Oxfordshire Colony
Turners Court Farm School, Wallingford, 1911-1991
by
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Soon after the official opening, several sympathetic accounts of the Christian Service Union’s new Wallingford Colony appeared in print. In November 1913, the Quaker journal The Friend, in a section devoted to the Friends' Social Union reported 'an interesting excursion' to Turner's Court. The article described the site and buildings: 'the dormitories are large and very simply furnished; the ‘Brothers’ [lay helpers] have single bedrooms, partitioned off at the end of each dormitory. The lavatories, laundry, kitchen, cowsheds, stables and stock-yards are all well-planned and well-equipped.' The author, F.J. Edminson M.A., emphasised the 'homeliness' of the Colony, 'due in no small measure to the Superintendent, the Brothers, the staff, their wives and daughters' and concluded that the ‘colonists’ [young unemployed men] 'seem happy and turn out well.'
Earlier, the CSU’s own journal, Social Service, had printed 'The Making of Men: pen pictures of a farm colony' by W.E. Pittuck, a journalist by training and philanthropist by vocation. Born on Merseyside and, initially trained as a printer, Pittuck was briefly a telegraphist on the Midland Railway before joining the staff of the West Yorkshire Pioneer, Skipton. When he got the call to undertake social work, he became an assistant to the Rev. Bruce Wallace of Letchworth, soon after the foundation of that Garden City in the early 20th century. He then joined the CSU’s Lingfield Colony as a Brother, transferring to Turners Court as book-keeper ('making his weight felt wherever a hand was needed' said his obituarist in Social Service, January 1933).
After serving in the Royal Engineers during the First World War, Pittuck combined work as Secretary to the CSU London committee with free-lance journalism, before becoming editor of the Berks and Oxon Advertiser, one of the local newspapers in which the Colony could, therefore, be pretty sure of favourable coverage. He was also a photographer; several surviving picture postcards of Turners Court in the 1920s bear his name, and there are occasional references to postcard sales contributing to Colony funds.
Pittuck's prose style may strike today's readers as flowery. The account of his first visit to Turners Court in Autumn 1912 has him walking across the bridge from Wallingford, through Crowmarsh (a village 'that has a touch of old time things about it') before coming across the 'fine modern buildings' of the Colony; 'The architect's brain, the builder's skill and the management's experience have . . combined to produce a group of dwellings that should be ere long the envy of social [eformers in many parts of the country.' Although perhaps not much of a countryman himself, Pittuck spent three days on the land with the trainee ‘colonists’ and ‘Brothers’, pulling turnips and swedes ('or was it only turnips – or which was it?') after which his 'enthusiasm was not so very keen' – unlike the 'cutting north wind'. This, combined with the heavy soil (the Autumn had been generally wet) unsurprisingly caused grumbling among the boys. Pittuck was also introduced to the dairy farm, the horse stables and 'the mysteries of the dung yard.'
There are hints in both these articles, and the illustrations accompanying accounts of the official opening, that however distinguished their new buildings might be, life at the ‘Colony’ could be Spartan; away from the excitement of the dung yard, time might hang heavy on the colonists' hands. Beds in the dormitories are packed tightly together, the dining hall offers only the plainest furniture. A picture of the men's day room in Paton Home shows, again, plain deal tables and upright chairs, with no recreation equipment in sight. One well-filled bookcase appears in a shot through the doorway of the Brothers' Library, but another seems to show only two books on the shelves of the 'Youths' Library.' Edminson's article in The Friend admits that 'the winter evenings are long. . the Colony is three miles from the nearest town [and] books for the library are in much request,' going on to say that Friends might like to contribute such luxuries as 'a couple of old pianos, a bagatelle board, good framed pictures for the dining hall.'
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About the Book
This is the first independent account of a unique institution, the Wallingford Farm Training Colony - later known simply as 'Turners Court' - which opened a century ago. Founded by a group of philanthropic non-conformists, the 'Colony' aimed to take unemployed young men off the streets, train them on the land and send them off to the 'Dominions'. During its 80 year history, Turners Court's clientele, training programme and lifestyle all changed radically. The author has used the institution's own records, together with the (mainly unpublished) accounts of former 'colonists' and staff members, and sets the history of the Colony in the context of 20th century legislation, economic and social change.
About the Author
Chris Sladen studied modern history at Oxford University, before earning a living in marketing, public relations and the UK civil service. In semi-retirement he took a Master's degree at Ruskin College, Oxford. His first historical book, 'The Conscription of Fashion', a study of civilian clothing during World War II, appeared in 1995. He now lives near Oxford, writes regularly for university publications and contributes to academic and popular history journals. This book also reveals a personal connection with the Wallingford 'Colony'.