This section lists events in Carr's life, by Year. It's a work in progress. There are mistakes, I am sure. Locations and visits are based on letters and postcards seen in archives, as well as taken from Byron Rogers' biography.
(Last updated on 16/12/2020)
1897:
February 16th: Joseph, eldest son of Mr & Mrs Robert Carr of Poppleton, married Hannah Elizabeth, only daughter of Mr and Mrs Robert Welbourn of Hutton Cranswick at Driffield Wesleyan Chapel.
1900:
28th February: Ethel Blanche Carr born, JLC's eldest sister
1902:
24th December: Kathleen Winifred Carr, JLC's sister. She died in 1999, age 97 y
1905:
9th November: Raymond Welbourn Carr born at 5 Philadepha Terrace, York, JLC's older brother. He died in 2005, aged 99 y
1912:
20th May: Joseph Lloyd Carr born at 5 Railway Cottages, Carlton Miniott, North Riding of Yorkshire
1912-18:
Infancy
1918-21:
Pupil at the primary school in Carlton Miniott
1921-25:
Pupil at the primary school in Sherburn-in-Elmet
1925-29:
Pupil at Castleford Secondary School: played cricket, soccer and rugby union; acted in school plays
1929:
December: appeared in Castleford Secondary School production of 'A Midsummer Night's Dream'
1930:
June: left Castleford Secondary School at same time as his Headmaster, Thomas Richard Dawes and Alice Gostick, Art Teacher
15th July: JLC saw the last day of the Test match at Headingley between England and Australia at which Don Bradman had scored a record 309 runs on the first day as a part of a personal score of 334 (ref 1);
Taught at South Milford Primary School as a Supernumery Teacher, paid £1 a week
1931:
Played football for Milford White Rose in the Barkston Ash Cup which they won in a final in which they played Halton at Garforth
March: promoted to Uncertified Teacher at South Milford Primary School, paid £2 a week
September: started at Dudley Training College for Teachers
1932:
Continued at Dudley; edited the student's magazine, The Eagle; ran for the College cross-country team
12th July: saw Yorkshire play Nottingham at Headingley (ref 2)
1933:
Graduated from Dudley
September: got a job at a school in Bitterne, near Southampton
1934:
Continued to teach at a school at Bitterne
Summer: played cricket for Curdridge CC
1935:
Continued to teach at a school at Bitterne
17th August: JLC was best man at the wedding of Kathleen Winifred Carr to Tom England (1908-1987) at the Methodist Church, Sherburn-in-Elmet (reported in Leeds Mercury on Monday 19th August 1935, page 5.)
1936:
Returned to Birmingham to teach
Summer: joined Aston Unity CC
1937:
Continued to teach in Birmingham
1938:
Continued to teach in Birmingham
September: sailed across the Atlantic to Quebec to reach Huron, South Dakota, to teach for a year on an exchange with a teacher at the High School.
1st October: arrived in Huron, South Dakota
1939:
Finished teaching at Huron
27th May: left Huron on 27th May and spent 3.5 months travelling in Japan, China, Malaya, Burma, India, the Middle East and France
13th September: arrived back in England; volunteered to join the Royal Air Force
Taught at Hastings Road Senior School in Kingstanding, Birmingham (ref 3) while waiting to enter the RAF and on supply in Chepstow
1940:
October: joined the RAF as an Aircraftman and did basic training in Blackpool
1941:
February: stationed at R.A.F. Chivenor near Barnstable, Devon according to letter to sister
November: reassigned to work in Photography Unit at R.A.F. Chivenor with Edmund Cooney
1942:
May - August: trained as a photography technician at R.A.F. Farnborough with Edmund Cooney
September: stationed at RAF Padgate, Lancashire, waiting for a posting overseas
October: sent on a troopship to Freetown, Sierra Leone
November: joined No. 270 Squadron, West African Forces, newly formed at R.A.F. Jui, just outside Freetown in Sierra Leone
1943:
Designed first map, of England & Wales while in West Africa.
February: rank given as Aircraftman First Class (AC1) in letter to R.A.F. friend Edmund Cooney
March: rank given as Leading Aircraftman (LAC) in letter to R.A.F. friend Edmund Cooney
May: probably moved to R.A.F. Apapa near Lagos in Nigeria, according to letter sent to Harvey Tice in the USA
October: rank given as Corporal in letter to R.A.F. friend Edmund Cooney
November: rank given as Pilot Officer (P/O) in letter to R.A.F. friend Edmund Cooney from Bathurst in the Gambia
1944:
January or February: returned to England for office training
March: letter to R.A.F. friend Edmund Cooney from P/O Carr at R.A.F. Manston in Kent where he had joined No 119 Squadron as Intelligence Officer
April: officially promoted to Flying Officer in the Adminstrative and Special Duties Branch of the R.A.F.
April: met Sally Sexton at a ball at Westgate-on-Sea
August: No 119 Squadron transfered to R.A.F. Swingfield in Kent
September: proposed marriage to Sally Sexton, who accepted
August: No 119 Squadron transfered to R.A.F. Bircham Newton near Docking in Norfolk
1945:
Transferred to No 489 Squadron stationed at Dallachy, near Elgin in Scotland
14th March: married Sally Sexton at Elmstead in Essex, best man Captain Neil Pollock
17th March: best man at wedding of Captain Neil Pollock to Subaltern Margaret Charlton, A.T.S., at St. Hilda’s Church in Hartlepool
8th June: World War II in Europe ends
1946:
January: demobbed and took 3 months leave in rented house near Redcar, not far from brother Ray's station at Stainton Dale
May: returned to Birmingham to teach; joined Birmingham Municipal Cricket Club.
1947:
Teaching in Birmingham
November: son Robert Duane born
1948:
Teaching in Birmingham; contributed to Midlands Club Cricket Year Book
1949:
Teaching in Birmingham
1950:
Teaching in Birmingham; contributed to Midlands Club Cricket Year Book
1951:
Before he took up his post at Highfields School in Kettering while it was being built, acted as Headmaster of Ringstead School. His time there and a painting that he did of the school is described by David Ball in a short history of the school. It contains a lovely quote from Carr which hints at a letter to 'Uncle Fred' in The Northants Campaigner.
1952:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; joined Kettering Town Cricket Club.
1953:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering.
1954:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; played cricket for Kettering Wanderers XI.
1955:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering.
1956:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; started Northamptonshire County Cricket League Year Book
April: granted leave of absence to return to Huron to teach again at the High School
August: traveled with his wife and son to Huron, via New York to teach at Huron High School for another school year
5th September: started teaching history and English at Huron High School
1957:
Continued teaching at Huron High School
20th May: published The Old Timers
July: returned to Kettering
1958:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; edited Northamptonshire County Cricket League Yearbook.
1959:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; edited Northamptonshire County Cricket League Yearbook.
1960:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; edited Northamptonshire County Cricket League Yearbook; started painting the The Northamptonshire Record.
1961:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering; edited last Northamptonshire County Cricket League Yearbook.
28th June: Carr holds an exhibition of his paintings at his house on Mill Dale Road, Kettering
1962:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering
1963:
Headmaster of Highfields Primary School in Kettering
First novel published - A Day in Summer; started to edit The Northants Campaigner
1964:
Published first small book, the poems of John Clare, for the local association of the National Union of Teachers to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the death of Clare.
26th August: unveiled a memorial to four New Zealanders who had died in 1945 at Jossingfjord, Norway when their planes collided
1965:
Published first map, of Northamptonshire; visited Denmark in August
1966:
Took early retirement from teaching and became a publisher and novelist.
Printed The Battle of Birmingham a book of the verses he had composed in 1940 to write on the blackboard for his pupils to copy in their handwriting classes
1967:
Second novel published - A Season in Sinji
Published first map of Warwickshire designed with son, Robert
April: applied for leave of absence without pay for two years
13th July: resigned from teaching
1968:
Published more small books and maps
April: drove to Istanbul on holiday
1968:
Published more small books and maps
1970:
Published more small books and maps; published last issue of The Northants Campaigner
1971:
Published more small books and maps
1972:
Published more small books and maps
May: third novel published - The Harpole Report.
1973:
Published more small books and maps
Visited Huron, South Dakota and donated his sketch books and a map of Beadle County to Library and Dakotaland Museum.
1974:
Published more small books and maps.
1975:
Published more small books and maps
May: fourth novel published - Steeple Sinderby.
1976:
Published more small books and maps
June: holiday in Mallorca, Spain
1977:
Published more small books and maps;
1978:
Published more small books and maps
September: holiday in a caravan in Wales
1979:
Published more small books and maps;
1980:
Published more small books and maps
January: fifth novel published - A Month in the Country
Short-listed for the Booker Prize
21st October: attended award ceremony for the Booker Prize
27th November: awarded The Guardian Fiction Prize
1981:
March: attended Hatchards 'Authors of the Year' party
April: invited to become a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
June: Sally Carr died, aged 62 y.
November: awarded an Honorary Degree of Master of Arts by the University of Leicester
October: holiday visting Gothic churches in France (Vezeley, Yonne)
1982:
1983:
Donated manuscript of A Month in the Country to the Morgan Library, New York, USA, and gave a lecture during a visit.
1984:
Resigned as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature
October: stone carvings of St Peter and St Paul placed in niches above the west door of Kettering Church
1985:
Sixth novel published: The Battle of Pollocks Crossing, short-listed for the Booker Prize.
1986:
1987:
1988:
February: seventh novel published - What Hetty Did
1989:
1990:
1991:
1992:
June: eighth novel published - Harpole & Foxberrow
1993:
August: holiday in a caravan in Llandrindo Wells; diagnosed with leukaemia
1994:
26th February: JLC died, aged 81 y
References
(1) From a review in The Spectator in June 1991.
(2) From review in Wisden, 1993.
(3) A note in Kettering Public Library about the class of pupils he taught hand-writing.