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What is a Rabbitoh?

doyen

Bench
Messages
3,603
I was born in 1944 & brought up in Rabbitoh's territory at Botany.

We used to eat a fair bit of rabbit ---a man[we knew him as the Rabbitoh] used to sell rabbits out of the back of a horse & cart kept cool with huge blocks of ice. We knew he was near as he would call out "rabbitoh." Mum or Dad would go out onto the road & select a rabbit or two from the back of the enclosed wagon. He meandered his way around the streets selling his catches.

Back in those days Botany was open country in many areas & rabbits were abundant locally.

The rabbitoh used to catch them,as far as I knew,as a kid,& sell them in the streets--- I believe he also supplied our local butcher.
I won't eat rabbit today but I loved it as a kid!!!!

I remember first going to Sths games at Redfern Oval in about 1954 when I was 10 yrs old!!
 

southsport

First Grade
Messages
9,556
I was born in 1944 & brought up in Rabbitoh's territory at Botany.

We used to eat a fair bit of rabbit ---a man[we knew him as the Rabbitoh] used to sell rabbits out of the back of a horse & cart kept cool with huge blocks of ice. We knew he was near as he would call out "rabbitoh." Mum or Dad would go out onto the road & select a rabbit or two from the back of the enclosed wagon. He meandered his way around the streets selling his catches.

Back in those days Botany was open country in many areas & rabbits were abundant locally.

The rabbitoh used to catch them,as far as I knew,as a kid,& sell them in the streets--- I believe he also supplied our local butcher.
I won't eat rabbit today but I loved it as a kid!!!!

I remember first going to Sths games at Redfern Oval in about 1954 when I was 10 yrs old!!

Thanks for sharing that doyen, were the rabbits that were sold already skinned?
 

doyen

Bench
Messages
3,603
Thanks for sharing that doyen, were the rabbits that were sold already skinned?

They were already skinned, gutted & cleaned----Mum used to pick out the ones she thought were suitable & fattest,I reckon!
Every bit of food we received seemed to come by horse & cart---our milk was poured into billy-cans left on the verandah----the green grocer had his fresh vegies displayed in boxes on his wagon---the ice-man delivered huge blocks of ice for our ice-chest[no refrigerators].
The dunny-man used to empty the sewerage drums but this is a very blurred memory.

Back in those days everyone wiped their butt with squares of newspaper hanging behind the dunny door.
At school we all got around scratching our rings from the ink that itched.

There was a standing joke about the dunny delivery/pickup--
"What has 20 pisstins & flies[bzzzz]??----the dunny-cart!!!

Slowly but surely we ended up getting all the mod-cons--------a kerosene fridge,milk in bottles,a proper toilet. My parents refused to get TV until my brothers & I completed our Leaving Certificates[HSC equivalent].
The rabbitoh,however, suddenly disappeared----maybe health Inspectors were invented!!!!
 
Last edited:
Messages
14,479
My nan lived in Penshurst from the 1920's until very early 1980s. In the 1930, 40s and 50s, the milkman, the bread man, the fruit and veg man and the butcher all delivered.

Her front door would never be locked, even at nights. Sometimes, she would go out and leave envelopes with their cash payments in them. One of them would deliver, put her stuff in the kitchen, take their envelope and leave.

Imagine that now?
 

doyen

Bench
Messages
3,603
My nan lived in Penshurst from the 1920's until very early 1980s. In the 1930, 40s and 50s, the milkman, the bread man, the fruit and veg man and the butcher all delivered.

Her front door would never be locked, even at nights. Sometimes, she would go out and leave envelopes with their cash payments in them. One of them would deliver, put her stuff in the kitchen, take their envelope and leave.

Imagine that now?

Of course,the baker with his horse & cart!!

Everyone left their money out sitting on the front verandah---I don't think it was ever stolen.

Our toilets dated back to BC---Before Cisterns!!!

The ice-man used to wander into the house with his weighty load of ice-bricks & help Mum place them in the ice-chest!!
 

southsport

First Grade
Messages
9,556
They were already skinned, gutted & cleaned----Mum used to pick out the ones she thought were suitable & fattest,I reckon!
Every bit of food we received seemed to come by horse & cart---our milk was poured into billy-cans left on the verandah----the green grocer had his fresh vegies displayed in boxes on his wagon---the ice-man delivered huge blocks of ice for our ice-box[no refrigerators].
The dunny-man used to empty the sewerage drums but this is a very blurred memory.

Back in those days everyone wiped their butt with squares of newspaper hanging behind the dunny door.
At school we all got around scratching our rings from the ink that itched.

There was a standing joke about the dunny delivery/pickup--
"What has 20 pisstins & flies[bzzzz]??----the dunny-cart!!!

Slowly but surely we ended up getting all the mod-cons--------a kerosene fridge,milk in bottles,a proper toilet. My parents refused to get TV until my brothers & I completed our Leaving Certificates[HSC equivalent].
The rabbitoh,however, suddenly disappeared----maybe health Inspectors were invented!!!!

Thanks for sharing but a bit too much information about scratching your ring.

I was born at North Sydney and I remember the ice cart there, when we moved south of the harbour we had the shit carters
 

southsport

First Grade
Messages
9,556
My nan lived in Penshurst from the 1920's until very early 1980s. In the 1930, 40s and 50s, the milkman, the bread man, the fruit and veg man and the butcher all delivered.

Her front door would never be locked, even at nights. Sometimes, she would go out and leave envelopes with their cash payments in them. One of them would deliver, put her stuff in the kitchen, take their envelope and leave.

Imagine that now?

It's good to hear about this, "the good old days".
 

Clifferd

Coach
Messages
10,805
A rabbitoh is someone who used to set traps/catch rabbits, skin them, and sell their meat at markets, but I've also been told by someone who used to see them that some walked the streets and yelled out "rabbitoh/rabbito", just like "milko", and those people who wanted to buy the meat would come out of their homes and buy it. I guess a lot of people were poor back then and it was cheap meat.

Maybe it means straight right punch to the mouth
 

Rabbits20

Immortal
Messages
41,607
I was born in 1944 & brought up in Rabbitoh's territory at Botany.

We used to eat a fair bit of rabbit ---a man[we knew him as the Rabbitoh] used to sell rabbits out of the back of a horse & cart kept cool with huge blocks of ice. We knew he was near as he would call out "rabbitoh." Mum or Dad would go out onto the road & select a rabbit or two from the back of the enclosed wagon. He meandered his way around the streets selling his catches.

Back in those days Botany was open country in many areas & rabbits were abundant locally.

The rabbitoh used to catch them,as far as I knew,as a kid,& sell them in the streets--- I believe he also supplied our local butcher.
I won't eat rabbit today but I loved it as a kid!!!!

I remember first going to Sths games at Redfern Oval in about 1954 when I was 10 yrs old!!
Good on you Doyen.

The Pride of the League
 

Rabbits20

Immortal
Messages
41,607
Thanks mate--one day;a long way off;you'll be saying, I've followed the Rabbitohs for nearly 65 yrs!!!

Keep up the fight on here -----you're top value!!
Thanks Doyen.

You keep hanging in too.

You're not that ancient yet lol.
 

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