Small family grocer shops mid-20th century

My family lived in a village in rural Cambridgeshire during the Second World War, and the nearest grocer was several miles away. He or his driver delivered our grocery order to us and our neighbours in his van.

Ordering groceries

Grocery orders had to go in quite frequently, there being no fridges to keep milk and butter fresh.

Families who lived near the grocer would walk to the shop with their order, and those that lived a few miles away would cycle in.

Some families could phone in their order, but being on the phone was fairly unusual at the time. We were fortunate because we were on the phone due to my father being a wartime ARP warden. (He was young enough to be away in the forces, but, as an engineer, he was in a reserved occupation doing war work.) Being on the phone meant that my mother could phone in her order. Our neighbour was a doctor, so he too was in a reserved occupation and therefore on the phone.

The large family opposite, however was not on the phone. One of the children had to cycle to the grocer with the family's order which must have been a relentless chore as the family was so large.

Paying for the order

Our family had an account with the grocer, which meant that we paid by cheque once a month. Many of the families in rural areas, though, lived from hand-to-mouth and would have had to pay in cash. Fortunately, it was cheaper to live in the country than the town because there was enough land to grow one's own vegetables and keep rabbits and chickens for meat.

The grocer and his van driver

Regular delivery men on films always seem to know their customers by name and be on friendly terms with them, and this may have been the case in some areas.

However, I don't remember the man who did our deliveries being particularly friendly, but his rounds covered a wide area and there was no competition for his services. Also he had the additional chore of dealing with the coupons in everyone's ration books, although I didn't realise it at the time, he was probably quite old or even ill as otherwise he would have been conscripted into the forces. Being a grocer was not a reserved occupation as the women of the family were expected to take over.

Neil Cryer