“Barrel-tvpe” caravan which was an exhibit at the museum for many years: the Ashton
Familv travelled all over Britain in horse-drawn vans.

Charlie Ashton

Charlie Ashton interviews

Charlie Ashton, a true Romany, interviewed by Kevin Delanoy in 1978

Charlie travelled with his family throughout England; he tells of his dad volunteering for service in WW1 and his mother and siblings being left on the roadside in their horse-drawn caravan.

Superb barrel-type caravan on loan for a few years till a more
permanent place could be found for it ..insurance prob.

He tells of the care they were taught to take in leaving no litter, in having to provide food for the next meal and his poaching exploits encapsulate a lost way of life. His mother would tell fortunes and his sisters made flowers to sell from door to door. Travelling from Waltham Abbey to Cambridge  to Birmingham etc without the benefit of  maps!

The Romany Gipsy Theatre Group was most impressed with Charlie’s reminiscences.

In the early days of the Farmland Museum, Charlie and his children gave many items for display which had been collected for their scrap metal business.

This is probably the most comprehensive of all the Oral History Archive.

Charlie Ashton – Romany Life side A.mp3 (MP3 25.9Mb)

Charlie Ashton – Romany Life side B.mp3 (MP3 28.3Mb)

All audio and photographic material Copyright © 1970-2016 Lorna Delanoy