The milkman on his early-morning round is a rare sight these days. History writer BEVERLEY SAUNDERS talked to two people who remember what it was like to work in the milk trade in the early 20th Century ...

Jim and Doris Howett both have enchanting memories of the early days in the milk trade. In fact, Doris's father John McCarthy worked in the industry all his life.

Starting as a milkman aged 14, in 1914, John rose to be general manager at South Surbiton Co-op, where he presided over depots in Bromley and Orpington.

Initially, he had a small hand barrel but progressed to a horse and cart in 1920.

Dorothy recalled: "I loved to see the horses. One man kept his horse's livery beautifully, ensuring the woodwork was polished, the mane groomed and the hooves painted black."

During the war, horses were shackled to the nearest lamp-post to prevent them bolting with their loads and causing untold damage.

Later on, in the 1950s, there were a variety of delivery vehicles available. For short distances, the Dandy a platform on wheels with a strut was used.

Electric floats went further afield and petrol vans served outlying areas.

Progress was slow, however, as the electric vehicles needed recharging periodically and there was the additional problem of restricted vision in the smog.

The milk was not homogenised then and you had a choice Jersey, Gold Top, ordinary and tuberculosis-tested all had a cream line but the level varied.

"When homogenised milk came in, my dad really disapproved. He said it would knock the guts out of it, and he liked to see the cream line," said Dorothy.

You could buy cream on its own but no other goods were sold.

There were dumpy bottles with metal tops and thin bottles with cardboard tops, which contained the ordinary milk.

Dorothy said: "We children found the cardboard tops perfect for making woolly pom poms!"

They were not as hygienic as the metal ones and were eventually discontinued.

Jim remembers the dairy owned by the Hodsall family, which ran alongside the flourmill currently Carlton Parade, opposite Priory Park, in Orpington.

If you walked past in the early morning on a hot summer's day, you would see the churns standing in a stream encircling the mill by the Priory grounds, to keep the milk cool before it was delivered.

The milk was offered from a metal churn and the ladles hung from it. It was poured into the customer's jug as required.

Jim recalled: "The milk would dry on the ladles and go quite brown as the round wore on but no-one noticed."

The Hodsalls also had another herd which grazed in the pastures around the Mayfield Manor House, built in 1745, which stood where Woolworths is now in Orpington High Street.

Both Doris and Jim agreed milk was far nicer in those days.