THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE — www.findonvillage.com  created by Valerie Martin, contains scenes from her home village of Findon, West Sussex, U.K.

THE GREAT FINDON SHEEP FAIR OF THE 1920s

Copyright Valerie Martin 2003.

First published in the Findon News in July 2003.

In the 1920s the quietude of the Findon Downs was broken each September by the barking of sheep dogs and the baa-ing of innumerable sheep coming from every direction and descending on the village.   The shepherds had walked miles and bedded down under hedgerows and trees to be near their sheep in readiness for the big day.  The farmers arrived in their gigs and there was a long procession of various other carts and wheeled vehicles.   They stretched from Nepcote Green down to School Hill in one direction — and past the old rectory (now Manor House Hotel) in the other.  Needless to say, the lanes in those days were thick with sheep droppings and everyone made sure their garden gate was closed before they were invaded.

In January 2005, Stan Walker wrote to me.   He is an ex-patriot and lived in Steep Lane in the 1980s....

At the beginning of the 1920s there were some 5,000 sheep auctioned at Findon from their wattle pens.  This steadily grew by 1922 to a total of 7,000.   The number then increased to 8,000 and by 1925 it had steadily grown to 10,000 and continued like this until the 1930s.

Visitors travelled many miles (mainly on foot) to enjoy a day at the Findon Sheep Fair where the Southdown sheep were then famous.   Southdown stock sold at Findon as long ago as 1825.  At that time the Sheep Fair was held annually on 14th September, irrespective of which day of the week it fell on.   It was around this time that the Lamb Fair was established for the 12th July.  The fair had grown in importance and was attended by the chief graziers of Sussex. 

The hornless Southdowners had great qualities although now considered small in stature.  Docile and manageable are two words to describe them and the shepherds were busy from early morning tending their flocks.  Most sheep have one sole purpose in life and that is escaping from their wattle pens but Southdowners it is said were content to stay put.   They were also considered very economical and were good doers on the poor upland grass.  

At one time there were immense flocks of these animals as far as the eye could see grazing the Findon downland. Their wool was of good quality and fine.  Each clip reaped some 5 lbs. or perhaps even higher.   It goes without saying that the lamb from them was fit for a gourmet's table.   The mutton was very fine too but changing diet habits later on found it too fatty.  Therefore the Southdowners went into decline and began to be replaced by a larger, leaner, cross-bred animals.

There were not only flocks of sheep at the Sheep Fair in the earlier part of the twentieth century.  There were also cattle, horses (it is often said with their manes and tails plaited with straw and coloured ribbons), donkeys and even goats.

The gypsy caravans were stuffy but colourful and bright.  A surprising sight was some of the gipsy children sleeping in wooden boxes one above the other in the caravans. The gipsy women made sweets to be sold at the various stalls.   They also told fortunes and a multitude of lies with the intent to please.  The true Romany was already becoming rare..... yesterday's memory.

Some sixty caravans of all kinds could be counted lined up on the Green in the 1920s.  There were stalls selling goods and booths with entertainment for all to participate in.

The refreshment booths were hot and crowded with perspiring humanity.   There were local farmers and their sweating shepherds.  They could be seen mopping their mouths with the backs of their none too clean hands — and the aroma of beer hung in the air as they quenched their thirsts before returning to their charges in their pens.  

The village lads masterfully cracked the rifles, testing their aims at selected moving targets.  The jangling drone that accompanied the parading wooden horses at the fair competed with the voices of shouting men, bleating sheep and barking dogs.

The auctioneer in the 1920s stood masterfully on his stand with a audience of casual onlookers eagerly gathered around — they were not only there to bid but to listen to his merry quips and jests.  The flocks changed hands swiftly under his expertise.  The sheep were by now a little hot and looked helpless ....... and perhaps a little apprehensive, squashed in their pens before being driven off by their new owners.

By the end of the 1920s, Findon village could boast the eighth largest sale of livestock among the many fairs held in the southern and eastern part of England. 

The Findon Sheep Fair still limps on but there is a chilly change in the air.... and hardly any sheep in recent years! 

In the 21st century any flocks destined for the Findon Sheep Fair arrive on Nepcote Green in modern lorries.   The grass of the Green is cut up with their tyres and the smell of diesel pervades all and hangs in the air. There are no shepherds clad in traditional smocks.  The farmers now arrive in their cars, and the stalls and caravans are few.  There are no longer horses tethered beside gypsy caravans.  In timeless fashion the pathetic sheep "baa" in protest as the buyers pinch and prod the soft wool, glancing from metal enclosure to metal enclosure with calculating eyes.

Continue if you would like to read about the public house on the side of Nepcote Green named The Running Horse.

THIS IS FINDON VILLAGE — www.findonvillage.com is a continually growing record created by Valerie Martin exclusively for documenting life in Findon.