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News  »  Memories of Peter Delafield



   Memories of Peter Delafield    17 October, 2021

Peter Delafield 1930 - 2021

 

It is with great sadness that Keith Peter Delafield lost his brave fight and died on August 14th at the age of 91.  Always known as Peter, he was the youngest of six children and grew up with his family in Drayton, just outside Abingdon.  He was a bright and practical boy with a flair for mechanics and business.  Initially, after leaving school, he set up a self-drive car hire company before the majority of households owned a vehicle. He met Nancy at a dance in Abingdon, impressing her with the offer of a lift home afterwards in his smart motor.  They married in 1955 and celebrated their 66th anniversary this April.

 

After a couple of years he decided to join his eldest brother Philip, with whom he had a very close relationship, working on his farm in Drayton and together they formed the Delafield Brothers partnership eventually purchasing Jericho Farm at Cassington in 1960.  It was hard work, and for six years Peter lived with Nancy and their new daughter Elaine in a caravan on the Drayton farm.  Once they set up home in the farmhouse at Cassington, Linda and Martin arrived. In 1972 the tenancy for Parsonage Farm in Marsh Baldon became available from Queen’s College and Peter was very proud that he acquired the lease against some stiff competition.  He moved into the farmhouse with his young family and, building a fine reputation as a diligent and passionate farmer with a good eye for business, the Delafield Brothers partnership thrived.  Today the farms at both Cassington, where Philip still lives, and Marsh Baldon together with some land at Garsington and Drayton (about 1,000 acres in total) are successfully run by Martin.  Peter, however, continued to take a keen interest in the affairs of the farm and it was only a few months ago that he could still be seen driving his van around the fields to check on how the crops were developing.

 

The family are very grateful for all the messages of sympathy they have received from those in the village.  The funeral will be at St Lawrence Toot Baldon and Peter will be buried in the graveyard there overlooking the land he farmed for almost 50 years.

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