Photographs from N'Gata Farm 1926: 5 Working with Oxen

The work with oxen that Allan describes in the first letter home. There were no horses there.
Again there are not many written details for the images but Allan wrote on this one,
"Intercultivating between growing maize. Wattle plantation in background Njoro 1926"



Same team here as above.




These next two look like some kind of seed drill






This below was the very best I could get from an old faded print with no accompanying negative. As I was working on it and trying to coax some definition out of the yellowed print I noticed there is also a dog in the picture which may be the same dog as in the photograph of the three people with the car. Again when working with that image a dog revealed itself which was almost indistinguishable in the original photograph. I am therefore thinking that the man with the middle with the glasses may be Mr Coltart. I am sure he is the same man who appears in other photographs, working with the big engines.
It was worth including as on the back is written.

"Ox Ploughing on Mr Coltarts Farm. 3 Furrow Oliver Plough 14 Oxen Njoro 1926"




Two more images but without details.

Photographs from N'gata 1926: 3 Domestic Buildings

Some photographs of domestic buildings around N'gata.

It is a shame the first photograh is so faded, there is a figure standing in front of the house, but it is unclear if it is Lord Egerton or not.

"Lord Egerton's House, N'gata Njoro "


"Mr Broatch my nearest neighbour at Njoro and his little boy."
I have just found a reference to a David BROATCH (b.1 Aug 1924-Njoro,Kenya) son of Thomas John BROATCH (b.29 Dec 1896-Dryfesdale and Sarah McIntosh SHARP (b.12 Aug 1896-Linwood,Renfrew . It must be this little boy.

Same house as above from different angle, I think. The steeply pitched roof will have kept the house fairly cool.


"A Desirable Family Residence near the Station. Roof of Flattened Petrol tins"


Village Hut .. there is a chicken in the foreground and a seated figure to the right


Hut construction, wattle posts which are then covered with a mud facing.

Photographs from N'gata 1926: 2 Allan Thackeray's House, Borland's Ford, Ngata, Njoro

Views of Allan's house.
It is not entirely clear if these are all of the same house. As yet I have been unable to find any record of the Borland's Ford location. On the enlargements you can see the wattle and daub construction. The interior details are also interesting.. particularly the teapot and the discarded shoes. There are 3 wine glasses and what looks like a tomato ketchup bottle.













"My Hut N'gata"














No details of this photo.














"Interior. My Hut with kitchen help Muriasi, Njoro"



















No details of this photo.














"My Kitchen, Kitchen help-- Muriasai, Cook-- Juma and General help around kitchen, name unknown"














" My Hut, Borlands Ford "
This is a small part of a badly faded photo, but nice old car.