Halifax farmer's beloved possessions go up for auction

Going, going, gone! An auction of rare and historic farming equipment and machinery owned by a Halifax man will take place at Lower Highfield Farm in Halifax tomorrow.
The farming equipment that is up for auctionThe farming equipment that is up for auction
The farming equipment that is up for auction

The agricultural lots belonged to Edward Lumb, who died in January 2016, aged 78.

His three sons Simon, Richard and Daniel have decided to sell their father’s possessions, which also include paraphernalia from Mr Lumb’s Mount Tabor dairy farm, such as milk churns, a Somerset six stall milking bale and a 60ft long mobile milking parlour.

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The auction also includes six ploughs, plus a snow plough, and four tractors - the oldest dating from the 1950’s - all of which are in good working order.

Other items for sale include shovels, rakes, picks, cast iron fireplaces and troughs, hay racks, pots, sinks, horse collars, harnesses and brasses, ornaments, pictures, hand tools, a Land Rover and five cars.

“It’s like my dad’s last swansong really,” said Simon. “He’s buried not far from where the auction will take place, and some of the proceeds will go towards finishing that.

“We’ve put some reserves on some items, but it’s a smorgasbord of different things.

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“We couldn’t see the point of keeping all the ploughs and tractors. They’d just rot away, or be vandalised or stolen.

“Milk churns are quite fashionable at the moment, so I’d expect them to be popular.

“He had a plough for nearly every day of the week, and all the ploughs and tractors can be used straight away.”

Copies of the two books Mr Lumb wrote, one his life story and another of poetry and poems, will also be sold on the day, with the proceeds going to a Parkinson’s charity.

The auction takes place at the farm, on Gibb Lane, on Wednesday, May 23. Viewing starts at 4.30pm, while the sale starts at 6.30pm.

For more information, call 01484 683543.

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