Leisure & Recreation in Hoole: Difference between revisions
Add section The Game of Bowls
HooleHistory (talk | contribs) m (Restructuring of article) |
HooleHistory (talk | contribs) (Add section The Game of Bowls) |
||
Line 243:
The gateposts to the playing field still carry commemorative plaques.
== The Game of Bowls ==
[[File:5LRH1 Bowls Advertisment April 1842.jpg|thumb|<small>''Bowls Advertisment April 1842''</small>]]
Bowling has been a popular pastime for centuries and in April 1842 the landlord of the Ermine and Railway Hotel in Flookersbrook was pleased to announce “''the addition of a splendid bowling green''”.
[[File:5LRH2 Bowls Advertisment May 1834.jpg|left|thumb|''<small>Bowls Advertisment May 1834</small>'']]
Another pub in Brook Street was actually called ‘The Bowling Green’, its address being given as Flookersbrook, by which name that area was also then known.
There were originally two bowling clubs in Hoole. The Hoole and Newton Bowling Club which had a private green in Vicarage Road, and the Hoole Alexandra Park Bowling Club which used the public greens provided in Hoole Alexandra Park.
=== Hoole and Newton Bowling Club ===
[[File:5LRH3 Sale of Bowling Green 1974.jpg|thumb|''<small>Sale of Bowling Green 1974</small>'']]
This seems to have been a private club with its own green on the east side of Vicarage Road between Nos.4 and 6. The green is not marked as such on O.S. maps but the vacant land shown between the houses make it easy to identify. The earliest record of the Club dates from July 1910 when Mr. Samuel Davies aged 66 of Fairfield, Kilmorey Park collapsed suddenly while playing there. He was taken to Mr. T.W. Chalton’s house at No.3 Vicarage Road where brandy was administered. Dr. Butt was called but to no avail.
The Club had strong links with the Freemasons and for many years dinners were held in conjunction with the Deeside and the Tattenhall Bowling Clubs. Prominent citizens such as R. Cecil Smith (Hoole Volunteer Fire Brigade and Mayor of Chester), Chas Jones (Agricultural Machinery Merchant at Cowlane Bridge), William Kearton (Guardian of the Workhouse) were associated with the Club which appears to have been a men only organisation. The land it occupied in Vicarage Road was sold for housing in 1974.
=== Hoole Alexandra Park Bowling Club ===
[[File:5LRH4 Invitation to Tender for Bowl House Feb 1912.jpg|left|thumb|''<small>Invitation to Tender to erect Bowl House and the Park Lodge February 1912</small>'']]
[[File:5LRH5 Drinking Fountain.jpg|thumb|''<small>Drinking Fountain at the Bowl House</small>''<ref>''<small>Copyright Jeff Buck re-used under the Creative Commons Licence</small>''</ref>]]
The bowling greens installed in Hoole Alexandra Park in 1913 by the Urban District Council were intended for public use, bowls being available for hire from the Bowl House which also later serviced the tennis courts, and the putting green which opened in 1933 next to them. The Bowl House was enhanced by the provision of a drinking fountain provided by William Williams, a prominent local builder and one time Chairman of the Council. The history of the Park can be read above.
The Hoole Alexandra Park Bowling Club was formed as soon as the greens were open in 1913 and had an initial membership of 40. Its President for the first 3 years was W. Mills who was also Chairman of the Urban District Council. In 1914 the Club asked the Council for a reduction in fees for its members which was refused "''there should be no concessions, since the facility had been paid for by all ratepayers of the District''".
=== Cups and Trophies ===
[[File:5LRH6 Bowls Trophy Winners 1977.jpg|thumb|''<small>Some of the Bowls Trophy Winners 1977</small>'']]
Teams were formed and competitions held and by 1934 there were 128 members.
'''Dr. Butt''' gave impetus to the Club when he presented a cup for competition amongst members. Dr. Butt was the Council’s Medical Officer of Health. He was a keen sportsman who played cricket for Hoole and he was also the Team Doctor for Chester Football Club.
'''Edward Paul''' gave a cup to enable money to be raised for the Hoole & Newton Nursing Association.
'''Sir Owen Phillips M.P'''. for Chester between 1916 and 1922 presented a cup in aid of the Chester Infirmary.
'''Maurice Sharp''' also donated a trophy which raised money for the Chester & District Blind Society.
By 1945 there were also the William Brown Championship cup, a Jubilee Challenge cup, the Crosland Taylor cup and a Merit Medal for each season.
'''Edmund H. Dawson''' also presented a cup to be competed for by members of the Hoole Veterans Association whose hut was adjacent to the greens.
In more recent years other trophies have been bowled for: the Ernie Evans Cup, the Bernard Payne Shield, the May Kenney Cup and the Frank Wilding Trophy.
=== The Presidents’ Honours Board ===
[[File:5LRH7 Bowls Presidents Honours Board.jpg|left|thumb|''<small>The Presidents' Honours Board</small>'']]
The Board was presented to the Club in 1948 by Edmund H. Dawson and his wife to mark their golden wedding in the previous year. A well-known newsagent in Hoole, Edmund Dawson was a member and one time Chairman of the Urban District Council and President of the Bowling Club in 1924.
=== Charity Work and Civic Pride ===
Over the years teams have taken part in the different leagues which have operated in the Chester area'''.''' Many of the Club’s events have raised a significant amount of money for local charities and the Club continues to dominate the greens today. Sadly the pride and effort which went into providing the facilities 100 years earlier were not sustained and neglect by successive members and officials of the local authority meant that by the 2020s the Pavilion, as it became known, and the toilets were in a disgraceful state.
=== The Ladies Section ===
The Hoole Alexandra Park Bowling Club had always welcomed lady members from the start, a Miss Barton who died in 1940 was “''a member since its formation''”. In 1934 there were 25 lady members, Mrs. R.H. Pryce was a member of the otherwise male committee and went on to be President in 1941; other lady members were also to become Presidents. In 1943 Mrs. E.G.M. Kenney was the first lady to win the Club’s championship. The Club set up a dedicated ladies’ section and although it continues today as a mixed organisation, in 1947 a new separate ladies bowling club was formed.
During the 2020 Covid 19 lockdown the Secretary of [[Hoole Ladies Bowling Club|'''Hoole Ladies Bowling Club''']], Jane Branson was able to use the minute books and secretaries’ reports of the Club to provide a detailed history of its formation and activities.
=== Hoole Carpet Bowling Club ===
A Carpet Bowling Club has been in existence in Hoole since before 1903. Newspaper articles show that there was a ladies section but no information has been found as to where the club played. There are reports of matches being played against other clubs e.g. Warrington but no reference to cups or trophies has been found. Clearly though like all the bowling clubs in Hoole the Carpet Bowling Club has given support to many charitable causes.
==The Royal Agricultural Show, Hoole 1893==
The [[Royal Agricultural Show in Hoole|'''Royal Agricultural Show in Hoole''']] was held from 17 – 23 June 1893, the biggest event that has ever taken place in Hoole.
| |||