The Farmers Mart Feb/Mar 2014 - Issue 32 | Page 29

RALPH COWARD [email protected] 01845 523165 www.thirskmarket.co.uk Furniture & Collectable sales Fur & Feather & Collective sales Breeding & Store sale Primestock Tuesday fortnightly Entries day before sale 10am – 3pm Sale Box lots & electricles 4pm, collectables 5.30pm, furniture 6pm (2 auctioneers) Every alternative Tuesday Sheep at 1pm  Cattle at 1.30pm farm came up for rent. Jack Eastwood then purchased the estate. He was big into chickens and also made sure that the land around here was drained. There were grants for drainage at the time. It was, and still is, very important here because the ings land always floods every year and as you can see, we are already under water. ‘The ings land floods here every year’ “The Eastwoods then sold out to the Gas Board Pension Fund in the late 70s and that caused a bit of fuss. They were all for taking the tenanted farms back in hand. A lot of estates were doing the same as farming was good. Then when the job went a bit ‘tits up’ the Pension Fund people wanted their money out. That’s when we bought what we already had tenanted plus an additional acreage that took us to the 350 acres we own today. We also rent a further 300 acres. “I went to school in Thorganby and then Fulford but never wanted to go to college as my dad had wanted. I just wanted to work on the farm and that is how I developed my interest in livestock. I started going to market and the first calf I ever bought cost me £2.50 from the old York market. Buying and rearing calves became my thing.” The catalyst for Ralph’s change from a young lad dealing with stock from his own farm and a few local markets, to the knowledgeable and respected character he is known as around the sale rings today, came in the 1980s. “Jimmy Smith used to have a slaughterhouse in Castleford and he was taking a lot of fatstock from us. I got pally > 1st Saturday of the month, Collective entries Friday before sale 8am-4pm.  Fur & Feather entries on day 7am-9am.  Sale starts @ 10am Every Thursday, Pigs at 9am, sheep at 9.30am and cattle at 12.30pm See website for details of dates and special sales. Thirsk Farmers Auction Mart, Thirsk Rural Business Centre, Blakey Lane, Thirsk, YO7 3BP SELBY LIVE STOCK AUCTION MART LTD “YORKSHIRE’S FRIENDLY LIVESTOCK MART” Weekly Sale of Fatstock - Wednesday - Red Market Pigs 9am – Sheep 9.45am – Cattle & Cows 10.30am Store Stock – Saturdays Pigs 9.45am – Cattle 10.45am – Sheep 10.15am On alternate Saturdays: Fur, Feathers, & Miscelaneous Items Gates open at 6.30am. Sale starts 10am Payment on day of sale. Competitive commission rates. Personal attention given to customers at all times by Auctioneers and staff Tel: [phone]. Fax: [phone] www.selbymart.co.uk Auctioneer Richard Haigh Tel.[phone] JG & GW Waudby Quality construction at the right price – a complete service JG & GW Waudby are pleased to be associated with Ralph Coward Specialists in steel frame construction Contact Jeremy for a quote and discuss your requirements Mobile: [phone] Tel: [phone] [email protected] Lottings Farm, Lottings Lane, Barmby Moor, York. YO42 4DF To read more, visit www.farmers-mart.co.uk FarmersMart Feb/Mar 2014 29