A baby milk spoon

Mother’s milk is usually deemed best for babies, but for some alternatives may be needed and there are plenty of commercial firms who fill the need with formula milk powders. One such company – known for generations – is Cow and Gate. That company had origins as long ago as 1771 when the Gates family opened a grocery store in Guildford. The Gates family turned their hand to milk drying and this became big business – a business involving the cow and the Gates. It was 1929 when the name Cow and Gate became the company name.

At Market Lavington Museum we have a small measuring spoon presumably given by Cow and Gate to aid reasonably accurate measurement. When mixing milk it is important to get the right amount of powder to liquid. Too little powder will mean baby doesn’t get enough of the growth giving ingredients but too much is worse, for the thick liquid doesn’t flow and baby tends to get very little before being worn out by the effort of trying.

Here is our spoon.

Mid 20th century baby milk measure at Market Lavington Museum

This spoon was another of the items which our founder at the museum, Peggy Gye, bought at a jumble sale in the village. It dates from the mid-20^th century and is thus about 70 years old now.

The shape and light made it a problem for us to read the writing on a photo, so we resorted to taking the underside of the spoon where the writing is, of course, reversed. But we can digitally reverse the image so it looks right.

The writing embossed in the spoon – made readable digitally

Obviously it says Cow and Gate in large letters and then the advice that for a full measure you fill to the brim and for a half measure you fill to a line.

From the underside we can see this is a cheaply made item pressed out of tin plate with edges crimped over for safety.

Mrs Burgess and a baby

The Burgess family feature quite often in these pages. Not surprisingly, there are plenty of photos since two generations of the family were the professional photographers in the village. Here we see one of the older photos and it shows Marion Burgess, the Scottish born wife of Alfred. She is nursing a baby. The Burgess family lived at 13 High Street and Alfred had a studio in the back garden. This photo was taken there.

Mrs Marion Burgess of 13, High Street, Market Lavington with one of her babies – late 19th century.

The only date we have is ‘late nineteenth century’.  Alfred and Marion had six sons who could fit the bill here. Robert (also known as Robin) was born in 1889 followed by Alfred, John, Hugh, Alan and Charles. I wonder if any descendant out there in blogland might recognise which boy this one is.

Meanwhile, enjoy the beautiful gown the lad is wearing. Perhaps this was the Christening gown and in that case it may well have been worn by each boy in turn. Marion looks well dressed as well.

Alfred, the photographer died in 1918, but brothers Robin and Alfred (known as George) continued to trade as Burgess Brothers with Robin behind the camera and George in the darkroom.

A 1940s baby ‘in and out’ chair

This  chair has the look and style of a high chair but in fact, it stands on the floor and at the back there are wheels to help move it around. But undoubtedly, it could be used as a child’s feeding chair. It is equipped with a chest strap to help hold a baby in place.

A 1940s feeding and potty chair at Market Lavington Museum

The chair takes apart and can be stored flat – ideal for those gaps in life when such a chair was not needed. But it also had a further use in that the flat seat could be removed and replaced by a potty.

Our doll has been dressed in an appropriate 1940s way.  This was the era of ‘make do and mend’ and austerity and rather careworn clothes were the norm.

The chair was used by a baby on White Street, Market Lavington

Easterton Street

Today we feature a truly delightful picture which was given to the museum earlier this year. It shows a view of Easterton High Street. Sadly, the picture is undated but it clearly predates much in the way of traffic.

Easterton Street - undated but delightful. The photo is now at Market Lavington Museum

The view is towards Eastcott and Urchfont. The stream is on the left side where there must, once, have been more to the picture for only the last three letters of ‘Easterton’ still show.

The cottage at the end of the street, facing the camera has long since been demolished.

In the road – clearly a safe place to be – we can see a man with a horse, another with a laden barrow and there may be a couple of hens on the junction with the road up to The Sands (now Kings Road).

There is no pavement. With little traffic, and that slow moving, there was no need to keep pedestrians on the edge.

On the right of the main picture we can see a family in a doorway.

This family would appear to be keen on growing flowers. Note the pots on the porch. Mum looks really happy as she holds the baby. Sadly, we do not know who any of the people in the photo are but perhaps somebody can help there.

Perhaps the star of the picture is the older lady, fetching water.

This lady has, presumably, got water from the village pump which still stands near  the road junction. And to take it home she has occupied the middle of the street. What a determined look she has and what a great snapshot of village life – this time in Easterton.

A Baby’s Bonnet.

If you have little expertise in the garments worn by our youngsters in times past, you might struggle to work out what this item actually is. It might, for example, look like a place mat or one of those muslin ‘lids’ which were put over milk jugs to keep the flies out. But as the title of this piece suggests, this is, in fact, a baby’s bonnet.

A baby's bonnet from around the time of the First World War at Market Lavington Museum

It dates from around the time of the First World War – say 1910 to 1920 and is made of white cotton with embroidery in an elaborate knotted pattern. The bonnet has no ties – neither is it in perfect condition. The idea was that the lined central part of this bonnet was worn on the back of the head so that the patterned material could frame baby’s face.

We do not know the origins of this piece, which came from Peggy Gye’s collection of items when the museum was first set up, 25 years ago.

Mary and the high chair

The high chair is one of the treasures of Market Lavington Museum.

Mary awaits her meal in the high chair at Market Lavington Museum

It dates from about the 1890s but had a long life. Just about 100 years ago, Flo Burbidge would have been fed in this very high chair – just about in its present location in the living room of their house. The Burbidge’s house is now the museum and the high chair is just where it belongs. Flo Burbidge was born in the museum building in 1908 and was there to see the museum opened in 1985.

Mary, the doll, is new to the museum having recently been given, not as an artefact in her own right, but to enable baby clothes to be displayed.

Mary is dressed in rather a mixed style. Her dress, of white lawn, dates from the 1880s whereas her cotton bonnet dates from around the time of the first-world war. Her bib sits on the tray of the high chair. This dates from the second-world war and was made by Mrs Gye.

Despite the mixed past of the clothing, Mary looks ready for her meal – and exceedingly well behaved.