daughter of Charles YEAMAN and Sarah PAYNTER on 16 Jun 1892 in Pine Grove, Victoria, Australia. She was born on 12 Aug 1866 in Cobaw, Victoria, Australia. She died on 01 Sep 1941 in Mitiamo, Victoria, Australia.