Billy Paddison of Soloby
The life of the Satfleetby resident who kept a detailed diary which was compiled into a book by the late local historian Linda Crust in 2000. Billy lived between 1839 and 1916, moving to Soloby with his family as a child, going on to live the rest of his life here. He bought Saltfleetby House, and as a keen photographer documented the people and culture around him. His observations give an intimate portrait of the times: farming, Methodism and morals.
William Paddison: Marsh Farmer and
Survivor of the Agricultural Depression,
1873-96
By L I N D A C R U S T
Abstract
William Paddison was born in Lincolnshire in 1839 and farmed in the marsh area throughout the
agricultural depression at the end of the nineteenth century. He rose from small beginnings to a holding
of IOO acres and rode out the depression to emerge in a prosperous state. This paper evaluates the reasons
for his success in difficult times and comments on the peasant as a survivor and on Paddison's handling
of labour. Primary sources used are Paddison's own diaries and business papers. Paddison seemed to be
the fight man in the fight place at the fight time doing the fight things but, at the time, he did not know
this and his success was not evident until the depression was over. Thirsk has regretted that the annals of
such men as Paddison are generally unrecorded: this paper starts to redress the lack of extant evidence of
the business methods of medium-sized farmers.
To read the full article by Linda Crust that appeared in The Agricultural History Review, Vol. 43, No. 2 (1995), click on this link:
Photographs from book of Paddison's diaries by Linda Crust
Grimsby Evening Telegraph, Friday, 18th March 1966 Billy Paddison's diaries first get public attention when Rev. Jones publishes extracts in the parish magazine in 1966
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The Grave of Billy Paddison in Old Saltfleetby St Peter's Churchyard
