Harry
Farnsworth's name first appeared in Trade Directories as a butcher in 1896.
The shop closed after the war; Harry died in 1947.
Animals were fetched
from Lichfield market and driven back to Whittington on the hoof. The
slaughter house was where the garage now stands and before the days of
refrigerators, Mrs Farnsworth, the butcher’s wife, had to fetch ice once a
week from Burton in an old Ford van to keep the meat fresh. At the
Main Street end of the premises there was a small shop where you could also
buy groceries, sweets and some fancy goods.
One of Whittington’s
long-term residents remembers:
Mr Farnsworth was
the butcher; his shop was a small appendage to the side of Dawson House. By
today’s standards it was very basic, always scrubbed down and clean, but
nothing like the sterile clinical conditions required today. Just a massive
well-used solid oak butchers block upon which all meats were carved up as
required, the meat available on the day hanging on large hooks to one side,
with just about room for Mr Farnsworth and the customer.
