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 Eric
Edwards at work at How Hill. |
Marshman
Eric Edwards - the last of his kind
Eric Edwards became a marshman in 1967. He's now the last of his kind.
When he joined, there were three of them working in the marshes. Now the
Authority struggles to find a replacement. "I've had young lads come
to join me, but its hard graft and they don't stay very long. Times have
changed.
Once upon a time fathers and sons would have work together on the marsh. Nowadays people don't see the working side, only the pretty side. It's a very uncomfortable way to make a living."
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He now works for the Broads Authority, managing their marshes at How Hill, cutting reed and sedge, which will be used by local thatchers or used to make panels. The future for the reed, however, is uncertain, as cheaper exports arrive from Eastern Europe and as far away as South Africa.
When he's not working the land, he'll often be found giving demonstrations to visitors and groups of school children of the traditional tools and skills of a bygone age. Despite his humble life, Eric is one of Norfolk's most media friendly personalities. He's featured in the Times, Vanity Fair, Country Life as a Living National Treasure, BBC television and appeared on the Generation Game no less than three times.
He's in no doubt what the land needs. "Marshes need to be worked. Where you find good reed and sedge, you find good wildlife.Nowadays there's more mechanisation and crafts are not needed as much."
Habitats