OCTOGENARIAN Jim Ashton recalled the days when the village of Huncoat was surrounded by farms, many of which have now disappeared.

Jim was just 14 when he went to live there in 1941, during the Second World war.

“I had the pleasure of living in a delightful isolated village that was completely surrounded by many acres of green fields and meadows that separated it from the surrounding towns.

“Scattered among the farmland were the 25 dairy farms of a prosperous Huncoat farming community, which has since been lost.

“Today, only seven of these stone-built farm buildings exist and they are private dwellings.

“Do people remember, too, that it was a bustling industrial community, providing full-time employment and a decent living wage for many villagers?

“The three bygone industries were Perseverance Mill, the Redac brickworks, and the Broad Meadow Colliery, better known locally as ‘Thuncoyte pit.”