Salthouse Norfolk

In the spring, bird nesting would start. We had an ornithologist, a Mr. Garnett, living in Kelling, who formed groups of us to find nests so that he could ring the fledglings and log their journeys. One year my group found a cuckoo’s egg in a hedge sparrows nest, but sadly the egg was taken, so no fledgling emerged. Mr. Garnett would reward us with a bar of chocolate each meeting, and at the end of the nesting season, a party was held in the tea-rooms on the beach, and prizes were given to the group with the best results.
Swallows, robins, thrushes, blackbirds and tomtits could be found nesting in outbuildings. I remember lapwings (peewits) on the marshes; they were my favourite bird and I did an essay on it at school which was approved of by Mr. Garnett. There were skylarks and bitterns on the marsh, and I remember nightingales on the heath, and night jars, shrikes and turtle doves, all sadly now in decline.

even more of Vivian High's Salthouse memories from his unpublished autobiography as it appeared in the Salthouse book
When I started School, we had to walk the two miles to Kelling, taking packed dinners, and in cold weather we toasted our sandwiches by the open coal fire. In later years we biked there, which enabled us to come home for lunch. I remember when the currant crop was fit, mother and other women walked with us to Kelling so as to catch transport to West Beckham for currant-picking. We had a school football team and a dancing team. One year we competed in a dance competition in Saint Andrew’s Hall in Norwich. We came second — which was good considering we were competing against much larger schools.
In the spring, bird nesting would start. We had an ornithologist, a Mr. Garnett, living in Kelling, who formed groups of us to find nests so that he could ring the fledglings and log their journeys. One year my group found a cuckoo’s egg in a hedge sparrows nest, but sadly the egg was taken, so no fledgling emerged. Mr. Garnett would reward us with a bar of chocolate each meeting, and at the end of the nesting season, a party was held in the tea-rooms on the beach, and prizes were given to the group with the best results. Swallows, robins, thrushes, blackbirds and tomtits could be found nesting in outbuildings. I remember lapwings (peewits) on the marshes; they were my favourite bird and I did an essay on it at school which was approved of by Mr. Garnett. There were skylarks and bitterns on the marsh, and I remember nightingales on the heath, and night jars, shrikes and turtle doves, all sadly now in decline.
	We had nicknames for most birds Chaffinch — Spink, Greenfinch— Green linnet. Mistle Thrush — Pullfer Song Thrush — Mavich Blue Tit — Pickcheese Goldfinch — Draw-water Yellowhammer — Goolie Ringed Plover —– Stone-runner Moorhen —– Waterhen Wren — Tomtit Heron —– Harnser Dunnock —— Hedger Sparrow —— Spadger


Two kind old ladies who lived in the bungalow on Little Eye took a group of us to see Scott’s Air Display at Aylmerton, by chauffeur-driven car, and I still have the Scott’s Air Display badge which they bought for me. Another vivid memory I have of planes occurred in Salthouse itself when one Sunday dinner-time two aeroplanes flew low over the village and landed on a field close to the Hall. The pilots were visiting Commander, Colonel and Mrs. de Crespigny who lived there. People gathered round the planes as this was a rare occasion! As I delivered milk daily to the Hall, I came in contact with the de Crespignys, and I found them very kind people. One of the things they did was to leave partly-smoked cigarettes for me to give to an old village character called Mooch who would break them up to smoke in his clay pipe. Salthouse Bowls Club was at the Hall, and my Uncle Bertie Woodhouse was team captain. I used to wipe the bowls on damp occasions. Mr. Alec Morse was the gardener at the Hall, and he also looked after the bowling green in the walled garden.
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