I have be doing quite well with my 'garden' (no actual soil to grow anything in) and a rental so I can't sort it out. More like the old concrete back yards. Liberated pallets from a construction site and made large boxes for runner beans and spuds, old dog food sacks for spuds, large containers for strawberries, small portable greenhouse for toms, grew courgettes and marrows running up and along the garden fence with netting for support, pots for herbs, coldframe for peppers and chillies. Not forgetting the huge amount of blackberries, apples and greengages growing wild in the local area. Trying to add mushrooms this year and some early green beans, rocket and lettuce for summer greens. The caulis and broccoli did ok along with spinach and pak choi but not a huge crop. Freezer is not big enough for it all so had to give some away.
I was wondering about Angling during the war... Can't find much on it. Surely it became a more attractive activity with protein a tad scarce, unless it was more firmly regulated like any other food source?
I was wondering about Angling during the war... Can't find much on it. Surely it became a more attractive activity with protein a tad scarce, unless it was more firmly regulated like any other food source? Can only find a couple of photos and 1 sketch on IWM site of fishing/angling. A canal boat registered at Rickmansworth (probably belonging to the Gribbis family) travels in the sunshine across the aqueduct which carries the Grand Union Canal over the river Nene near Wolverton, Buckinghamshire. The boatman, probably Mr Gribbis, can be seen steering the boat across the aqueduct, and admiring the view of the countryside. Below him, a man can be seen enjoying a spot of fishing on the river Nene. BRITISH CANALS IN WARTIME: TRANSPORT IN BRITAIN, 1944. © IWM (D 21792)IWM Non Commercial Licence Lieutenant J D Baird (standing) and Captain J R Bullock enjoy a spot of trout fishing on the banks of the River Test in Hampshire. Lieutenant Baird is the pilot of a 'Fort' (B17 Flying Fortress) from Suring, Wisconsin and Captain Bullock is a B17 navigator from Greensboro, North Carolina. According to the original caption: "These fighters expected trout fishing to bore them, were genuinely surprised and pleased by the enjoyment it gave in spite of little success in the shape of fish. COUNTRY CLUB FOR US AIRMEN: REST AND RECUPERATION IN THE ENGLISH COUNTRYSIDE, STANBRIDGE EARLS, ROMSEY, HAMPSHIRE, 1943. © IWM (D 14524)IWM Non Commercial Licence Two young boys are fishing at the edge of the river. There are soldiers and civilians walking by. A soldier sits on a bench with his arm around a dark-haired girl. Evening by the River, Salisbury. © IWM (Art.IWM ART LD 340)IWM Non Commercial Licence
"As someone who experienced the realities of fishing during WW2 I can tell you plenty of fish were eaten. I used to sell mine to selected neighbours, although most of fingerling roach I got from the local farm pond were consumed by their cats. I was in Sussex during the early part of the war, but then went to stay with grandparents in Norfolk - and spent a lot of time catching dabs off Cromer beach. We had to crawl under barbed wire to get to one beach. Mines? The local lads said they were just a scare story to keep the beaches deserted - anyway, none of us got blown up. My grandfather equipped me with three handlines - cuttyhunk with three boom brass paternosters and three No 4 dab hooks to twisted three-ply gut on each rig. These produced a never-ending supply of dabs. Bait up the first three hooks, bung it out, then the next three on line two, bung that out, then the third - by that time the first rig would have three dabs on! - quite a routine, but the worst part was digging the lugworms - hard work for a ten-year old. Interestingly, my companions rarely got three-shots, and looking back I think it was because they fished one handline each and of course pulled it in as soon as they felt a fish. My rigs stayed out longer (by circumstance rather than design), and hence got fish on the other hooks. Weekends I spent on my uncle's farm inland - did a lot of fishing there. Archie, his tractor driver loved baked pike with turnips, so most of the pike I caught were eaten by Archie. I remember eating some rudd, fried by my aunt and consumed with bread and butter and a lot of brown sauce - only tried that once, and once a tench was served up with mashed potato, swede and parsley. After one helping (muddy!!!) it was sent down the road to Archie, as a change from pike. We ate plenty of trout and perch though - both are delicious. Gudgeon also. There was no shortage of fish - the simple fact was that only a few people were able to catch them, so it was a sustainable resource." from: Coarse fishing in WW2 - Fishing Forums from Anglers' Net "In a way I was lucky to be growing up during WW2, when so many younger fishermen were away in the services, and more elderly anglers couldn't buy petrol. Thus, bike-borne, I and my school pals had the trout streams and bass beaches of the delectable Gower Peninsula almost to ourselves. Later, my range extended to the Towy in Carmarthenshire, that finest of seatrout rivers, where on a bunch of worms be it said, I caught my first salmon which I took to the back door of a Llandeilo hotel, receiving £2 in return. There were detours to pike fishing from time to time also." from: www.fishing.co.uk "Also billeted at Dewis Dydden at the same time was a retired Sea Captain, called Captain Walker, who spent a great deal of time fishing for salmon in the river. He was the only angler I ever saw during my time there, and I spent many happy hours playing in the river! Captain Walker once caught a salmon so big that he hung it alongside my youngest sister so as to illustrate its length. It was 'taller' than my sister who would have been six years old at that time!" from: Carrog Memory, As A Ww2 Evacuee. - Francis Frith "In those days, fishing from the beach was popular but particularly so from the pier — indeed this was often crowded with dozens of anglers, hoping to catch some of the plentiful cod or whiting which were caught freely in the winter months, together with occasional skate, plaice and large conger eel. Some of the fish were too big (up to 40lbs) to raise from the water by rod and line and a large net was kept on the pier as an aid. The cry of `Get the net!`, would go up and a crowd would rush to gather around to help the lucky angler. At that time, we had no fridge at home, so I would try to keep my catch alive in the bath for a day or so!" from: BBC - WW2 People's War - A Wartime Boy in Penarth "But in the summer we had a great time, most days going to the river in the afternoon and fishing from the boat till nightfall which in the days of double summertime was nearly 11pm!The Red Spinners had fishing rights to the left bank and my Father leased % miles of the right bank from the local Squire for £5 per year!The fishing was execellent and I was able to catch some fine roack , Perch And Chub." from: BBC - WW2 People's War - Wartime Holiday Continued: In Dorset
Nice. Anyone choosing to eat Pike makes me think that times were a bit hard, or their taste-buds were. Most River fish taste like mud, but Pike tastes like greasy mud.
Nice. Anyone choosing to eat Pike makes me think that times were a bit hard, or their taste-buds were. Most River fish taste like mud, but Pike tastes like greasy mud. Canadian pike are great.. sweet, tasty fish Maybe you have bad rivers.
Canadian pike are great.. sweet, tasty fish Maybe you have bad rivers. Martin, The distinction is the water temperature. Most fish from cold, clear water taste much better and are far less susceptible to parasites than their warm water cousins.
I was wondering about Angling during the war... Can't find much on it. Surely it became a more attractive activity with protein a tad scarce, unless it was more firmly regulated like any other food source? Adam, In North America, you could add hunting to that list of alternate food sources. My father, as a lad of 9-15 during the war years, spoke of the rationing and being sent out with a handful of precious .22 cartridges to augment the larder. Grouse, geese and rabbits were readily available.
Nice. Anyone choosing to eat Pike makes me think that times were a bit hard, or their taste-buds were. Most River fish taste like mud, but Pike tastes like greasy mud. Pike was a delicacy when I served in Germany, the same with the Polish when I was in Berlin. We would catch the odd 7lb pike which in the UK were small to average fish but according to them were large fish (due to over fishing for consumption, similar has happened to perch in Italy). The German aircrew at RAF Conningsby could not believe that 15lb pike were quite common never mind the smaller ones, they kept asking if they could take the ones we caught.
There were official restrictions on what livestock individuals could keep so only so many pigs for private consumption and only a limited number of laying hens ditto - all the rest had to go to government agents for which one received a regulated price. Farmers often found ruses to get round these
I might have mentioned this elsewhere; My late mother used to tell of her uncle (a farmer) travelling by train to her wedding (1944) with a quarter of a pig in his suitcase for the wedding meal!
An interesting study might be made of the many rationing /scarcity evasions etc that were carried out. My paternal grandparents had the young medical officer from a nearby USAAF base billeted on them. They mentioned to him one day how they missed lemonade. The next day a US Army truck unloaded a huge drum of lemonade powder - I remember drinking lemonade from the drum when visiting at Christmas 1952 by which time everyone had a surfeit of lemonade (except possibly gramps who found it went very well with gin). My maternal grandmother in Omagh kept pigs and according to the family it's amazing how far the products of the pig she was allowed to use for personal consumption went until one realises that one uncle had taken holy orders in Dublin (Church of Ireland) and used to visit home frequently - men wearing dog collars were not searched at the border
G. grandfather's farm is near Tyrone/Donegal border. Gran would visit and then cycle across to Lifford where the family originated. No one bothered searching her on return journey either. She managed to bring back stuff not easily sourced in Belfast. Rabbits - What have you learned about WW2 recently? and next couple of posts
The French are quite keen on pike and their climate in the north is not very different from UK's. Certainly 'quenelles de brochet' are quite tasty. My understanding is that it is the many bones which put people off pike - not the muddy taste which is unlikely as pike eat fish! Carp, mainly a still water fish, are popular in Germany and, I believe, Poland. I have eaten tench which seemed to be quite reasonable. Perch certainly are tasty - they eat fish too. As for canadian fish, I can understand that in the cold parts the fish are very nice, but in Southern Alberta I was advised not to bother with trout fishing once the water warmed up as they were half cooked already! I was once given a recipe for chub. Place the fish between two planks of wood and wrap around with muslin. Boil for four hours, then unwrap, throw the fish away amd eat the planks. I've not tried it. Chris
I once had pike as the main course at a hotel in Peronne where we had a short break.... enjoyed the course but my stomach was rumbling all through the night...heavy meal as I thought. It would appear that angling stocks of carp have been subject to fishing for the table by the Poles in certain areas. I had an uncle who kept pigs during the war and was a licensed slaughterer....used to watch him mixing food scraps along with potato peelings that had been boiled in a copper.From that there was always illegal pork and bacon available by covert means.My father, from time to time had a side of streaky bacon from him which was kept hanging behind the pantry door...cured as I remember by using saltpetre with the side placed on a marble slab for the curing. Delivery of the side of streaky bacon undertaken with the upmost secrecy. Memories of how people coped with food rationing and shortages....black market,I remember sugar being traded as such....little if any, sugar available for sweetening sticks of rhubarb which schoolchildren used to eat.
From my favorite WWII book, Crusade in Europe. Eisenhower: "We found however that a British family, inspired by a determination to show real hospitality, was likely to spend an entire week’s rations to entertain an American over Sunday. At once we encouraged visiting soldiers to carry rations with them on home visits, while a publicity campaign explained the matter to the British hosts so as to save their pride and preclude embarrassment."
Pike and carp were generally applied to the garden as fertilizer here. Actually consuming those fish would indeed constitute a hardship.
