Pulled by Horses: A Memoir of Metfield, Suffolk in the 1930s

Evelyn Whiting was born in Stradbroke, Suffolk on 26 August 1929. But it was to the village of Metfield that she gave her heart when, from the age of three, she began to come regularly to stay with her aunt and uncle, Lesley and Eva Davey. Lesley was a builder and Eva acted as housekeeper to the Ling brothers, who lived in Rose Farm in the centre of Metfield. This was to be the scene of Evelyn’s happiest childhood memories, and the beginning of her lifelong devotion to all animals - particularly the farm horses. Evelyn and her husband Russell (a ’horseman’, naturally) later set up home in Metfield with their two children, becoming immersed in village life and particularly the life of the church, to which they gave many loyal hours. Horses remained their first love, and in later years they were frequently to be seen bowling along (dressed for the part) in their brightly turned-out pony and trap.