Uncle Tom Cobley On Tom Pearce's Grey Mare. Widecombe Fair. Widecombe, Devon.
The earliest written record so far found about the origins of Widecombe Fair states that Uncle Tom Cobley and his friends left Spreyton in 1802 to go to the well known Widecombe fair. The annual Fair was an important part of the economy of the Parish.In the autumn of each year the local farmers took stock of how the harvest had been, the amount of hay and straw that they had been able to harvest and the number of stock they had on their farms.Fodder could not be transported to this high moorland village but the livestock could be driven on the foot to sources food in other Parishes. Farmers could decide to buy fodder a Parish well off the moor and drive their animals there for the winter months or sell their surplus stock. These autumn Fairs were a vital part of the farming year and farmers from other areas would come and purchase cattle , ponies and sheep and drive them home to where they had surplus fodder available in the form of corn, hay and root crops. Widecombe Fair has been immortalised in the old Devon folk song entitled 'Widecombe Fair'.
Uncle Tom Cobley On Tom Pearce's Grey Mare. Widecombe Fair. Widecombe, Devon.
The earliest written record so far found about the origins of Widecombe Fair states that Uncle Tom Cobley and his friends left Spreyton in 1802 to go to the well known Widecombe fair. The annual Fair was an important part of the economy of the Parish.In the autumn of each year the local farmers took stock of how the harvest had been, the amount of hay and straw that they had been able to harvest and the number of stock they had on their farms.Fodder could not be transported to this high moorland village but the livestock could be driven on the foot to sources food in other Parishes. Farmers could decide to buy fodder a Parish well off the moor and drive their animals there for the winter months or sell their surplus stock. These autumn Fairs were a vital part of the farming year and farmers from other areas would come and purchase cattle , ponies and sheep and drive them home to where they had surplus fodder available in the form of corn, hay and root crops. Widecombe Fair has been immortalised in the old Devon folk song entitled 'Widecombe Fair'.