Day 76. The Pigsties

The pigsties at Park Farm, now demolished. Note the courtyard structure of the farmyard (see Day 74).

Pigs were an invaluable asset to rural people of all classes, and were kept almost ubiquitously by all who could afford them.

Pigs once roamed freely in the woods, where they fed on acorns and beech-mast, and on the common ground of the village. Villagers each had the right to keep a certain number of pigs in this manner, known as pannage. All pigs had to have a ring in their noses to prevent them rooting up the turf; failure to comply was heavily fined.

Following the enclosure of the common grounds into privately-held fields (see Day 54), this common right was revoked. Pigs now had to be kept in sties by the farmstead or in cottage gardens. Pigs would eat all household scraps including the whey from cheese and butter-making, so sties were always close to the farmhouse.

The  Second World War induced a surge in domestic pig-keeping as part of the nationwide drive to feed the nation. Pig Clubs – one was formed in Preston to cater for several nearby villages –  were set up to encourage this. Members reared a pig and had a supply of meat when the animal was slaughtered, in return for forgoing their meat coupons and giving some meat to the government. Membership provided insurance, an allocation of meal, and pooled expertise in pig-keeping. Many abandoned sties were returned to use.

After the Second World War, domestic pig-keeping declined. Preston's Pig Club closed around 1948. Increasing prosperity in the post-war years meant that meat was easily affordable from the butchers. Many sties were knocked down; others still exist as garden sheds.