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I guess this document will have to be filed under the title of 'one that got away'. I recently came across it in a catalogue from a small Irish auction house, but it has long gone.
This four page pamphlet has a unique place in football history. It was published in November 1863 by the committee which drew up the Cambridge University rules of football. This was the latest in several attempts to create a composite set of rules, starting in 1846, but would be the one with the most profound influence. It was reproduced in the sports papers of the day, and came to the notice of the fledgling Football Association in London whose members were holding a series of meetings that autumn to establish a common code for football. Its publication galvanised the debate among the game's founding fathers, as it provided a tentative solution to the arguments which were raging between different factions. Charles Alcock saw it as something of a godsend and proposed adopting the Cambridge rules in their entirety, albeit with some small modifications, and that is indeed what happened. The FA's rules were duly published in December 1863, and association football came into being.
The Cambridge rules were important enough to be printed in The Field and Bell's Life, and then JC Thring set them out alongside the FA's final version in his little book of football rules, which he published at the end of 1863.
This four page pamphlet has a unique place in football history. It was published in November 1863 by the committee which drew up the Cambridge University rules of football. This was the latest in several attempts to create a composite set of rules, starting in 1846, but would be the one with the most profound influence. It was reproduced in the sports papers of the day, and came to the notice of the fledgling Football Association in London whose members were holding a series of meetings that autumn to establish a common code for football. Its publication galvanised the debate among the game's founding fathers, as it provided a tentative solution to the arguments which were raging between different factions. Charles Alcock saw it as something of a godsend and proposed adopting the Cambridge rules in their entirety, albeit with some small modifications, and that is indeed what happened. The FA's rules were duly published in December 1863, and association football came into being.
The Cambridge rules were important enough to be printed in The Field and Bell's Life, and then JC Thring set them out alongside the FA's final version in his little book of football rules, which he published at the end of 1863.
The Cambridge rules were published in JC Thring's composite football rulebook in December 1863
So, where is this original 1863 copy of the Cambridge Rules now? Sadly, the short answer is that I don't know.
I can't help feeling that its significance was not appreciated, as when the auction house first listed it in 2009 it was left unsold, and then when they tried again in 2015 it sold for the princely sum of 60 euros. I asked the auction house to forward my details to the purchaser, which they kindly did, but I have had no further response.
This is a shame as I have never seen another and as far as I know it is the only surviving copy. I remain hopeful that it will surface, one of the true building blocks of association football.
However, if this unknown copy of the 1863 Cambridge Rules has survived, who knows what else is out there? The fact that something so old can surface does raise the faint hope that perhaps, one day, the mythical rules from 1848 will also be found.
I can't help feeling that its significance was not appreciated, as when the auction house first listed it in 2009 it was left unsold, and then when they tried again in 2015 it sold for the princely sum of 60 euros. I asked the auction house to forward my details to the purchaser, which they kindly did, but I have had no further response.
This is a shame as I have never seen another and as far as I know it is the only surviving copy. I remain hopeful that it will surface, one of the true building blocks of association football.
However, if this unknown copy of the 1863 Cambridge Rules has survived, who knows what else is out there? The fact that something so old can surface does raise the faint hope that perhaps, one day, the mythical rules from 1848 will also be found.
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John Hope's football rules of 1833 (National Records of Scotland)
One of the most important developments in football in the 19th century was the creation of rules, a common code by which all the players had to abide.
Pictured above is the world's earliest known set of football rules, written by John Hope in Edinburgh in 1833 to guide the members of his Foot-Ball Club which had been established in 1824. This crucial document now resides in the National Records of Scotland, and is a priceless piece of footballing history.
It is worth examining why Hope felt it necessary to lay down the rules in writing, and what they implied for the players.
By 1833 the club had been going for nine years, it was buoyant and attracting new recruits from a variety of backgrounds and schools. Therefore many of the players may not have had the implicit understanding of how to play and how to behave that former High School boys would have had.
The club's membership records indicate that football games involved up to 40 men playing at the same time, wearing caps to distinguish sides. Their football was of a robust and healthy nature, played within a defined area on rough grass fields in summer and winter. All games were played within the club membership as there simply was no other club with which to play competitive matches.
Their football was clearly a competitive game with a code of behaviour to avoid serious injury - the members were young men who needed to be able to walk to work or study the next morning. Their game had progressed from the schoolboy pastime of the High School Yards, and Hope probably felt he needed to establish some guidelines. His rules therefore appear to mark a step on football's evolutionary path from its often violent origins in the folk games of a less sophisticated age to the more sanitised, codified form which emerged in the 1850s. Hope wrote in his own hand:
Underneath, he noted the attributes of the game:
Aff [affirmative] Fun, air, exercise
Neg [negative] No tripping
These rules are brief, and leave much to the imagination, but they are highly significant not just in what they say, but what they do not say. In many respects this is similar to the early editions of Rugby School's laws in the 1840s, which stated they were to be regarded 'rather as a set of decisions on certain disputed points in football, than as containing all the Laws of the Game, which are too well known to render any explanation necessary.'
Pictured above is the world's earliest known set of football rules, written by John Hope in Edinburgh in 1833 to guide the members of his Foot-Ball Club which had been established in 1824. This crucial document now resides in the National Records of Scotland, and is a priceless piece of footballing history.
It is worth examining why Hope felt it necessary to lay down the rules in writing, and what they implied for the players.
By 1833 the club had been going for nine years, it was buoyant and attracting new recruits from a variety of backgrounds and schools. Therefore many of the players may not have had the implicit understanding of how to play and how to behave that former High School boys would have had.
The club's membership records indicate that football games involved up to 40 men playing at the same time, wearing caps to distinguish sides. Their football was of a robust and healthy nature, played within a defined area on rough grass fields in summer and winter. All games were played within the club membership as there simply was no other club with which to play competitive matches.
Their football was clearly a competitive game with a code of behaviour to avoid serious injury - the members were young men who needed to be able to walk to work or study the next morning. Their game had progressed from the schoolboy pastime of the High School Yards, and Hope probably felt he needed to establish some guidelines. His rules therefore appear to mark a step on football's evolutionary path from its often violent origins in the folk games of a less sophisticated age to the more sanitised, codified form which emerged in the 1850s. Hope wrote in his own hand:
- Single soled shoes, no iron
- No tripping
- Ball to pass imaginary line
- A free kick if ball out of bounds
- Pushing is allowed. Holding not illegal
- Allow the ball to be lifted between fields
Underneath, he noted the attributes of the game:
Aff [affirmative] Fun, air, exercise
Neg [negative] No tripping
These rules are brief, and leave much to the imagination, but they are highly significant not just in what they say, but what they do not say. In many respects this is similar to the early editions of Rugby School's laws in the 1840s, which stated they were to be regarded 'rather as a set of decisions on certain disputed points in football, than as containing all the Laws of the Game, which are too well known to render any explanation necessary.'
The full story of the 1833 rules is told in The World's First Foot-Ball Club, on sale now
Hope's first two rules indicate a concern for safety and a desire to avoid injury. Therefore the players could be robust (a founding member wrote of 'such kicking of shins') so there was clearly a risk of being kicked, but they were expected to avoid hurting their opponents unnecessarily. It seems to have worked, as there are no mentions anywhere in the correspondence or club records of serious injury.
Rules three and four introduce the concept of a method of scoring. The game needed winners and losers so a goal (or 'hail') was scored when the ball passed over the 'imaginary line', and we know from the financial records that there were painted hail sticks which operated as goalposts. Similarly, to stop the play wandering off into the distance, this imaginary line extended right round the pitch; so, if the ball went beyond the agreed boundary it would be retrieved and kicked back into play.
Rule five is interesting as it permits an element of physical aggression, allowing players to push and hold their opponents (as rugby allows to this day within defined circumstances such as tackling and scrums). However, pushing and holding are a long way from the 'no holds barred' approach of traditional folk football.
The final rule is harder to analyse, particularly as this is the only rule that Hope redrafted. He crossed out some words and perhaps had difficulty in condensing accepted practice into a short sentence. It appears to mean that the only time the ball could be lifted, i.e. picked up or handled, was when it was out of play 'between fields'. If that interpretation is correct it confirms that this was a forerunner to the non-handling code that ultimately became association football.
While Hope's football rules are brief and open to interpretation, it has to be remembered he was the first to attempt the task. This was decades before the versions created by footballers at Cambridge (1848), Sheffield (1858), the Football Association (1863) and several prominent schools. He was a man ahead of his time.
The story of The World's First Foot-Ball Club is on sale now, price £11.99.
Rules three and four introduce the concept of a method of scoring. The game needed winners and losers so a goal (or 'hail') was scored when the ball passed over the 'imaginary line', and we know from the financial records that there were painted hail sticks which operated as goalposts. Similarly, to stop the play wandering off into the distance, this imaginary line extended right round the pitch; so, if the ball went beyond the agreed boundary it would be retrieved and kicked back into play.
Rule five is interesting as it permits an element of physical aggression, allowing players to push and hold their opponents (as rugby allows to this day within defined circumstances such as tackling and scrums). However, pushing and holding are a long way from the 'no holds barred' approach of traditional folk football.
The final rule is harder to analyse, particularly as this is the only rule that Hope redrafted. He crossed out some words and perhaps had difficulty in condensing accepted practice into a short sentence. It appears to mean that the only time the ball could be lifted, i.e. picked up or handled, was when it was out of play 'between fields'. If that interpretation is correct it confirms that this was a forerunner to the non-handling code that ultimately became association football.
While Hope's football rules are brief and open to interpretation, it has to be remembered he was the first to attempt the task. This was decades before the versions created by footballers at Cambridge (1848), Sheffield (1858), the Football Association (1863) and several prominent schools. He was a man ahead of his time.
The story of The World's First Foot-Ball Club is on sale now, price £11.99.
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Almost two hundred years ago, the world’s first football club was established in Scotland by a young lawyer and his friends in Edinburgh.
The Foot-Ball Club remained active from 1824 until 1841, with around 300 recorded members. As the world’s first known organisation dedicated to football it is a crucially important episode in the development of football, yet its full story has never been told.
Now, I am working with John Hutchinson on a detailed history of the club, together with a biography of its founder, John Hope (pictured above). It is not just a story about football’s early days, it also looks at the players and their impact on Scottish society.
Hope is not given enough credit by historians for his contribution to the early development of football, where the focus is often on the founding of the Football Association in 1863, on the public schools, on Sheffield and so on. For example Sheffield FC, founded in 1857, have actually incorporated into their crest a claim to be ‘the world’s first football club’. It simply isn’t true. They might be the oldest surviving club, but the first? No way.
For a definition of what constitutes a sports club, this is what Hope himself had to say in a letter:
The football club resumed in October; the fun first-rate. I played for three hours on Saturday. Had business not kept me from the field this winter, I would have been in splendid wind. As it was. I am pretty swift, and am still a good hand at rolling down my opponents. Mr Esplin is very keen, and the life of the club. He brings out the men. He plays first rate. He gives a splendid ground kick - so sure. We mutually respect each other, but we are daily approaching to a keener contest. He has had more practice that I, and carries six years less than I do. He is short, and there is no upsetting him; but I hope to roll him next Saturday. The club gave occasion to some very spirited caricatures by my brother Jamie, I being, of course, the principal butt. We got new caps, very neat, improved by Esplin, like jockey caps.’
There, in one quote from the 1830s, are embodied all the essentials of a sporting club: the playing, the physical contact, the organisation, the team uniform, the rivalry, the respect for fellow members, the hope that it will all be better next week, the futile attempts to regain lost youth, the regret for not training enough and the laughter and camaraderie of a group of healthy and energetic young men united for one specific athletic purpose.
The Foot-Ball Club remained active from 1824 until 1841, with around 300 recorded members. As the world’s first known organisation dedicated to football it is a crucially important episode in the development of football, yet its full story has never been told.
Now, I am working with John Hutchinson on a detailed history of the club, together with a biography of its founder, John Hope (pictured above). It is not just a story about football’s early days, it also looks at the players and their impact on Scottish society.
Hope is not given enough credit by historians for his contribution to the early development of football, where the focus is often on the founding of the Football Association in 1863, on the public schools, on Sheffield and so on. For example Sheffield FC, founded in 1857, have actually incorporated into their crest a claim to be ‘the world’s first football club’. It simply isn’t true. They might be the oldest surviving club, but the first? No way.
For a definition of what constitutes a sports club, this is what Hope himself had to say in a letter:
The football club resumed in October; the fun first-rate. I played for three hours on Saturday. Had business not kept me from the field this winter, I would have been in splendid wind. As it was. I am pretty swift, and am still a good hand at rolling down my opponents. Mr Esplin is very keen, and the life of the club. He brings out the men. He plays first rate. He gives a splendid ground kick - so sure. We mutually respect each other, but we are daily approaching to a keener contest. He has had more practice that I, and carries six years less than I do. He is short, and there is no upsetting him; but I hope to roll him next Saturday. The club gave occasion to some very spirited caricatures by my brother Jamie, I being, of course, the principal butt. We got new caps, very neat, improved by Esplin, like jockey caps.’
There, in one quote from the 1830s, are embodied all the essentials of a sporting club: the playing, the physical contact, the organisation, the team uniform, the rivalry, the respect for fellow members, the hope that it will all be better next week, the futile attempts to regain lost youth, the regret for not training enough and the laughter and camaraderie of a group of healthy and energetic young men united for one specific athletic purpose.
The membership list of the Foot-Ball Club for 1831-32, with players' names, addresses and subscriptions. (National Records of Scotland)
Hope’s meticulous records of the club were preserved among his personal papers. The membership lists are the crown jewels, detailing the lawyers, doctors, students and soldiers who played football between 1824 and 1841. Our new research sheds light on these men: how they interlinked through sport and work, where they lived, where they were educated, and what their position was in society.
There are some startling links between the members of the Foot-Ball Club and the next generation of footballers. Here are two prominent examples:
James Kirkpatrick, an FA Cup winner with Wanderers in 1877 and captain of Scotland in the first unofficial football international of 1870, was son of Charles Sharpe Kirkpatrick, a member of the Foot-Ball Club in 1831.
Francis Moncreiff, captain of Scotland in the first international rugby match against England in 1871, was son of James Moncreiff, who was a member of the Foot-Ball Club in 1832.
There are a number of other football connections, from father to son.
The members also included future Members of Parliament, a Lord Advocate and two Presidents of the Royal College of Surgeons.
Thanks to this analysis, we can now demonstrate that this was not just a quirky, historically-isolated football club for gentlemen in one particular city, but one which spawned a close-knit web of interests and relationships which had a significant influence on the early and long term development of the game of football, and on Scottish society in general.
So, who was John Hope? Born in 1807, he was a lawyer, he was extremely wealthy, never married, and devoted his fortune and his energy to causes he believed in.
Some of his beliefs will be judged today’s moral standards as unpleasant, bigoted and misguided. His views on religion and alcohol, for example, would make you wince, but reflected the views of many others in the 19th century.
Hope was principally a social reformer who spoke up for the poor and the downtrodden, for example leading a campaign to introduce the Saturday half-holiday in Edinburgh, and providing country excursions for thousands of slum kids. In particular, he believed in the benefits of sport and exercise, and could loosely be described as an advocate of muscular Christianity. That included football.
A highlight of his football club papers are the rules he wrote in 1833 which, although simple, indicate a kicking game between sides, with a defined playing surface and goals. They predate the Cambridge Rules of 1848 which are generally seen as the earliest attempt at codification, but contain many of the same principles.
The club correspondence is extensive. A letter in 1825 from a member who had gone to London describes how much he missed the action. Another from a member who had gone to Cambridge University, effectively said that he didn’t see much prospect of football catching on there. And one from 1841 is the final item in the club’s history, a letter from a John Campbell asking if he could join. He seems to have been too late, as there is no recorded response. Around that time the Foot-Ball Club was wound up.
After that, it is clear that young men did continue to play football in Edinburgh, but exactly how, and where, is hard to determine.
There are some startling links between the members of the Foot-Ball Club and the next generation of footballers. Here are two prominent examples:
James Kirkpatrick, an FA Cup winner with Wanderers in 1877 and captain of Scotland in the first unofficial football international of 1870, was son of Charles Sharpe Kirkpatrick, a member of the Foot-Ball Club in 1831.
Francis Moncreiff, captain of Scotland in the first international rugby match against England in 1871, was son of James Moncreiff, who was a member of the Foot-Ball Club in 1832.
There are a number of other football connections, from father to son.
The members also included future Members of Parliament, a Lord Advocate and two Presidents of the Royal College of Surgeons.
Thanks to this analysis, we can now demonstrate that this was not just a quirky, historically-isolated football club for gentlemen in one particular city, but one which spawned a close-knit web of interests and relationships which had a significant influence on the early and long term development of the game of football, and on Scottish society in general.
So, who was John Hope? Born in 1807, he was a lawyer, he was extremely wealthy, never married, and devoted his fortune and his energy to causes he believed in.
Some of his beliefs will be judged today’s moral standards as unpleasant, bigoted and misguided. His views on religion and alcohol, for example, would make you wince, but reflected the views of many others in the 19th century.
Hope was principally a social reformer who spoke up for the poor and the downtrodden, for example leading a campaign to introduce the Saturday half-holiday in Edinburgh, and providing country excursions for thousands of slum kids. In particular, he believed in the benefits of sport and exercise, and could loosely be described as an advocate of muscular Christianity. That included football.
A highlight of his football club papers are the rules he wrote in 1833 which, although simple, indicate a kicking game between sides, with a defined playing surface and goals. They predate the Cambridge Rules of 1848 which are generally seen as the earliest attempt at codification, but contain many of the same principles.
The club correspondence is extensive. A letter in 1825 from a member who had gone to London describes how much he missed the action. Another from a member who had gone to Cambridge University, effectively said that he didn’t see much prospect of football catching on there. And one from 1841 is the final item in the club’s history, a letter from a John Campbell asking if he could join. He seems to have been too late, as there is no recorded response. Around that time the Foot-Ball Club was wound up.
After that, it is clear that young men did continue to play football in Edinburgh, but exactly how, and where, is hard to determine.
The Edinburgh football medal of 1851
(Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders Regimental Museum, Stirling Castle)
The next event for which we have hard evidence dates from 1851, when the students of Edinburgh University challenged the 93rd Highlanders, garrisoned in Edinburgh Castle, to a match. The losers were to present the winners with a silver medal. Won by the soldiers, that medal is preserved in the Argyll and Sutherland Highlanders collection at Stirling Castle, and is of enormous sporting significance – the world’s oldest football prize.
The link to John Hope? The silversmith who designed the medal, James Mackay, had a son James who was schoolmate of John Hope and a member of the Foot-Ball Club – so he was no doubt able to advise on the correct manner of play for the image.
John Hope wasn’t done yet. In 1854 he opened a playground in Stockbridge, where he encouraged boys as well as girls to play football. He laid down the rules of play – which bear similarities not just to his 1833 rules, but also to the future codes for association football. There was no hacking, no handling, and goals were scored between the posts.
Then, when association football finally came to Edinburgh in the 1870s, John Hope founded one of the city’s first clubs for the soldiers in his volunteer regiment, the 3rd ERV. He actually kicked off their first match, and was presented with the trophy when they won their first cup.
When Hope died in 1893, he left most of his fortune to the Hope Trust, which preserved his papers, over 200 boxes of them, in our national archives, now called the National Records of Scotland. The football records were discovered by the historian Dr Neil Tranter, of Stirling University, who first wrote about the club in the 1990s, and we are now researching it in greater detail, a far reaching project which will culminate in a full scale book later this year.
Meanwhile, we have recently published an article in the academic journal Soccer & Society. It is a subscriber publication which can be accessed at this link, but for those who do not have a subscription please get in touch via the contact form on the home page.
A report on our findings has also been published in Scotland on Sunday, and can be read via this link.
The link to John Hope? The silversmith who designed the medal, James Mackay, had a son James who was schoolmate of John Hope and a member of the Foot-Ball Club – so he was no doubt able to advise on the correct manner of play for the image.
John Hope wasn’t done yet. In 1854 he opened a playground in Stockbridge, where he encouraged boys as well as girls to play football. He laid down the rules of play – which bear similarities not just to his 1833 rules, but also to the future codes for association football. There was no hacking, no handling, and goals were scored between the posts.
Then, when association football finally came to Edinburgh in the 1870s, John Hope founded one of the city’s first clubs for the soldiers in his volunteer regiment, the 3rd ERV. He actually kicked off their first match, and was presented with the trophy when they won their first cup.
When Hope died in 1893, he left most of his fortune to the Hope Trust, which preserved his papers, over 200 boxes of them, in our national archives, now called the National Records of Scotland. The football records were discovered by the historian Dr Neil Tranter, of Stirling University, who first wrote about the club in the 1990s, and we are now researching it in greater detail, a far reaching project which will culminate in a full scale book later this year.
Meanwhile, we have recently published an article in the academic journal Soccer & Society. It is a subscriber publication which can be accessed at this link, but for those who do not have a subscription please get in touch via the contact form on the home page.
A report on our findings has also been published in Scotland on Sunday, and can be read via this link.
- Published on
One of the cornerstones of football was born in 1891, out of frustration at cynical fouls which prevented a goal.
The penalty kick was launched at a meeting of the International FA Board, held in the Alexandra Hotel in Glasgow on 2 June 1891.
The four British associations agreed that: If a player intentionally trip or hold an opposing player, or deliberately handle the ball within twelve yards from his own goal line, the referee shall, on appeal, award the opposing side a penalty kick, taken from any point twelve yards from the goal line under the following conditions—all players, with the exception of the player taking the penalty kick and the opposing goalkeeper, who shall not advance more than six yards from the goal line, shall stand at least six yards behind ball; the ball shall be in play when the kick taken; a goal may be scored from the penalty kick.
It was one of the most momentous changes to the Laws of the Game, and while the new law was intended for the following season it did not take long to make an impact. The first award of a penalty took place just four days later, on 6 June 1891, at Mavisbank Park in Airdrie.
Scottish Sport reported how Larkhall side Royal Albert defeated Airdrieonians 2-0 to lift the Airdrie Charity Cup, and how one of their players made history. Around 2000 fans ‘witnessed what is in all likelihood the first case of a referee granting a foul under the new law for tripping, holding, or handling the ball within twelve yards of goal. Mr Robertson was referee and decreed against one of the Airdrie backs soon after the start.’
Few people, least of all the players, knew what to expect: ‘That the new law was a puzzle to the players was evident, all appeared think they could stand in front of the ball as of old, but imagine the astonishment of both players and spectators when Connor alone was left between the sticks, while his ten companions had to go six yards behind the ball along with the Royalists. In simple, the new law means that but two men settle such infringement, the kicker and opposing goalkeeper, and a goal is a moral certainty with half good management.’
The writer was prescient enough to see trouble ahead: ‘The new penalty is most stringent, and referees will require to satisfy themselves that the law has been wilfully broken before bringing such penalty into force or we may hear of some ‘scenes’ during the incoming season when cup ties are in full swing, and partisanship red hot.’
The main protagonists in this little scene can all be identified. The referee was James Robertson of 5th KRV, who lived in Partick and represented the Southern Counties on the Scottish FA committee. The goalkeeper was the veteran James Connor, who had a Scotland cap to his name.
And most importantly, the scorer was James McLuggage.
Born in Ireland around 1865, James and his family moved to Scotland when he was a small boy and at some stage dropped a letter from their original name of McCluggage. A cotton dyer to trade, he started his football career with Cowlairs, and was good enough to be selected for Glasgow against Sheffield in 1886. When he moved to Larkhall he turned out for Royal Albert and the Motherwell Times in 1888 described how ‘a howl of joy and triumph arose from the Larkhall supporters’ when he took the field.
McLuggage also recorded occasional appearances for Third Lanark and Rangers before turning professional with Accrington in 1889. However, although he played in eight Football League matches it was not a success; by the end of the year he had joined Hyde and he was back in Scotland with Royal Albert in 1891, where he remained for at least four years.
His sole claim to football fame is that momentous penalty, but for him it wasn't even the biggest event of the month: three weeks later he married Jean, sister of Royal Albert player William Faulds. James McLuggage died in Larkhall on 18 November 1949.
* * *
The penalty kick was properly introduced for the start of the 1891-92 season, and it did not take long for the first one to be awarded. It was seen by about 600 spectators in Carronshore, just north of Falkirk, when local side Gairdoch met East Stirlingshire on Wednesday 5 August 1891. Peter Rae of Gairdoch handled the ball and Harry Reid, newly joined from Falkirk, succeeded with the kick.
In common with many early reports of penalties, there was confusion about what to do. According to the Falkirk Herald: ‘It was a difficult matter getting some of the players to understand that they had to stand behind Reid. This is the first case of the law being enforced in this district, and on the whole general satisfaction was expressed with it.’
Three days later (8 August) there was a wave of penalties around Scotland. The Edinburgh Evening News reported ‘The penalty kick in front of goal was enforced in quite a number of cases, and as was only to be expected the application of the rule did not give general satisfaction, the clubs penalised seemingly fancying themselves aggrieved.’
These included the first penalty kicks in competitive league matches. Airdrieonians scored a penalty in the first day of the Scottish Alliance season in a 2-0 away win over Glasgow Thistle and Motherwell also scored with a penalty in their draw at Clydebank in the Scottish Federation. Neither of the scorers were reported.
Elsewhere, the first missed penalties took place. Gairdoch players had clearly learned little as they gave away another penalty for handball at Dunblane, but John Ramage’s kick ‘was a good hard swishing one, but had just a little too much screw, striking the foot of one of the goalposts and rebounding into play’.
Another to miss was Isaac Begbie of Hearts against Leith Athletic. According to the Evening News ‘the case was not specially favourable for the rule, as it would have been hard on the Athletic had it yielded the Hearts a goal, the back accidentally fisting the ball under circumstances which prevented any thought of it otherwise passing through.’ The Scotsman wrote ‘Begbie’s shot collided with the post and the goalkeeper conceded a corner.’ On the same day, Dumbarton also missed a penalty against 5th KRV in Dumfries.
The first penalty in the Scottish League was awarded on 22 August to Renton against Leith Athletic at Bank Park in Leith, a game which actually featured two penalties, one for each side. In the first half, according to the Scotsman ‘in a scrimmage near the goal mouth, G Anderson fouled the ball. As a result, the new rule was brought into requisition. J McCall, the Renton captain, took the kick and with a well-directed shot sent the ball well out of Burnside’s reach.’
This goal has been widely credited to Alex McColl, a Renton defender, but it is clearly attributed to the Scotland cap and team captain. And, when Renton had another penalty kick in their next match, against Vale of Leven on 29 August, this was also taken by James McCall, whose effort was saved by Vale goalkeeper Tom Wilson.
In the second half Leith Athletic had their turn but missed. ‘A foul similar to that in the first half was given against the visitors. M McQueen took the kick and though his shot was a good one, Lindsay very adroitly knocked the ball over the bar.’
* * *
Elsewhere in the British Isles, the season started later but penalties were soon being awarded. In Ireland the first was scored on 29 August by an American, James Dalton of Pawtucket, a member of the touring Canadian-American team, against Linfield (some reports say it was Alex Jeffrey).
In England, where the league season began on 5 September, there were early penalties in Sunderland’s pre-season practice match on 25 August, and in Burnley’s practice match the following evening.
The first in a full club match appears to be on Tuesday 1 September. Aston Villa played a friendly against Small Heath at Perry Barr, and late in the second half were awarded a penalty which was taken by Gershom Cox. However, his kick was saved.
On Wednesday, Sunderland Albion faced Sheffield Wednesday and, after a deliberate foul by Tom Brandon of Wednesday in front of goal, Peter McCracken’s penalty proved the winner for Albion. Wednesday remained in the north-east to play Stockton in the Football Alliance the following day and again gave away a penalty but the new rule ‘was not properly enforced’, and ‘nothing material resulted’.
The first competitive penalties were scored on Saturday 5 September. Stockton scored with a penalty against Sunderland Albion in the Northern League, as did Shankhouse Black Watch against Southwick in the Northern Alliance. There were also penalty goals for other sides, including Ardwick (ie Manchester City) against Gainsborough Trinity, and uncertainty about how the new rule should work; the Accrington Reserves goalkeeper reportedly jumped out of the way of the ball, under the impression that if nobody touched it then a goal could not be awarded.
The first penalty in a Football League match did not come until Monday 14 September. Billy Heath of Wolves scored with a penalty against Accrington early in the second half in a 5-0 win. In some sources, it is reported that Leicester Fosse also scored with a penalty against Notts County. And five days later, Harry Allen of Wolves became the first man to miss a league penalty, shooting over the bar against West Bromwich Albion.
The penalty kick was now established as an essential part of the game.
The penalty kick was launched at a meeting of the International FA Board, held in the Alexandra Hotel in Glasgow on 2 June 1891.
The four British associations agreed that: If a player intentionally trip or hold an opposing player, or deliberately handle the ball within twelve yards from his own goal line, the referee shall, on appeal, award the opposing side a penalty kick, taken from any point twelve yards from the goal line under the following conditions—all players, with the exception of the player taking the penalty kick and the opposing goalkeeper, who shall not advance more than six yards from the goal line, shall stand at least six yards behind ball; the ball shall be in play when the kick taken; a goal may be scored from the penalty kick.
It was one of the most momentous changes to the Laws of the Game, and while the new law was intended for the following season it did not take long to make an impact. The first award of a penalty took place just four days later, on 6 June 1891, at Mavisbank Park in Airdrie.
Scottish Sport reported how Larkhall side Royal Albert defeated Airdrieonians 2-0 to lift the Airdrie Charity Cup, and how one of their players made history. Around 2000 fans ‘witnessed what is in all likelihood the first case of a referee granting a foul under the new law for tripping, holding, or handling the ball within twelve yards of goal. Mr Robertson was referee and decreed against one of the Airdrie backs soon after the start.’
Few people, least of all the players, knew what to expect: ‘That the new law was a puzzle to the players was evident, all appeared think they could stand in front of the ball as of old, but imagine the astonishment of both players and spectators when Connor alone was left between the sticks, while his ten companions had to go six yards behind the ball along with the Royalists. In simple, the new law means that but two men settle such infringement, the kicker and opposing goalkeeper, and a goal is a moral certainty with half good management.’
The writer was prescient enough to see trouble ahead: ‘The new penalty is most stringent, and referees will require to satisfy themselves that the law has been wilfully broken before bringing such penalty into force or we may hear of some ‘scenes’ during the incoming season when cup ties are in full swing, and partisanship red hot.’
The main protagonists in this little scene can all be identified. The referee was James Robertson of 5th KRV, who lived in Partick and represented the Southern Counties on the Scottish FA committee. The goalkeeper was the veteran James Connor, who had a Scotland cap to his name.
And most importantly, the scorer was James McLuggage.
Born in Ireland around 1865, James and his family moved to Scotland when he was a small boy and at some stage dropped a letter from their original name of McCluggage. A cotton dyer to trade, he started his football career with Cowlairs, and was good enough to be selected for Glasgow against Sheffield in 1886. When he moved to Larkhall he turned out for Royal Albert and the Motherwell Times in 1888 described how ‘a howl of joy and triumph arose from the Larkhall supporters’ when he took the field.
McLuggage also recorded occasional appearances for Third Lanark and Rangers before turning professional with Accrington in 1889. However, although he played in eight Football League matches it was not a success; by the end of the year he had joined Hyde and he was back in Scotland with Royal Albert in 1891, where he remained for at least four years.
His sole claim to football fame is that momentous penalty, but for him it wasn't even the biggest event of the month: three weeks later he married Jean, sister of Royal Albert player William Faulds. James McLuggage died in Larkhall on 18 November 1949.
* * *
The penalty kick was properly introduced for the start of the 1891-92 season, and it did not take long for the first one to be awarded. It was seen by about 600 spectators in Carronshore, just north of Falkirk, when local side Gairdoch met East Stirlingshire on Wednesday 5 August 1891. Peter Rae of Gairdoch handled the ball and Harry Reid, newly joined from Falkirk, succeeded with the kick.
In common with many early reports of penalties, there was confusion about what to do. According to the Falkirk Herald: ‘It was a difficult matter getting some of the players to understand that they had to stand behind Reid. This is the first case of the law being enforced in this district, and on the whole general satisfaction was expressed with it.’
Three days later (8 August) there was a wave of penalties around Scotland. The Edinburgh Evening News reported ‘The penalty kick in front of goal was enforced in quite a number of cases, and as was only to be expected the application of the rule did not give general satisfaction, the clubs penalised seemingly fancying themselves aggrieved.’
These included the first penalty kicks in competitive league matches. Airdrieonians scored a penalty in the first day of the Scottish Alliance season in a 2-0 away win over Glasgow Thistle and Motherwell also scored with a penalty in their draw at Clydebank in the Scottish Federation. Neither of the scorers were reported.
Elsewhere, the first missed penalties took place. Gairdoch players had clearly learned little as they gave away another penalty for handball at Dunblane, but John Ramage’s kick ‘was a good hard swishing one, but had just a little too much screw, striking the foot of one of the goalposts and rebounding into play’.
Another to miss was Isaac Begbie of Hearts against Leith Athletic. According to the Evening News ‘the case was not specially favourable for the rule, as it would have been hard on the Athletic had it yielded the Hearts a goal, the back accidentally fisting the ball under circumstances which prevented any thought of it otherwise passing through.’ The Scotsman wrote ‘Begbie’s shot collided with the post and the goalkeeper conceded a corner.’ On the same day, Dumbarton also missed a penalty against 5th KRV in Dumfries.
The first penalty in the Scottish League was awarded on 22 August to Renton against Leith Athletic at Bank Park in Leith, a game which actually featured two penalties, one for each side. In the first half, according to the Scotsman ‘in a scrimmage near the goal mouth, G Anderson fouled the ball. As a result, the new rule was brought into requisition. J McCall, the Renton captain, took the kick and with a well-directed shot sent the ball well out of Burnside’s reach.’
This goal has been widely credited to Alex McColl, a Renton defender, but it is clearly attributed to the Scotland cap and team captain. And, when Renton had another penalty kick in their next match, against Vale of Leven on 29 August, this was also taken by James McCall, whose effort was saved by Vale goalkeeper Tom Wilson.
In the second half Leith Athletic had their turn but missed. ‘A foul similar to that in the first half was given against the visitors. M McQueen took the kick and though his shot was a good one, Lindsay very adroitly knocked the ball over the bar.’
* * *
Elsewhere in the British Isles, the season started later but penalties were soon being awarded. In Ireland the first was scored on 29 August by an American, James Dalton of Pawtucket, a member of the touring Canadian-American team, against Linfield (some reports say it was Alex Jeffrey).
In England, where the league season began on 5 September, there were early penalties in Sunderland’s pre-season practice match on 25 August, and in Burnley’s practice match the following evening.
The first in a full club match appears to be on Tuesday 1 September. Aston Villa played a friendly against Small Heath at Perry Barr, and late in the second half were awarded a penalty which was taken by Gershom Cox. However, his kick was saved.
On Wednesday, Sunderland Albion faced Sheffield Wednesday and, after a deliberate foul by Tom Brandon of Wednesday in front of goal, Peter McCracken’s penalty proved the winner for Albion. Wednesday remained in the north-east to play Stockton in the Football Alliance the following day and again gave away a penalty but the new rule ‘was not properly enforced’, and ‘nothing material resulted’.
The first competitive penalties were scored on Saturday 5 September. Stockton scored with a penalty against Sunderland Albion in the Northern League, as did Shankhouse Black Watch against Southwick in the Northern Alliance. There were also penalty goals for other sides, including Ardwick (ie Manchester City) against Gainsborough Trinity, and uncertainty about how the new rule should work; the Accrington Reserves goalkeeper reportedly jumped out of the way of the ball, under the impression that if nobody touched it then a goal could not be awarded.
The first penalty in a Football League match did not come until Monday 14 September. Billy Heath of Wolves scored with a penalty against Accrington early in the second half in a 5-0 win. In some sources, it is reported that Leicester Fosse also scored with a penalty against Notts County. And five days later, Harry Allen of Wolves became the first man to miss a league penalty, shooting over the bar against West Bromwich Albion.
The penalty kick was now established as an essential part of the game.
- Published on
In the course of six momentous meetings in the autumn of 1863, the way association football should be played was determined by some of the leading players of the day. By the time the Laws of the Game were finally agreed by the Football Association on 8 December 1863, a total of 43 players had contributed to the debate. [Click here for a meeting-by-meeting record]
The identities of all 43 founders of football are published here for the first time, after intensive research, and can now be given the recognition they deserve for creating the world’s greatest sport.
A few are well known, but most are obscure individuals who did little in the game apart from their willingness to take part in this debate. Three were chosen as office bearers at the first meeting: A Pember (President), EC Morley (Hon Secretary), FM Campbell (Hon Treasurer). Four additional committee members were added at the sixth meeting: GT Wawn, J Turner, HT Steward and JF Alcock.
There are fascinating stories, triumphs and tragedies which can only be touched on here but provide plenty of material for further research. As revealed in my previous blogs, the influences on football ranged from Scotland to Australia, and while the players were solidly middle class they represented a wide variety of professions and backgrounds.
A few question marks remain – some of which may never be resolved – and I would welcome any additional information. However, I am reasonably confident in my conclusions: for example, Blackheath had a player reported as H Poynder in meeting 6, but the only player of that surname at the club was Alfred Poynder.
Forest School sent two representatives to meeting 5, listed as J Morgan and J Bouch, but both had left the school by then and the former’s full name was David John Morgan; but he did go on to play for Wanderers so was a player of some consequence. As an aside, Forest School make the claim that a player called H Tubb sat on the first FA committee, but in fact Henry Tubb was captain of football in 1867/68, and thereafter went to Rugby School.
Most intriguingly, Wimbledon School’s representative at meetings 4, 5 and 6 was reported as AE Daltry in the press and in the handwritten minutes. With no corresponding name at the school, I suspect this is a mis-reading of AE Duthy; however there was a Dealtry at Wimbledon, but with initials HTC (Hugh Thornton Cunninghame).
By the sixth meeting, 12 clubs and seven schools had paid their guinea membership fee to join the FA. Eight clubs were from the London area: Barnes, NN Kilburn, Forest, Crystal Palace, War Office, Surbiton, Crusaders and Blackheath, and they were joined by four others who had heard about the meetings through the press: Lincoln, Aldershot, Royal Engineers (Chatham), and Sheffield FC. The schools were Blackheath Proprietary School, Perceval House, Forest School (Walthamstow), Wimbledon School, Kensington School, Royal Naval School (New Cross) and Uppingham.
These, then, are the founders of association football.
No Names, Kilburn
Arthur Pember
Born Lambeth, Surrey, 15 January 1835; died LaMoure, North Dakota, USA, 3 April 1886.
The son of a stockbroker, the captain of NN Kilburn was first president of the FA. He emigrated to the USA in the mid-1860s and pursued a career as an investigative journalist before his early death.
George Lawson
Born Pitminster, Somerset, 30 January 1838; died London 9 March 1898.
Educated at Elizabeth College (Guernsey) and Marlborough College (1854-55). Played for NNs, Crusaders and Civil Service in the early 1860s. He joined the Civil Service in 1856 as a Clerk in War Department, rising to become Assistant Under Secretary of State for War in 1895, and was knighted to become Sir George Lawson KCB in 1897.
Barnes
Ebenezer Cobb Morley
Born Hull, 16 August 1831; died Richmond, Surrey, 20 November 1924.
A driving force behind the founding meetings of the FA, Morley was FA secretary for three years, then president until 1874. Brought up in Hull, he moved to Barnes as a young man and lived there for the rest of his life. A solicitor, he was keen rower and helped found the Barnes and Mortlake Regatta as well as Barnes FC.
Thomas Dyson Gregory
Born Wakefield, Yorkshire, 19 July 1835; died Camberwell, 13 February 1904.
A corn merchant in partnership with his brothers Frederick and George. A founder of Barnes FC in 1862, he was also on the committee of London Rowing Club (along with EC Morley and RW Willis) and treasurer of the Barnes and Mortlake regatta.
Blackheath
Francis Maule Campbell
Born Blackheath, Kent, 1843 (christened 1 September 1843); died Reigate, 30 December 1920.
Elected treasurer of the FA at its first meeting, he took the rugby-playing schools out of membership after the sixth meeting and had no further involvement. Was also a founder of the Rugby Football Union in 1871. Initially entering the wine trade like his father, he became a merchant of continental produce. Married twice, first in 1902 aged 58, and the second time just three months before his death.
Frederick Henry Moore
Born Guildford, Western Australia 1839; died Hobart, Tasmania, 2 April 1934.
One of the founders of the Blackheath club, he came to London as a 14-year-old to go to school at Blackheath, then worked as a wine merchant in the city with Dalgety and Co, his uncle’s company. In 1864 returned to the southern hemisphere where he was an insurance agent and company director in New Zealand, Tasmania and Sydney.
John Whitaker Cooper
Born London, 12 February 1842; died Earls Court, London, 13 August 1902.
A banker with Brown, Janson & Co, which later merged with Lloyds Bank. Had ten children, nine of them girls.
Lorne Augustus Campbell
Born Great Malvern, Worcs, 2 July 1842; died Lausanne, Switzerland, 14 June 1893.
Educated at Rugby (1855-61), and Trinity College Cambridge. Joined the Indian Civil Service in 1863 and ten years later was appointed Under Secretary to the Government Revenue Department. His uncle, the Duke of Argyll, was Secretary of State for India.
Alfred Poynder
Born Barming Heath, Maidstone 5 December 1839; died Blackheath, 27 September 1906.
Private schools then Caius College, Cambridge, 1858-62. Graduated BA, qualified as a solicitor in 1866 and practised in London. Son of George Poynder, surgeon.
War Office
George Twizell Wawn
Born West Boldon, Co Durham, Apr-Jun 1840; died Newquay, Devon, 17 April 1914.
Won a scholarship to Durham University and on graduating in 1859 with an MA he moved to London to work for the War Office as a Clerk. He had rowed for his university and joined London Rowing Club, as well as playing football for several teams. He joined the African commissariat in 1873, with postings to Sierra Leone and Ghana, retiring in 1889 with the honorary rank of Major.
Charles Frederick Hawker
Born Abbeville, France, 3 July 1821; died Easthampstead, Berkshire, 3 April 1902.
The oldest man to attend any of the founding meetings, he had been at Charterhouse 1833-1838, where he played in the cricket XI. He joined the Civil Service in 1838, initially in the Ordnance Department and latterly in the War Office, retiring in 1865. He was a Major in the War Office Company of the 2nd Middlesex Rifle Volunteers. In 1860 he inspired a colleague, Guy Pym, to form the Civil Service Athletic Association by promoting a sports meeting for War Office staff. The son of Lt.-Gen. Sir Samuel Hawker, an aide to King George III.
George Mariette
Born Paris, France, 20 May 1837; died Budleigh Salterton, Devon, 25 April 1925.
Originally George Mariette de Villeblin, son of a French father and English mother. When his father died in 1838 the family moved to England, and he became a naturalised British Subject in 1850. Went to Eton 1844-50, and worked as a Clerk in the War Office until retiring in 1881. Described as ‘oarsman, fisherman, boxer and a very good amateur actor’; the Mariette family papers are held at the University of Exeter.
Horace William Gray
Born Brompton, Middlesex, March 1843; died South Kensington, 19 February 1923.
Bradfield College 1853-59 (cricket XI for five years). Joined the War Office in 1862 as a Clerk, stayed until 1880. Also served in 2nd Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps, retiring in 1902 as honorary colonel.
Crusaders
Herbert Thomas Steward
Born Westminster, 9 November 1838; died Henley, 9 September 1915.
Educated at Westminster School, he was an architect and surveyor. His primary passion was rowing and he was president of Leander Rowing Club, and wrote the history of Henley Regatta.
Forest FC (Leytonstone)
John Forster Alcock
Born Bishop Wearmouth, Durham (christened 14 April 1841); died Berkhamsted, Herts, 31 March 1910.
After the family moved from Durham to London in the 1850s, he had three years at Harrow, and continued to play football as a pioneering member of Forest FC. He followed his father’s profession as a ship owner and broker. Older brother of Charles Alcock.
Alfred Westwood Mackenzie
Born Leytonstone, 24 May 1840; died Acton, Middlesex, 6 April 1924.
Insurance Manager with Guardian Assurance, with his brother Sir Morell Mackenzie he was one of the founders of the Throat Hospital in London. Attended the FA’s jubilee dinner in 1913 and presented with a silver casket.
Cowper Donne Jackson
Born Blackheath, Kent, 1839; died Camberwell, Surrey, Oct-Dec 1900.
A Mechanical Engineer, known from his initials as ‘Seedy’, he was a Member of the Honorable Artillery Company of London. Married in the British Embassy in Paris, 1868.
Crystal Palace
Francis Day
Born Westerham, Kent, Feb/March 1838; died London, 12 March 1886.
Owner of the Black Eagle Brewery in Bermondsey, succeeding his father as a partner in the company of Day Noakes & Co, together with another Crystal Palace player, Wickham Noakes. Frank Day was also a fast bowler for West Kent. Left £58,000 in his will.
James Turner
Born Croydon, Surrey, 6 December 1839; died Eastbourne, 27 July 1922.
A Crystal Palace player throughout the 1860s right up to the first FA Cup tournament, he was FA treasurer 1864-68. Educated at Streatham Academy, he was a wine merchant and was son of the first President of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
Henry Lloyd
Born Camberwell, Surrey, 24 July 1841; died at sea, 30 January 1869.
From a family of Crystal Palace players, brother of Theodore, his sister Rachel married James Turner. He was a shipping insurance agent in his short life.
Theodore Lloyd
Born Bewdley, Worcestershire, 7 September 1834; died Croydon, Surrey, 15 June 1904.
Elder brother of Henry, he was referee of the England v Scotland match in 1873. A stockbroker.
Frederick Urwick
Born Clapham, Surrey, 14 July 1842; died Hampstead, London, 30 November 1915.
A wine merchant in London, he also composed a patriotic song, the Union Jack.
John Louis Siordet
Born Clapham, Surrey, 10 May 1839; died Bradford upon Avon, Wiltshire, 24 April 1882.
From a Swiss family which had settled in England, he was an indigo merchant.
Lawrence Vivian Desborough
Born Beckenham, Kent, 4 December 1844; died Port Said, Egypt, 11 October 1892.
An accountant, for a time he ran an agency in Southbridge, New Zealand, then was manager of the Equitable Life Assurance Co office in Bombay. He died in Egypt, en route for England.
Surbiton
Theodore Bell
Born Uppingham, Rutland, 30 July 1840; died Epsom, Surrey, 7 November 1923.
Educated at Uppingham, where he was captain of football 1857-58. Although he represented the short-lived Surbiton club at the first meeting of the FA and signed them up for membership, he was better known as a rower and was for many years the secretary of Kingston Rowing Club. A solicitor, he established a legal practice in Epsom and London. He was Clerk to Justices in Epsom, and also to the Commissioners of Taxes.
Charterhouse
Bertram Fulke Hartshorne
Born Cogenhoe, Northants, 26 October 1844; died Water Eaton, Oxfordshire, 31 December 1921.
The only public school representative at the first meeting (which was on his 19th birthday). After leaving Charterhouse, he took his degree at Pembroke College, Oxford, qualified as a barrister, joined the Indian Civil Service in Ceylon, then returned to England as a District Auditor for the Local Government Board.
Perceval House School
George William Shillingford
Born Purneah, Bengal , 4 October 1844; died Kolassy, Bengal, 27 July 1896.
Born on the family estate in Bengal which grew indigo plants, he was sent to Perceval House, a private school in Blackheath run by Edinburgh-born William Kieser MA (1819-1911). Returning home after his education, he and his brothers were responsible for hunting Bengal tigers almost to extinction. Purneah is now called Purnia in the northern Indian state of Bihar.
Arthur Christian Tawke
Born Norfolk 6 April 1847; died Claremont, South Africa, 4 July 1927.
A career soldier, he went to Royal Military College and served in the 32nd Regiment, the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry, retiring as Lieutenant Colonel. Lived in South Africa until his death.
Alexander Rose Stenning
Born Godstone, Surrey, 9 February 1846; died Kensington, 22 April 1928.
Educated at Chatham House, Ramsgate, and at Blackheath. An architect, he was President of the Surveyors Institution 1909-10, magistrate for Sussex and was knighted.
Walter Russell Langton Brackenbury
Born Madras, India, 1845; died Dorking, Surrey, 18 March 1880.
The only son of Walter Charles Brackenbury (who had been court martialled in Madras in 1851, and went to New Zealand). A soldier with the 20th Regiment of Foot from 1864-69, then a land surveyor and valuer.
Kensington School
William John Mackintosh
Born Calcutta, 14 July 1845; died Honiton, Devon, 16 November 1923.
Born in Bengal where his Scottish father Alexander was a merchant, he was educated at Elgin Academy, Edinburgh Academy (1856-59), Kensington School and a military ‘crammer’ in Kensington Square which got him into the Royal Military Academy. A career soldier, he won a commission with the Royal Artillery in 1867, but there is no evidence he ever saw action in 20 years’ service before he retired with the honorary rank of Lt Colonel. He lived out his days in Devon, where he served as a JP.
Lewis McIver
Born Eddrachillis, Sutherland, 6 March 1846; died London, 9 August 1920.
Born in remote north-west Scotland where his father was factor to the Duke of Sutherland. After Kensington School he went to Bonn University, joined the Indian Civil Service, and was called to the bar in 1878. First elected to parliament in 1885 as Liberal member for Torquay, he lost his seat after a year but was elected for Edinburgh West 1895-1909. Created a baronet in 1896, he was caricatured in Vanity Fair as the ‘member for Scotland’.
Jasper Alexander Redgrave
Born Kensington, London 23 November 1845; died Birmingham, 21 November 1909.
Inspector of Factories for the Midlands, and author of works on industrial safety.
Eyre Burton Powell
Born Madras, India, 1847; died Penzance, Cornwall, 3 August 1923.
From an Irish family, after school he went to Dublin University, where he got his BA. He qualified as a barrister in Ireland in 1870.
Blackheath Proprietary School
William Henry Gordon
Born Edinburgh, 30 March 1845; died Toronto, Ontario, 1 January 1929.
Educated at Edinburgh Academy (1854-59), Cheltenham College (1859-60), Blackheath Proprietary School (1860-64), then Trinity College, Cambridg, graduating with a BA in 1868. After he qualified as a barrister in 1870, he changed his surname to Lockhart Gordon and emigrated to Canada where he was a lawyer and director of the Canadian Land and Emigration Company.
Thomas Percy Fox
Born Balham, Surrey, 23 May 1846; died Chislehurst, Kent, 20 October 1918.
Educated at Elizabeth College (Guernsey) then Blackheath Proprietary School (1861-63). Entered the East India trade and worked in Calcutta until 1880, when he returned to London as a wine merchant.
John Barwick Sams
Born Grafton Regis, Northamptonshire, 31 January 1847; died Denver, Colorado, 16 March 1895.
Son of a minister, he joined the Royal Navy in 1868 in the Paymasters Division, but in 1873 was dismissed from the service. Worked in Ireland as a steward for Walter Bourke, who was assassinated in 1882, then went to Denver, Colorado, where he worked as an investments adviser.
Royal Naval School (New Cross)
Ferdinand Brand
Born Leigh, Essex 28 March 1846; died Kew, Surrey, 19 April 1922.
Son of a Navy captain who fought at Trafalgar, he was educated at Royal Naval School, and joined the Civil Service in 1867 as a Clerk in the Admiralty. Edited the Navy List 1880-98, and was Admiralty Librarian 1898-1908.
William Pears Johnston
Born Cawnpore, India, 17 April 1847; died Darjeeling, India, 15 April 1889.
Son of Charles Cornwallis Johnston, a Major in the Royal Engineers, he joined the Indian Telegraph Department, part of the Civil Service. Published a number of telegraphic innovations before his early death.
Wimbledon School
Archibald Edward Duthy
Born Sudborough, Northamptonshire, 4 January 1846; died Sudborough, 10 November 1906.
Winchester College (1859-62), Wimbledon (1862-63) and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. Commissioned in the Royal Artillery, he had an eventful career that included the Afghan War of 1879 and the North West Frontier campaign of 1897-98, retiring as Colonel in 1898. Played cricket for various teams including I Zingari.
Fletcher Hayes Grant Cruickshank
Born Ootacamund, India, 10 December 1846; died Chelmsford, Essex, 20 January 1912.
A Captain in the Royal Horse Artillery, he retired through ill health in 1881 and became a stockbroker with the prestigious Cazenove firm.
Forest School
David John Morgan
Born Leytonstone, Essex, 25 April 1844; died Brentwood, Essex, 28 February 1917.
Educated at Forest School and at Vevey, Switzerland, he played football for Wanderers. Worked for his father as a Russian merchant in London, and as a company director. Served as Conservative MP for Walthamstow 1900-06.
John Bouch
Born Dulwich, 13 October 1844; died Hemsworth, Yorkshire, 9 April 1926.
A clothing wholesaler of Surbiton, he took over as head of the firm from his father until it went bankrupt in 1902. Strong family football connections: his sister Jane married FA Cup winner Morton Peto Betts, while brothers William and Alfred (also at Forest School) both played for Crystal Palace.
The identities of all 43 founders of football are published here for the first time, after intensive research, and can now be given the recognition they deserve for creating the world’s greatest sport.
A few are well known, but most are obscure individuals who did little in the game apart from their willingness to take part in this debate. Three were chosen as office bearers at the first meeting: A Pember (President), EC Morley (Hon Secretary), FM Campbell (Hon Treasurer). Four additional committee members were added at the sixth meeting: GT Wawn, J Turner, HT Steward and JF Alcock.
There are fascinating stories, triumphs and tragedies which can only be touched on here but provide plenty of material for further research. As revealed in my previous blogs, the influences on football ranged from Scotland to Australia, and while the players were solidly middle class they represented a wide variety of professions and backgrounds.
A few question marks remain – some of which may never be resolved – and I would welcome any additional information. However, I am reasonably confident in my conclusions: for example, Blackheath had a player reported as H Poynder in meeting 6, but the only player of that surname at the club was Alfred Poynder.
Forest School sent two representatives to meeting 5, listed as J Morgan and J Bouch, but both had left the school by then and the former’s full name was David John Morgan; but he did go on to play for Wanderers so was a player of some consequence. As an aside, Forest School make the claim that a player called H Tubb sat on the first FA committee, but in fact Henry Tubb was captain of football in 1867/68, and thereafter went to Rugby School.
Most intriguingly, Wimbledon School’s representative at meetings 4, 5 and 6 was reported as AE Daltry in the press and in the handwritten minutes. With no corresponding name at the school, I suspect this is a mis-reading of AE Duthy; however there was a Dealtry at Wimbledon, but with initials HTC (Hugh Thornton Cunninghame).
By the sixth meeting, 12 clubs and seven schools had paid their guinea membership fee to join the FA. Eight clubs were from the London area: Barnes, NN Kilburn, Forest, Crystal Palace, War Office, Surbiton, Crusaders and Blackheath, and they were joined by four others who had heard about the meetings through the press: Lincoln, Aldershot, Royal Engineers (Chatham), and Sheffield FC. The schools were Blackheath Proprietary School, Perceval House, Forest School (Walthamstow), Wimbledon School, Kensington School, Royal Naval School (New Cross) and Uppingham.
These, then, are the founders of association football.
No Names, Kilburn
Arthur Pember
Born Lambeth, Surrey, 15 January 1835; died LaMoure, North Dakota, USA, 3 April 1886.
The son of a stockbroker, the captain of NN Kilburn was first president of the FA. He emigrated to the USA in the mid-1860s and pursued a career as an investigative journalist before his early death.
George Lawson
Born Pitminster, Somerset, 30 January 1838; died London 9 March 1898.
Educated at Elizabeth College (Guernsey) and Marlborough College (1854-55). Played for NNs, Crusaders and Civil Service in the early 1860s. He joined the Civil Service in 1856 as a Clerk in War Department, rising to become Assistant Under Secretary of State for War in 1895, and was knighted to become Sir George Lawson KCB in 1897.
Barnes
Ebenezer Cobb Morley
Born Hull, 16 August 1831; died Richmond, Surrey, 20 November 1924.
A driving force behind the founding meetings of the FA, Morley was FA secretary for three years, then president until 1874. Brought up in Hull, he moved to Barnes as a young man and lived there for the rest of his life. A solicitor, he was keen rower and helped found the Barnes and Mortlake Regatta as well as Barnes FC.
Thomas Dyson Gregory
Born Wakefield, Yorkshire, 19 July 1835; died Camberwell, 13 February 1904.
A corn merchant in partnership with his brothers Frederick and George. A founder of Barnes FC in 1862, he was also on the committee of London Rowing Club (along with EC Morley and RW Willis) and treasurer of the Barnes and Mortlake regatta.
Blackheath
Francis Maule Campbell
Born Blackheath, Kent, 1843 (christened 1 September 1843); died Reigate, 30 December 1920.
Elected treasurer of the FA at its first meeting, he took the rugby-playing schools out of membership after the sixth meeting and had no further involvement. Was also a founder of the Rugby Football Union in 1871. Initially entering the wine trade like his father, he became a merchant of continental produce. Married twice, first in 1902 aged 58, and the second time just three months before his death.
Frederick Henry Moore
Born Guildford, Western Australia 1839; died Hobart, Tasmania, 2 April 1934.
One of the founders of the Blackheath club, he came to London as a 14-year-old to go to school at Blackheath, then worked as a wine merchant in the city with Dalgety and Co, his uncle’s company. In 1864 returned to the southern hemisphere where he was an insurance agent and company director in New Zealand, Tasmania and Sydney.
John Whitaker Cooper
Born London, 12 February 1842; died Earls Court, London, 13 August 1902.
A banker with Brown, Janson & Co, which later merged with Lloyds Bank. Had ten children, nine of them girls.
Lorne Augustus Campbell
Born Great Malvern, Worcs, 2 July 1842; died Lausanne, Switzerland, 14 June 1893.
Educated at Rugby (1855-61), and Trinity College Cambridge. Joined the Indian Civil Service in 1863 and ten years later was appointed Under Secretary to the Government Revenue Department. His uncle, the Duke of Argyll, was Secretary of State for India.
Alfred Poynder
Born Barming Heath, Maidstone 5 December 1839; died Blackheath, 27 September 1906.
Private schools then Caius College, Cambridge, 1858-62. Graduated BA, qualified as a solicitor in 1866 and practised in London. Son of George Poynder, surgeon.
War Office
George Twizell Wawn
Born West Boldon, Co Durham, Apr-Jun 1840; died Newquay, Devon, 17 April 1914.
Won a scholarship to Durham University and on graduating in 1859 with an MA he moved to London to work for the War Office as a Clerk. He had rowed for his university and joined London Rowing Club, as well as playing football for several teams. He joined the African commissariat in 1873, with postings to Sierra Leone and Ghana, retiring in 1889 with the honorary rank of Major.
Charles Frederick Hawker
Born Abbeville, France, 3 July 1821; died Easthampstead, Berkshire, 3 April 1902.
The oldest man to attend any of the founding meetings, he had been at Charterhouse 1833-1838, where he played in the cricket XI. He joined the Civil Service in 1838, initially in the Ordnance Department and latterly in the War Office, retiring in 1865. He was a Major in the War Office Company of the 2nd Middlesex Rifle Volunteers. In 1860 he inspired a colleague, Guy Pym, to form the Civil Service Athletic Association by promoting a sports meeting for War Office staff. The son of Lt.-Gen. Sir Samuel Hawker, an aide to King George III.
George Mariette
Born Paris, France, 20 May 1837; died Budleigh Salterton, Devon, 25 April 1925.
Originally George Mariette de Villeblin, son of a French father and English mother. When his father died in 1838 the family moved to England, and he became a naturalised British Subject in 1850. Went to Eton 1844-50, and worked as a Clerk in the War Office until retiring in 1881. Described as ‘oarsman, fisherman, boxer and a very good amateur actor’; the Mariette family papers are held at the University of Exeter.
Horace William Gray
Born Brompton, Middlesex, March 1843; died South Kensington, 19 February 1923.
Bradfield College 1853-59 (cricket XI for five years). Joined the War Office in 1862 as a Clerk, stayed until 1880. Also served in 2nd Middlesex Rifle Volunteer Corps, retiring in 1902 as honorary colonel.
Crusaders
Herbert Thomas Steward
Born Westminster, 9 November 1838; died Henley, 9 September 1915.
Educated at Westminster School, he was an architect and surveyor. His primary passion was rowing and he was president of Leander Rowing Club, and wrote the history of Henley Regatta.
Forest FC (Leytonstone)
John Forster Alcock
Born Bishop Wearmouth, Durham (christened 14 April 1841); died Berkhamsted, Herts, 31 March 1910.
After the family moved from Durham to London in the 1850s, he had three years at Harrow, and continued to play football as a pioneering member of Forest FC. He followed his father’s profession as a ship owner and broker. Older brother of Charles Alcock.
Alfred Westwood Mackenzie
Born Leytonstone, 24 May 1840; died Acton, Middlesex, 6 April 1924.
Insurance Manager with Guardian Assurance, with his brother Sir Morell Mackenzie he was one of the founders of the Throat Hospital in London. Attended the FA’s jubilee dinner in 1913 and presented with a silver casket.
Cowper Donne Jackson
Born Blackheath, Kent, 1839; died Camberwell, Surrey, Oct-Dec 1900.
A Mechanical Engineer, known from his initials as ‘Seedy’, he was a Member of the Honorable Artillery Company of London. Married in the British Embassy in Paris, 1868.
Crystal Palace
Francis Day
Born Westerham, Kent, Feb/March 1838; died London, 12 March 1886.
Owner of the Black Eagle Brewery in Bermondsey, succeeding his father as a partner in the company of Day Noakes & Co, together with another Crystal Palace player, Wickham Noakes. Frank Day was also a fast bowler for West Kent. Left £58,000 in his will.
James Turner
Born Croydon, Surrey, 6 December 1839; died Eastbourne, 27 July 1922.
A Crystal Palace player throughout the 1860s right up to the first FA Cup tournament, he was FA treasurer 1864-68. Educated at Streatham Academy, he was a wine merchant and was son of the first President of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons.
Henry Lloyd
Born Camberwell, Surrey, 24 July 1841; died at sea, 30 January 1869.
From a family of Crystal Palace players, brother of Theodore, his sister Rachel married James Turner. He was a shipping insurance agent in his short life.
Theodore Lloyd
Born Bewdley, Worcestershire, 7 September 1834; died Croydon, Surrey, 15 June 1904.
Elder brother of Henry, he was referee of the England v Scotland match in 1873. A stockbroker.
Frederick Urwick
Born Clapham, Surrey, 14 July 1842; died Hampstead, London, 30 November 1915.
A wine merchant in London, he also composed a patriotic song, the Union Jack.
John Louis Siordet
Born Clapham, Surrey, 10 May 1839; died Bradford upon Avon, Wiltshire, 24 April 1882.
From a Swiss family which had settled in England, he was an indigo merchant.
Lawrence Vivian Desborough
Born Beckenham, Kent, 4 December 1844; died Port Said, Egypt, 11 October 1892.
An accountant, for a time he ran an agency in Southbridge, New Zealand, then was manager of the Equitable Life Assurance Co office in Bombay. He died in Egypt, en route for England.
Surbiton
Theodore Bell
Born Uppingham, Rutland, 30 July 1840; died Epsom, Surrey, 7 November 1923.
Educated at Uppingham, where he was captain of football 1857-58. Although he represented the short-lived Surbiton club at the first meeting of the FA and signed them up for membership, he was better known as a rower and was for many years the secretary of Kingston Rowing Club. A solicitor, he established a legal practice in Epsom and London. He was Clerk to Justices in Epsom, and also to the Commissioners of Taxes.
Charterhouse
Bertram Fulke Hartshorne
Born Cogenhoe, Northants, 26 October 1844; died Water Eaton, Oxfordshire, 31 December 1921.
The only public school representative at the first meeting (which was on his 19th birthday). After leaving Charterhouse, he took his degree at Pembroke College, Oxford, qualified as a barrister, joined the Indian Civil Service in Ceylon, then returned to England as a District Auditor for the Local Government Board.
Perceval House School
George William Shillingford
Born Purneah, Bengal , 4 October 1844; died Kolassy, Bengal, 27 July 1896.
Born on the family estate in Bengal which grew indigo plants, he was sent to Perceval House, a private school in Blackheath run by Edinburgh-born William Kieser MA (1819-1911). Returning home after his education, he and his brothers were responsible for hunting Bengal tigers almost to extinction. Purneah is now called Purnia in the northern Indian state of Bihar.
Arthur Christian Tawke
Born Norfolk 6 April 1847; died Claremont, South Africa, 4 July 1927.
A career soldier, he went to Royal Military College and served in the 32nd Regiment, the Duke of Cornwall’s Light Infantry, retiring as Lieutenant Colonel. Lived in South Africa until his death.
Alexander Rose Stenning
Born Godstone, Surrey, 9 February 1846; died Kensington, 22 April 1928.
Educated at Chatham House, Ramsgate, and at Blackheath. An architect, he was President of the Surveyors Institution 1909-10, magistrate for Sussex and was knighted.
Walter Russell Langton Brackenbury
Born Madras, India, 1845; died Dorking, Surrey, 18 March 1880.
The only son of Walter Charles Brackenbury (who had been court martialled in Madras in 1851, and went to New Zealand). A soldier with the 20th Regiment of Foot from 1864-69, then a land surveyor and valuer.
Kensington School
William John Mackintosh
Born Calcutta, 14 July 1845; died Honiton, Devon, 16 November 1923.
Born in Bengal where his Scottish father Alexander was a merchant, he was educated at Elgin Academy, Edinburgh Academy (1856-59), Kensington School and a military ‘crammer’ in Kensington Square which got him into the Royal Military Academy. A career soldier, he won a commission with the Royal Artillery in 1867, but there is no evidence he ever saw action in 20 years’ service before he retired with the honorary rank of Lt Colonel. He lived out his days in Devon, where he served as a JP.
Lewis McIver
Born Eddrachillis, Sutherland, 6 March 1846; died London, 9 August 1920.
Born in remote north-west Scotland where his father was factor to the Duke of Sutherland. After Kensington School he went to Bonn University, joined the Indian Civil Service, and was called to the bar in 1878. First elected to parliament in 1885 as Liberal member for Torquay, he lost his seat after a year but was elected for Edinburgh West 1895-1909. Created a baronet in 1896, he was caricatured in Vanity Fair as the ‘member for Scotland’.
Jasper Alexander Redgrave
Born Kensington, London 23 November 1845; died Birmingham, 21 November 1909.
Inspector of Factories for the Midlands, and author of works on industrial safety.
Eyre Burton Powell
Born Madras, India, 1847; died Penzance, Cornwall, 3 August 1923.
From an Irish family, after school he went to Dublin University, where he got his BA. He qualified as a barrister in Ireland in 1870.
Blackheath Proprietary School
William Henry Gordon
Born Edinburgh, 30 March 1845; died Toronto, Ontario, 1 January 1929.
Educated at Edinburgh Academy (1854-59), Cheltenham College (1859-60), Blackheath Proprietary School (1860-64), then Trinity College, Cambridg, graduating with a BA in 1868. After he qualified as a barrister in 1870, he changed his surname to Lockhart Gordon and emigrated to Canada where he was a lawyer and director of the Canadian Land and Emigration Company.
Thomas Percy Fox
Born Balham, Surrey, 23 May 1846; died Chislehurst, Kent, 20 October 1918.
Educated at Elizabeth College (Guernsey) then Blackheath Proprietary School (1861-63). Entered the East India trade and worked in Calcutta until 1880, when he returned to London as a wine merchant.
John Barwick Sams
Born Grafton Regis, Northamptonshire, 31 January 1847; died Denver, Colorado, 16 March 1895.
Son of a minister, he joined the Royal Navy in 1868 in the Paymasters Division, but in 1873 was dismissed from the service. Worked in Ireland as a steward for Walter Bourke, who was assassinated in 1882, then went to Denver, Colorado, where he worked as an investments adviser.
Royal Naval School (New Cross)
Ferdinand Brand
Born Leigh, Essex 28 March 1846; died Kew, Surrey, 19 April 1922.
Son of a Navy captain who fought at Trafalgar, he was educated at Royal Naval School, and joined the Civil Service in 1867 as a Clerk in the Admiralty. Edited the Navy List 1880-98, and was Admiralty Librarian 1898-1908.
William Pears Johnston
Born Cawnpore, India, 17 April 1847; died Darjeeling, India, 15 April 1889.
Son of Charles Cornwallis Johnston, a Major in the Royal Engineers, he joined the Indian Telegraph Department, part of the Civil Service. Published a number of telegraphic innovations before his early death.
Wimbledon School
Archibald Edward Duthy
Born Sudborough, Northamptonshire, 4 January 1846; died Sudborough, 10 November 1906.
Winchester College (1859-62), Wimbledon (1862-63) and the Royal Military Academy, Woolwich. Commissioned in the Royal Artillery, he had an eventful career that included the Afghan War of 1879 and the North West Frontier campaign of 1897-98, retiring as Colonel in 1898. Played cricket for various teams including I Zingari.
Fletcher Hayes Grant Cruickshank
Born Ootacamund, India, 10 December 1846; died Chelmsford, Essex, 20 January 1912.
A Captain in the Royal Horse Artillery, he retired through ill health in 1881 and became a stockbroker with the prestigious Cazenove firm.
Forest School
David John Morgan
Born Leytonstone, Essex, 25 April 1844; died Brentwood, Essex, 28 February 1917.
Educated at Forest School and at Vevey, Switzerland, he played football for Wanderers. Worked for his father as a Russian merchant in London, and as a company director. Served as Conservative MP for Walthamstow 1900-06.
John Bouch
Born Dulwich, 13 October 1844; died Hemsworth, Yorkshire, 9 April 1926.
A clothing wholesaler of Surbiton, he took over as head of the firm from his father until it went bankrupt in 1902. Strong family football connections: his sister Jane married FA Cup winner Morton Peto Betts, while brothers William and Alfred (also at Forest School) both played for Crystal Palace.
- Published on
James Turner (1839-1922)
Continuing on my recent theme of the 150th anniversary of the creation of association football in 1863, I've now completed an identity parade of all 43 men who attended at least one of the six founding meetings of the FA.
One of the key discoveries was the identity of James Turner of Crystal Palace, who was elected onto the FA's first committee and is therefore considered to be one of the FA's "founding fathers". Unfortunately, the FA and their researchers from University of Central Lancashire failed to identify him despite several months of a high profile campaign - but I'm happy to oblige.
His story is published in his home town today, in the Croydon Advertiser, at this link. I also publish the full article below:
The FA’s first money man: James Turner of Crystal Palace
When the Football Association held its jubilee dinner in 1913, a big fuss was made over two surviving ‘originals’ from 1863, Ebenezer Morley and Alfred Mackenzie, who had a seat of honour on the top table and were presented with silver caskets.
There should have been another man alongside them. James Turner of Croydon had played a key role in founding the FA, but his contribution to the early days of football was overlooked in 1913. Now, a century on, the FA still could not track him down for their ‘founding fathers’ project, but this pioneer footballer can finally be given the recognition he deserves.
For four years Turner held the purse strings of our fledgling national game, having taken over the role of treasurer from a disgruntled rugby player. Yet when the inaugural meeting of the FA took place on 26 October 1863, Turner had other things on his mind as his eldest son had been born just two days earlier. However, he contributed to the next three crucial meetings as the rules were thrashed out and found himself elected to the FA’s first committee.
Three office bearers had been chosen to lead the FA, Arthur Pember as president, Ebenezer Morley as secretary, and Francis Campbell as treasurer. Once the rules were agreed after six mammoth sessions, Turner was appointed as one of four additional committee members, alongside JF Alcock, GT Wawn and HT Steward.
These men are now considered the Founding Fathers of the FA, but it was no easy birth. An irrevocable division between the kicking and handling codes caused the withdrawal of Blackheath, and that meant their rep Francis Campbell would soon stand down as treasurer. Campbell had so little involvement beyond those acrimonious early debates, that Turner can be considered as the first ‘proper’ treasurer of the FA.
Not that looking after the accounts was a particularly taxing role: there were no gate receipts or sponsors, just subscriptions from a small number of clubs. The FA held few meetings (none at all between October 1864 and February 1866), and its membership dwindled to just ten clubs. In 1868, new blood was recruited to the committee and Turner stepped down.
His club was Crystal Palace – no relation to the current Barclays Premier League side – who were formed out of the cricket club of the same name before football was codified, initially to give the cricketers some winter exercise. With a ground at Penge, their colours were black and scarlet striped shirts and socks, with dark blue serge knickerbockers. Drawing their membership from the merchants, accountants and stockbrokers of the suburban middle class in south-east London, Crystal Palace were hugely influential as founders of the FA, with representatives present at all six of the inaugural meetings. Later, the first two captains of England, Cuthbert Ottaway and Alexander Morten, would play for the club before it ran out of steam and folded in the mid-1870s.
Turner’s dedication to football went far beyond financial matters in an era when administrators were also players. He is first recorded playing for the side in March 1862 against the Forest Club, which featured Charles Alcock and his brother. He took part in a special match to demonstrate the new laws of the game in January 1864 at Battersea Park, playing for an FA President’s team which defeated the Secretary’s select 2-0, and further honours came his way in 1868 when he was selected for Surrey against Kent. Turner continues to appear in club line-ups throughout the 1860s, often as captain, and was still there when Palace met Hitchin in the first FA Cup competition in November 1871. He also sometimes opened the batting for the Crystal Palace cricket team.
He was born in Croydon on 6 December 1839, son of Thomas Turner, an eminent vet who was first president of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. Educated at the nearby Streatham Academy, he was so close to the Crystal Palace club that he married Rachel, sister of the Lloyd brothers (Robert, Theodore, Henry and Alfred) who were all regulars in the team. In fact, Henry and Theodore accompanied him to a couple of those FA meetings in the autumn of 1863.
James lived all his life in Croydon and built up a successful business in the wine trade. He and Rachel had eight children and ironically, having seen off the rugby faction at the FA, two of his sons, Howard and Errol, played rugby at county level for Surrey.
After his wife died in 1907 he retired to nearby Addiscombe, while the family home for over fifty years, Netherton in Wellesley Road, was bought by the Croydon Labour Party and renamed Ruskin House. It was demolished in the 1960s, along with much of Croydon town centre, to make way for office blocks.
James Turner was one of the last surviving founders of the FA, outlived only by Ebenezer Morley, and died aged 82 while visiting Eastbourne on 27 July 1922. He left over £9,000 in his will to his five surviving children.
Palace Originals
As well as James Turner, the original Crystal Palace FC was represented by a number of members at the FA’s six founding meetings in 1863, who were all prominent local businessmen.
Club secretary Francis Day (1838-1886) was owner of the Bermondsey Brewery, and there were the Lloyd brothers Henry (1841-1869), an insurance agent, and Theodore (1834-1904), a stockbroker who refereed the 1873 England v Scotland match.
The others were wine merchant Frederick Urwick (1842-1915), indigo merchant John Louis Siordet (1839-1882), and an accountant, Lawrence Vivian Desborough (1844-1892).
One of the key discoveries was the identity of James Turner of Crystal Palace, who was elected onto the FA's first committee and is therefore considered to be one of the FA's "founding fathers". Unfortunately, the FA and their researchers from University of Central Lancashire failed to identify him despite several months of a high profile campaign - but I'm happy to oblige.
His story is published in his home town today, in the Croydon Advertiser, at this link. I also publish the full article below:
The FA’s first money man: James Turner of Crystal Palace
When the Football Association held its jubilee dinner in 1913, a big fuss was made over two surviving ‘originals’ from 1863, Ebenezer Morley and Alfred Mackenzie, who had a seat of honour on the top table and were presented with silver caskets.
There should have been another man alongside them. James Turner of Croydon had played a key role in founding the FA, but his contribution to the early days of football was overlooked in 1913. Now, a century on, the FA still could not track him down for their ‘founding fathers’ project, but this pioneer footballer can finally be given the recognition he deserves.
For four years Turner held the purse strings of our fledgling national game, having taken over the role of treasurer from a disgruntled rugby player. Yet when the inaugural meeting of the FA took place on 26 October 1863, Turner had other things on his mind as his eldest son had been born just two days earlier. However, he contributed to the next three crucial meetings as the rules were thrashed out and found himself elected to the FA’s first committee.
Three office bearers had been chosen to lead the FA, Arthur Pember as president, Ebenezer Morley as secretary, and Francis Campbell as treasurer. Once the rules were agreed after six mammoth sessions, Turner was appointed as one of four additional committee members, alongside JF Alcock, GT Wawn and HT Steward.
These men are now considered the Founding Fathers of the FA, but it was no easy birth. An irrevocable division between the kicking and handling codes caused the withdrawal of Blackheath, and that meant their rep Francis Campbell would soon stand down as treasurer. Campbell had so little involvement beyond those acrimonious early debates, that Turner can be considered as the first ‘proper’ treasurer of the FA.
Not that looking after the accounts was a particularly taxing role: there were no gate receipts or sponsors, just subscriptions from a small number of clubs. The FA held few meetings (none at all between October 1864 and February 1866), and its membership dwindled to just ten clubs. In 1868, new blood was recruited to the committee and Turner stepped down.
His club was Crystal Palace – no relation to the current Barclays Premier League side – who were formed out of the cricket club of the same name before football was codified, initially to give the cricketers some winter exercise. With a ground at Penge, their colours were black and scarlet striped shirts and socks, with dark blue serge knickerbockers. Drawing their membership from the merchants, accountants and stockbrokers of the suburban middle class in south-east London, Crystal Palace were hugely influential as founders of the FA, with representatives present at all six of the inaugural meetings. Later, the first two captains of England, Cuthbert Ottaway and Alexander Morten, would play for the club before it ran out of steam and folded in the mid-1870s.
Turner’s dedication to football went far beyond financial matters in an era when administrators were also players. He is first recorded playing for the side in March 1862 against the Forest Club, which featured Charles Alcock and his brother. He took part in a special match to demonstrate the new laws of the game in January 1864 at Battersea Park, playing for an FA President’s team which defeated the Secretary’s select 2-0, and further honours came his way in 1868 when he was selected for Surrey against Kent. Turner continues to appear in club line-ups throughout the 1860s, often as captain, and was still there when Palace met Hitchin in the first FA Cup competition in November 1871. He also sometimes opened the batting for the Crystal Palace cricket team.
He was born in Croydon on 6 December 1839, son of Thomas Turner, an eminent vet who was first president of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. Educated at the nearby Streatham Academy, he was so close to the Crystal Palace club that he married Rachel, sister of the Lloyd brothers (Robert, Theodore, Henry and Alfred) who were all regulars in the team. In fact, Henry and Theodore accompanied him to a couple of those FA meetings in the autumn of 1863.
James lived all his life in Croydon and built up a successful business in the wine trade. He and Rachel had eight children and ironically, having seen off the rugby faction at the FA, two of his sons, Howard and Errol, played rugby at county level for Surrey.
After his wife died in 1907 he retired to nearby Addiscombe, while the family home for over fifty years, Netherton in Wellesley Road, was bought by the Croydon Labour Party and renamed Ruskin House. It was demolished in the 1960s, along with much of Croydon town centre, to make way for office blocks.
James Turner was one of the last surviving founders of the FA, outlived only by Ebenezer Morley, and died aged 82 while visiting Eastbourne on 27 July 1922. He left over £9,000 in his will to his five surviving children.
Palace Originals
As well as James Turner, the original Crystal Palace FC was represented by a number of members at the FA’s six founding meetings in 1863, who were all prominent local businessmen.
Club secretary Francis Day (1838-1886) was owner of the Bermondsey Brewery, and there were the Lloyd brothers Henry (1841-1869), an insurance agent, and Theodore (1834-1904), a stockbroker who refereed the 1873 England v Scotland match.
The others were wine merchant Frederick Urwick (1842-1915), indigo merchant John Louis Siordet (1839-1882), and an accountant, Lawrence Vivian Desborough (1844-1892).
- Published on
Did you hear about the Scotsmen, the Australian and the rowing club members? They all got together 150 years ago to found the Football Association.
Of the 15 men who gathered the Freemasons’ Tavern on 26 October 1863, some are well known, but it has never previously been established who they all were. The FA has been researching their origins, and today unveiled a plaque at Wembley in their honour, but it only records those on the first committee.
I have taken that further and for the first time have identified everyone at the meeting.
The results will raise a few eyebrows for those who thought the FA had purely London origins. In fact, only five were born in the London area, the rest coming from the places as far away as India and Australia. Although not all their schools are known, there is a wide variety including two educated in Scotland. These factors would actually have helped the FA in its discussions, as the representatives had experience of football in many different forms – and there were many.
The careers and backgrounds of the men were firmly in the affluent middle class bracket: army, civil service, legal profession, stockbrokers and architects. Several were in the drinks trade and there is a plantation owner.
They were keen sportsmen, with no less than five being rowing devotees – Morley, Steward, Wawn, Bell and Gregory were much more active with their rowing clubs than in football – while others were keen cricketers. Their age is noticeably younger than the administrators of today, with twelve of the fifteen under 25 while four were still at school. Ebenezer Morley was the oldest at 32.
Working out their identities has been a challenge to historians. The first newspaper report in Bell’s Life missed two men and noted there were also ‘several other gentlemen present who, although players, did not definitively represent any club’. The FA minute book lists more, but although they were named by Geoffrey Green in his monumental 1953 history of the FA, he compounded the error by misreading the copperplate script - for example, H Bell rather than Th Bell.
Yet they deserve recognition as their impact on sport in this country has been immeasurable. They put in place a forum for agreeing how football should be played and, in the first of seven resolutions, agreed unanimously ‘that the clubs represented at this meeting now form themselves into an association to be called The Football Association’. With those words, they created the world’s first national football body.
Here are the 15 founders:
Arthur Pember, No Names (Kilburn)
Born Lambeth, 1835-1886.
The son of a stockbroker, the captain of NN Kilburn was first president of the FA. He emigrated to the USA in the mid-1860s and had an interesting career as an investigative journalist before his early death in North Dakota.
Ebenezer Cobb Morley, Barnes
Born Hull, Yorkshire, 1831-1924.
A driving force behind the founding meetings of the FA, Morley was elected secretary for three years, then president until 1874. A keen rower, he helped found the Barnes and Mortlake Regatta as well as Barnes FC. Brought up in Hull, he moved to London as a young man and worked there as a solicitor.
Thomas Dyson Gregory, Barnes
Born Wakefield, Yorkshire, 1835-1904.
A corn merchant in partnership with his brothers Frederick and George, he was on the committee of London Rowing Club (along with EC Morley) and treasurer of the Barnes and Mortlake regatta. He was also a founder of Barnes Football Club in 1862.
Francis Maule Campbell, Blackheath
Born Blackheath, Kent, 1843-1920.
First treasurer of the FA, but soon resigned his club after failing to agree on hacking. A wine merchant, like his father (who died before he was a year old), he expanded his business to become a merchant of continental produce. Married twice, first at the age of 58, and the second time just three months before his death.
Frederick Henry Moore, Blackheath
Born Perth, Western Australia, 1839-1934.
Brought up in Australia, he came to London as a 14 year old to finish his education, and worked as a wine merchant with Dalgety and Co, his uncle’s company. One of the founders of Blackheath club, he remained in England until 1864, then returned to the southern hemisphere where he was an insurance agent and company director in New Zealand, Tasmania and Sydney.
George Twizell Wawn, War Office
Born West Boldon, County Durham, 1840-1914.
On graduating from Durham University he moved to London in 1860 to work for the War Office as a Clerk. Having rowed for his university, he also joined London Rowing Club. From the War Office he joined the African commissariat in 1873, with postings in Sierra Leone and Ghana, retiring in 1889 with the honorary rank of Major.
Herbert Thomas Steward, Crusaders
Born London, 1838-1915.
Educated at Westminster School, he was an architect and surveyor. His primary passion was rowing and he was president of Leander Club, and wrote the history of Henley Regatta.
John Forster Alcock, Forest (Leytonstone)
Born Bishopwearmouth, County Durham, 1841-1910.
After leaving Harrow, he entered the family business as a ship owner and insurance broker. He has been overshadowed in football by his younger brother, Charles Alcock, but was a useful player and founder of pioneering club Forest.
Alfred Westwood Mackenzie, Forest (Leytonstone)
Born Leytonstone, Essex, 1840-1924.
An insurance manager with Guardian Assurance, with his brother Sir Morell Mackenzie he was one of the founders of the Throat Hospital in London. Attended the FA’s jubilee dinner in 1913 and was presented with a silver casket.
Francis Day, Crystal Palace
Born Westerham, Kent, 1838-1886.
Owner of the Black Eagle Brewery in Bermondsey, succeeding his father as a partner in the company of Day Noakes & Co, together with another Crystal Palace player, Wickham Noakes. Was also a good fast bowler for West Kent.
Theodore Bell, Surbiton
Born Uppingham, Rutland, 1840-1923.
Educated at Uppingham, where he was captain of football 1857-58. Although he represented the short-lived Surbiton club at the first meeting of the FA and signed them up for membership, he was better known as a rower and was for many years the secretary of Kingston Rowing Club. A solicitor, he had a legal practice in Epsom. [NB
George William Shillingford, Perceval House School (Blackheath)
Born Purneah, Bengal, 1844-1896.
He and his brothers came to England for their education, but spent the rest of their lives back in Bengal where they ran an indigo plantation and were responsible for hunting Bengal tigers almost to extinction in the latter half of the 19th century.
Bertram Fulke Hartshorne, Charterhouse School
Born Cogenhoe, Northamptonshire, 1844-1921.
The only public school representative at the meeting and the only one to decline to join the FA. A barrister, he graduated from Pembroke College, Oxford, joined the Indian Civil Service in Ceylon, then became a District Auditor for the Local Government Board.
William John Mackintosh, Kensington School
Born Calcutta, Bengal, 1845-1923.
Born in India where his Scottish father was a merchant, he was educated at Edinburgh Academy and Kensington School. A career soldier, he won a commission with the Royal Artillery in 1867 but there is no evidence he ever saw action in 20 years’ service. He retired in 1887, with the rank of Lt Colonel, and lived out his days in Devon.
William Henry Gordon, Blackheath Proprietary School
Born Edinburgh, 1845-1929.
Educated at Edinburgh Academy, Cheltenham College and Blackheath Proprietary School, then took a degree at Trinity College, Cambridge. Qualified as a barrister, changed his surname to Lockhart Gordon and emigrated to Canada, where he was director of a major timber concern, the Canadian Land and Emigration Company.
Of the 15 men who gathered the Freemasons’ Tavern on 26 October 1863, some are well known, but it has never previously been established who they all were. The FA has been researching their origins, and today unveiled a plaque at Wembley in their honour, but it only records those on the first committee.
I have taken that further and for the first time have identified everyone at the meeting.
The results will raise a few eyebrows for those who thought the FA had purely London origins. In fact, only five were born in the London area, the rest coming from the places as far away as India and Australia. Although not all their schools are known, there is a wide variety including two educated in Scotland. These factors would actually have helped the FA in its discussions, as the representatives had experience of football in many different forms – and there were many.
The careers and backgrounds of the men were firmly in the affluent middle class bracket: army, civil service, legal profession, stockbrokers and architects. Several were in the drinks trade and there is a plantation owner.
They were keen sportsmen, with no less than five being rowing devotees – Morley, Steward, Wawn, Bell and Gregory were much more active with their rowing clubs than in football – while others were keen cricketers. Their age is noticeably younger than the administrators of today, with twelve of the fifteen under 25 while four were still at school. Ebenezer Morley was the oldest at 32.
Working out their identities has been a challenge to historians. The first newspaper report in Bell’s Life missed two men and noted there were also ‘several other gentlemen present who, although players, did not definitively represent any club’. The FA minute book lists more, but although they were named by Geoffrey Green in his monumental 1953 history of the FA, he compounded the error by misreading the copperplate script - for example, H Bell rather than Th Bell.
Yet they deserve recognition as their impact on sport in this country has been immeasurable. They put in place a forum for agreeing how football should be played and, in the first of seven resolutions, agreed unanimously ‘that the clubs represented at this meeting now form themselves into an association to be called The Football Association’. With those words, they created the world’s first national football body.
Here are the 15 founders:
Arthur Pember, No Names (Kilburn)
Born Lambeth, 1835-1886.
The son of a stockbroker, the captain of NN Kilburn was first president of the FA. He emigrated to the USA in the mid-1860s and had an interesting career as an investigative journalist before his early death in North Dakota.
Ebenezer Cobb Morley, Barnes
Born Hull, Yorkshire, 1831-1924.
A driving force behind the founding meetings of the FA, Morley was elected secretary for three years, then president until 1874. A keen rower, he helped found the Barnes and Mortlake Regatta as well as Barnes FC. Brought up in Hull, he moved to London as a young man and worked there as a solicitor.
Thomas Dyson Gregory, Barnes
Born Wakefield, Yorkshire, 1835-1904.
A corn merchant in partnership with his brothers Frederick and George, he was on the committee of London Rowing Club (along with EC Morley) and treasurer of the Barnes and Mortlake regatta. He was also a founder of Barnes Football Club in 1862.
Francis Maule Campbell, Blackheath
Born Blackheath, Kent, 1843-1920.
First treasurer of the FA, but soon resigned his club after failing to agree on hacking. A wine merchant, like his father (who died before he was a year old), he expanded his business to become a merchant of continental produce. Married twice, first at the age of 58, and the second time just three months before his death.
Frederick Henry Moore, Blackheath
Born Perth, Western Australia, 1839-1934.
Brought up in Australia, he came to London as a 14 year old to finish his education, and worked as a wine merchant with Dalgety and Co, his uncle’s company. One of the founders of Blackheath club, he remained in England until 1864, then returned to the southern hemisphere where he was an insurance agent and company director in New Zealand, Tasmania and Sydney.
George Twizell Wawn, War Office
Born West Boldon, County Durham, 1840-1914.
On graduating from Durham University he moved to London in 1860 to work for the War Office as a Clerk. Having rowed for his university, he also joined London Rowing Club. From the War Office he joined the African commissariat in 1873, with postings in Sierra Leone and Ghana, retiring in 1889 with the honorary rank of Major.
Herbert Thomas Steward, Crusaders
Born London, 1838-1915.
Educated at Westminster School, he was an architect and surveyor. His primary passion was rowing and he was president of Leander Club, and wrote the history of Henley Regatta.
John Forster Alcock, Forest (Leytonstone)
Born Bishopwearmouth, County Durham, 1841-1910.
After leaving Harrow, he entered the family business as a ship owner and insurance broker. He has been overshadowed in football by his younger brother, Charles Alcock, but was a useful player and founder of pioneering club Forest.
Alfred Westwood Mackenzie, Forest (Leytonstone)
Born Leytonstone, Essex, 1840-1924.
An insurance manager with Guardian Assurance, with his brother Sir Morell Mackenzie he was one of the founders of the Throat Hospital in London. Attended the FA’s jubilee dinner in 1913 and was presented with a silver casket.
Francis Day, Crystal Palace
Born Westerham, Kent, 1838-1886.
Owner of the Black Eagle Brewery in Bermondsey, succeeding his father as a partner in the company of Day Noakes & Co, together with another Crystal Palace player, Wickham Noakes. Was also a good fast bowler for West Kent.
Theodore Bell, Surbiton
Born Uppingham, Rutland, 1840-1923.
Educated at Uppingham, where he was captain of football 1857-58. Although he represented the short-lived Surbiton club at the first meeting of the FA and signed them up for membership, he was better known as a rower and was for many years the secretary of Kingston Rowing Club. A solicitor, he had a legal practice in Epsom. [NB
George William Shillingford, Perceval House School (Blackheath)
Born Purneah, Bengal, 1844-1896.
He and his brothers came to England for their education, but spent the rest of their lives back in Bengal where they ran an indigo plantation and were responsible for hunting Bengal tigers almost to extinction in the latter half of the 19th century.
Bertram Fulke Hartshorne, Charterhouse School
Born Cogenhoe, Northamptonshire, 1844-1921.
The only public school representative at the meeting and the only one to decline to join the FA. A barrister, he graduated from Pembroke College, Oxford, joined the Indian Civil Service in Ceylon, then became a District Auditor for the Local Government Board.
William John Mackintosh, Kensington School
Born Calcutta, Bengal, 1845-1923.
Born in India where his Scottish father was a merchant, he was educated at Edinburgh Academy and Kensington School. A career soldier, he won a commission with the Royal Artillery in 1867 but there is no evidence he ever saw action in 20 years’ service. He retired in 1887, with the rank of Lt Colonel, and lived out his days in Devon.
William Henry Gordon, Blackheath Proprietary School
Born Edinburgh, 1845-1929.
Educated at Edinburgh Academy, Cheltenham College and Blackheath Proprietary School, then took a degree at Trinity College, Cambridge. Qualified as a barrister, changed his surname to Lockhart Gordon and emigrated to Canada, where he was director of a major timber concern, the Canadian Land and Emigration Company.
- Published on
With the approaching 150th anniversary of the founding of the Football Association, I've been digging into the origins of the men who attended those meetings in the autumn of 1863 - with some surprising discoveries.
The first is that two of the 15 attendees at the inaugural meeting on 26 October 1863 were Scots. They had even been to the same school, Edinburgh Academy, before coming to London. My story about WJ Mackintosh and WH Gordon is in the Scotsman today, and the cutting is attached below.
Going further, there seems to be a wealth of previously unknown detail about the founders of association football. A total of 43 players attended at least one of the six formative meetings, and many have never been identified before, perhaps not surprisingly as there are some very obscure and elusive individuals among them. More stories are underway, but as a taster: there is an Australian; a man who was responsible (later in life) for hunting tigers in Bengal almost to extinction; a brewery owner; and a large number of people whose primary sport was rowing.
The first is that two of the 15 attendees at the inaugural meeting on 26 October 1863 were Scots. They had even been to the same school, Edinburgh Academy, before coming to London. My story about WJ Mackintosh and WH Gordon is in the Scotsman today, and the cutting is attached below.
Going further, there seems to be a wealth of previously unknown detail about the founders of association football. A total of 43 players attended at least one of the six formative meetings, and many have never been identified before, perhaps not surprisingly as there are some very obscure and elusive individuals among them. More stories are underway, but as a taster: there is an Australian; a man who was responsible (later in life) for hunting tigers in Bengal almost to extinction; a brewery owner; and a large number of people whose primary sport was rowing.
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Author
All blog posts, unless stated, are written by Andy Mitchell.