Who Lived in a House Like This A Palace on Wheels

It's a rare opportunity to step inside a home like this and not just any home, a home that moved, a palace on wheels. Today we're stepping inside a showman's living wagon and exploring a way of life that was once a familiar part of towns and villages across Britain but is now often misunderstood. Hello and welcome to Through Lucy's Lens weekly videos where I go somewhere interesting and hopefully you will find them interesting too. I am so excited about this week's instalment folks. One of my first special interests shall we call it was showmen, people that ran fairgrounds. As a child I was obsessed with travelling fairs and there is an exhibit at the beautiful Avoncroft near Bromsgrove and I reached out to the museum and I said I know you've got a showman's wagon, last time I came it wasn't quite ready, would I be able to come and have a look? And the wonderful Charles here at the museum replied to me and said yes Lucy you can come and it not only could I come along, I'm here on a day when the museum is actually closed to the public so I've got full access which is usually just a peep through the window. Things keep happening folks, it's all thanks to you actually so let's go and explore a showman's wagon should I say, something I've been fascinated in, something I've always wanted to go inside and we're here and I'm privileged to be able to show it to all of you too so let's go. Welcome to the wonderful Avoncroft Museum of Historic Buildings and tucked away here is something quite special, a showman's wagon that tells a much bigger story than you might expect. This particular wagon was built in 1910 by George Orton for showman Tom Clark of Redditch. It served as a family home, workspace and the centre of daily life as they travelled between fairs across the Midlands. Interestingly beyond that we don't really know a great deal about Tom Clark himself, that might feel surprising at first but in many ways that's quite typical because people like Tom Clark, working families, travelling communities don't always leave behind the kinds of records that tell us their full story. They weren't writing memoirs or having their lives documented in the same way as wealthier or more settled households, so instead what we're left with is something like this, a home, an object, a space that holds traces of life even if we don't know every detail and in a way that invites us to look a little more closely not just at who he was but how people like him lived. Showmen were part of a long tradition of travelling communities working in fairs and entertainment. By the late Victorian and Edwardian period fairs had become a regular and much anticipated part of life across Britain. They brought exciting steam-powered rides, games, performances and the spectacle of entertainment to towns and villages across the United Kingdom. You can just imagine how much manual work went into setting all of this up. Unlike a permanent theatre or music hall everything had to be built from scratch each time a fair arrived. Heavy machinery, rides, stalls, steam engines, all transported, assembled, tested and then taken down again when it was time to move on. Many showmen followed established routes or circuits returning to the same towns year after year building up relationships with local communities. So although they were always moving there was still a sense of familiarity and routine to where they went and who they served. Behind the fairs themselves there were families. Families who just didn't do this for the day but they lived this life full-time. Their year followed a particular rhythm. The warmer months were the busiest, travelling from town to town, setting up and working long hours. During the winter months families would return to winter quarters, yards where the wagons were stored, repaired and preparations were made for the next year. Inside the wagon space is limited but carefully organised. The women in the community took pride in their surroundings. Interiors were spotless, a constant battle with the dust from the road or muddy fields. Trinkets displayed with pride and mirrors polished to bring in light and warmth to the space. A wagon like this might house a couple and their children and sometimes even extended family, grandparents or community elders. Sleeping arrangements were shared and flexible with limited privacy by modern standards. This wagon has one bed built in almost a box-like structure with plenty of space underneath for storage or even another space to lay your head for the night. Cooking would take place on a small stove or sometimes outside. Meals were simple and practical, bread, stews, bacon, big mugs of tea, food that sustained long working days. Availability of fresh produce would be seasonal and families would buy what was available locally and sometimes take advantage of nature's bounty, enjoying rabbit or hedgerow fruits. Storage in the wagon for food was sparse. Cup of tea however played an important part in daily life. A piece of oral history states that you knew you'd been welcomed by a showman's family if you were offered a cup of tea. It was as simple as that. Cooking in a space like this would have required a lot of organisation. Heat from a small stove, limited preparation space and very little storage meant meals had to be simple but efficient. There's always something quite comforting for me in imagining these routines. The kettle always on the stove. Something warm cooking for after a long day's work. The wagon lit softly in the evening. Because despite the movement and the hard work, this wagon was still a place of rest at the end of the day. Water would be collected from local sources and stored in ceramic urns inside the wagon for tea. Washing yourself and of course your clothes required time and a lot of effort. Showmen were often early adopters of technology. Steam engines powered rides later replaced by This meant that many had access to electricity earlier than many rural homes. Lighting could be used for both the rides to attract people in of an evening and sometimes within the wagon itself. And that's something that can be quite surprising. At a time when many rural and working class homes were still without electricity, showmen were already using generators and electric lights as part of their work. So in some ways this was a life that sat between two worlds. Traditional in its structure but often modern in its use of technology. The income of a showman came directly from the fair. Each ride or attraction had to earn money. Presentation, maintenance and attracting customers was essential. Bright colours, painted signs and lighting all played a role. As well as rides like swing boats, many showmen would also operate side shows. Boxing rings were popular for example. Coconut shies and opportunities for people to win prizes. Chalkware figures, small toys or even live goldfish. More bizarre side shows like a flea circus or a mouse village would also bring in the crowds. Showmen constantly had to think about how they could make the most of the next season. And with that came a constant need to adapt. What drew in a crowd one season might not work the next. So showmen had to be incredibly resourceful thinking about what would attract attention, what would bring people in and what would keep them coming back. Income wasn't guaranteed so investing any money you had had to be done very carefully. A good week could be very successful but poor weather or a quiet location could make things much more difficult. So in this life there was always a balance between risk, effort and reward. Income could vary depending on the weather, the location and also attendance numbers. How fuelled were your audience by curiosity? Did they crave the novelty and the leisure that was on offer? The wagon itself was not just a place to live it was also a statement. The highly decorated wagons and a painted ceiling you might only expect to see in a stately home reflected pride and success. And I think that contrast is what makes these wagons so striking because from outside this is a working life, physical, demanding, constantly on the move. But inside the wagon there's beauty, care and attention to detail. It has the same pride as many of the other working class homes that we explore on this channel but this time it has wheels. It's a reminder that pride in your home isn't about size and it's also not about permanence it's about how you choose to create your own space. Fairground art was a skilled craft and it's now considered at risk. There are very few artists remaining today as few as just 10 in the United Kingdom. The museum commissioned a fairground artist called Amy Goodwin to create the new signage for the exhibit. The wagon we see today has been carefully restored. Over time of course with travel this caused wear and tear. The paint would fade, the wood required repair and features needed conservation. The restoration preserves both structure and character using traditional methods where possible and preserving a wagon like this is no small task. Every painted panel, every carved detail has to be carefully maintained often using traditional techniques to stay true to the original craftsmanship. Wagons like this were built to last but very few survive in such complete condition today so being able to step inside one like this is genuinely quite rare and was really exhilarating for me. Outside of the wagon there are several exhibits connected to traveling fairs such as restored historical signage and the world's smallest fairground which as a fan of miniatures I fell in love with. The model was built by two brothers John and Ken Tarleton from Redditch. The various rides and attractions pictured are made from everyday recycled household items including cardboard packaging and tin cans. They depict rides from the 1880s through to the 1960s many of which were seen by the brothers while visiting fairs throughout the Midlands. The footage doesn't really give this exhibit justice so I fully recommend coming to see this in person. We can't avoid that the showman's community has often been misunderstood. Traveling lifestyles have sometimes led to assumptions or prejudice but at its heart this is a community built on family, tradition and continuity. Many families have been involved in fairs for generations. Knowledge and skills are passed down and millions of people have and continue to enjoy a visit to the fair today. So it's not just a story about the past this week the showman's community still exists today. Traditions continue adapting to modern life and the museum has worked closely with the current families to understand the life they lead today. You can listen to several contemporary accounts of life on the road which really brings the exhibit to life and that connection between past and present is something that really stands out here because this is a living tradition and understanding that tradition a way of life that's been adapted over time but holds on to core values of family work and identity. Later in the video we'll hear from someone continuing this tradition today but first you can hear some of the oral history oral contemporary history that you can listen to here as part of the exhibit. Two ways to look at it I have both a positive and a negative view of it the positive side was just it was so exciting and there's so much going on all the time and you're with all your friends all the time and you're messing about and running around and it feels very free and you feel very safe wherever you go you know there's going to be somebody close by that you can call on if you need it and you just feel like you have such a large network of people that you're always going to have a friend and so I think that's probably my positive aspect and I think just the experience I think you learn so much you mix in with so many different people and learning so many different ways of life I think it's really good life experience and to grow up as a showman. The financial aspect of course can be quite stressful you know if you're earning money and you do have no rides that are on big finances and sometimes living on on a yard can be difficult if you're struggling with your mental health and you have anxiety because even though everybody would be there to support you and look out for you it can be can be challenging everybody knowing people's businesses you know as we know and because there is a real sense of pride within the community I think you know almost letting the team down can be difficult you know often people have described you know struggling with the mental health as letting the team down you know because we're meant to you know almost have that old British you know stiff upper lip keep calm carry on getting discriminated against you know at furs and at different places now to getting discriminated against online you often see it when people post you know they're coming to the fur ground the fur grounds coming to your city or wherever the comments can be very difficult to read. They're family oriented help everybody out you're always there for each other these kind of like core values that showman travelers live and breathe are kind of echoed in every other community every other close-knit community anyway. During my visit a family who are still living on the road full-time today as showmen were setting up their attractions at Avoncroft. They'll be pitched here throughout the summer Matthew his wife and young baby actually live in a 1960s showman's wagon and own a vintage funfair. It was fascinating to talk to Matthew and hear how life and the associated stresses for showmen and their families have changed very little since Tom Clark and his family were traveling in 1910. Hi I'm Matthew Stanton owner of Abbey Matthews Vintage Fairgrounds with my partner Abbey Stephens. We run Vintage Fairgrounds in the Midlands we travel the UK we run 1920s to 1950s attractions ranging from the swing boats to hooker ducks we've got a few juvenile rides as well we do all work ourselves all the engineering ourselves we run an engineering business as well so we buy it from scrap we restore it we tour it and look after it. Season progresses and and visit numbers start rising the weather gets better we're bringing more attractions in some bigger attractions because at the moment a lot of it is for juveniles and we're going to get more adult attractions in so we've got a slip coming in we've got an octopus ride and a few little bits and so you know we want to grow it and this summer for the six weeks we'll take up most of the lawn here and the other side and have a real good vintage quality fairground yeah and if you just did my face behind the camera when he said octopus ride which is my absolute favorite definitely going to be coming back to that but thank you Matthew for taking your time last question would you recommend this life and why? I would but you have to be willing to be a millionaire one week and broke the next week and it really depends on weather depends on positioning 20 foot of wrong positioning can cost you an event and you've got to be hard working and willing to spend a lot of money for the upkeep and restoration of this store yeah you're you're a custodian you're a curator of these beautiful things because without people like you and i'm sure the people watching will agree it wouldn't exist anymore no and i think they need to because a lot of us have got memories and you know feel good we need more feel good in the world we do the world's an uncertain place at the moment and you're making it certain even it's just for those half an hour get on the gondola or do whatever it is and blow it blow the cobwebs away thank you very much for being part of the video i hope you enjoyed a look around this showman's wagon i cannot reiterate how privileged we are and i want to thank the museum for letting me film furthermore thanks to matthew from abby matthews for agreeing to speak with me and doing i think such a good job i could have spoken to matthew and his family for hours in fact i did and they offered me a cup of tea so do consider a visit this summer to support the family and the museum spaces like this always feel so powerful to me because without even knowing every detail about the people who lived here you can still sense something of their lives their routines their work their pride in this space and it's just another reminder and i know i always talk about this folks that history isn't always something distant or grand social history is something much quieter something you can step into and almost feel as always thank you for watching your support is so appreciated and if you're new here please consider subscribing it really helps me continue bringing the history and lives of extraordinary ordinary people to life here on youtube there's a really nice if i do say so myself collection of my past videos for you to binge on should you have the time and inclination featuring back-to-back houses prefabs and even hidden museums so if you love social history i think this is the place for you until next time thank you and i'll see you all soon goodbye