« on: Saturday 07 December 13 11:53 GMT (UK) »
New Forest alleged Gypsy Village "Morning Leader 3rd June 1907 also Christchurch Times 15th june and the Northern Echo,Darlington 10th july"
Thorny Hill on the outskirts of the New Forest for many years past the population has been principally Gypsies now about 100 marriages between them and the rustics are not uncommon caravans are seldom seen,The Gypsies live in thatched cottages.In the springtime a family or two get "on the move" and return when summer is over.All have adopted English names,Scott and Pateman being the favourite.They are very clannish and quite commonly three generations live together in the same cottage.The elder woman cling to the Romany headdress,earrings are a de rigueur for both sexes.The woman go to Bournmouth on Tuesdays,thursdays and Saturdays to sell flowers [the wild ox-eye daisy was a great favourite with them some ten years ago].The men drive them in pony-carts to Christchurch eight miles distant and then they go by train to Bournemouth the double journey costs sixpence,They keep cows and requisition the forest ponies.
On the 12th of June in the Morning Leader W G Reed a resident near Thorney Hill challenged the for-going account,stating that just three men wear earrings;strawberry-growing,stick-making and farming are the chief industries and that there are only three families of Scotts and three of Pateman but there are ten distinct families of Broomfields who are positively not of Gypsy orgin.
ESSEX, KENT, LONDON, SUFFOLK, SUSSEX.
Bachelor, Baker, Beeny, Boswell, Brazil, Burgess, Carter, Clements, Cooper, Cornelius, Collins, Day, Dobson, Eastwood, Ellis, Farr, Fairbeard, Harris, Holland/s, Jenkins, Jones, Kennett, K/nave/s, Lyon, Lee, Penfold, Ransley, Robert/s, Reeve/s, Smith, Stone, Thompsett, Tomsit, Wood/s.
