Tag Archives: copse

Nick Chandler: Free Time 1940s,

Work at the Mill by River Board 1950s

Work at the Mill by River Board 1950s

Harry Jackman was my great uncle.  I remember him having 5 or 7 cows.  He rented the Mill off Ball, the builder from Cowes, and also he looked after the Copse for Ball for shooting.  Him and old Angell, who was the game keeper for Ball, hated anybody going over the copse disturbing anything.  To us, it was a game to get over there, but he walked with a terrible limp so he could never catch you, unless he caught you up a tree.  He caught me and Mick Morton up a tree one day and it was about an hour before we could get down.  He could be pretty firey, he was cantankerous. Nick Chandler b 1937

Brian Pomroy: Free Time 1940s

Poor old Harry Jackman! He didn’t like us cutting through his fields. We used to wait for him to milk his cows, and when we knew he was milking, we used to whip through and up to the copse.  One day we came out the copse, all laughing and joking, Mick Morton, Les Jupe, Barry Mcdonald  and  me. We said, he never caught us today. When we got down to the big gate by the railway he was stood just there.
‘Got you!’  he said, ‘got you, all of you.’
‘Hello Mr Jackman,’ I said.
‘You can go home. I know where you live.’  Brian Pomroy b 1938

Colin Smith: Free Time 1930s

Yarmouth marsh panorama

Yarmouth marsh panorama with Mill and stream on right

We lived in the last house down Station Road just before the station, St Kilda it was called then, Mill Stream Cottage it’s called now.  Beautiful views.  I used to spend my time off over the marsh there, into the copses, Thorley Copse or Mill Copse.  I don’t think you can get into Thorley Copse now,  that was the one I particularly liked.  We used to go birds nesting and things like that.  Not that I should be proud of that now. Colin Smith b1921