Lutton Place Bowling Club Honours Page

New Edinburgh Bowling Club
Original Clubhouse.

Lutton Place Bowling Club may be said to have been born at the close of the Annual Meeting of the “Edinburgh Bowling Club” which was held at 58 Lothian Street on 10th April 1860. Several of the members moved a resolution to have a new green constructed and appointed Messrs Paterson, Combe, Philpot, Roberson and Riach as a committee to look out for a piece of ground suitable for the purpose. These gentlemen acting on a pattern still adhered to by the present day committee, anticipated the gun so to speak, and were in a position to immediately enter into negotiations for renting a piece of ground which has subsequently proved to be suitable in every respect, as both the green and club have stood the test of time to the extent of 100 years.

To describe the clubs progress over a century cannot be done adequately in the limited space at our disposal, and we must confine ourselves to outstanding events and personalities who emerged during the period this chronicle attempts to cover. It is fitting that the clubs honours should be given pride of place, as it is the club to whom this year we pay homage. In doing so, no reflection is cast upon individuals for, after all, what is a club but the fusion of individual personalities, and from such is its prosperity and success derived.

The award of an international cap, though looked upon as an individual honour, is in effect a dual award, as it recognises both the recipient and his club. The first member to be honoured in this fashion was Andrew H. Hamilton who was “capped” in 1903; he was closely followed by George Sneddon in 1904, 1905, 1906, 1907, 1909, 1910, and 1912, then A. Morrison in 1919 and G. Salmon in 1926 and 1928. Truly a remarkable performance when it is remembered that Lutton Place Bowling Club has never aspired to a large membership but preferred to keep that intimacy and esprit du corps that is the hallmark of all successful clubs.

The trophy which is undoubtedly nearest to the hearts of all Lutton Place members is that which was presented by the SBA to commemorate the services of the late Andrew H. Hamilton, SSC, rendered to the association and which is now associated with the officially recognised County Championship. Since the trophy was first played for in 1939, Lutton Place has had two of its members chosen to play for Edinburgh and Leith Bowling Association namely C.M. Stewart, who was selected on 10 occasions and gained four winner’s medals and G. Fisher selected on two occasions, gaining a winners medal the first year he was chosen.

The Founders of International Bowling Matches
W. A. Morgan, Wales; Dr W.G. Grace, England;
J.C. Hunter, Ireland; A.H. Hamilton, Scotland.

Tait Trophy Winners.

Having dealt with the playing abilities of the members, let us now turn to another sphere where the talents of these gentlemen shone, namely “legislation.” No club can flourish without the much criticised “Committee” who are blamed for everything from the greens condition to the state of the weather, the clubhouse roof, the clubs finances – in fact any unforeseen occurrence that arises.

Outstanding in the field of Club and Association administration again appears the figure of the late Andrew Hamilton, who was Secretary of the Scottish Bowling Association from 1895 until 1936 and the following year became President. His first twenty five years as Secretary had been recognised in 1920 when he was presented with a cheque for £400 and Mrs Hamilton received a handsome silver tea service

Mr Hamilton was not the first member Lutton Place had provided for the national body; this distinction had fallen to the late Mr James Pretsell, who was the SBA President in 1898. Mr Pretsell is also remembered for his splendid work in the provision of scholarships for entry to the Heriot-Watt college.

Before departing from the administrative side of club life it is a significant fact that the father of W.M. McKay, the present club secretary during the Centenary year held the same office when the club celebrated its Jubilee.

Lack of space prevents the mentioning of various members who held both the Presidency and the championship during the same year; those with the most Championships to their credit; those with notable sequences and other records of a similar nature. A glance at the list of Presidents and that of Club Champions will enable anyone who is interested to work out these vital statistics for themselves, but one feels that one name must, at this stage, be mentioned – that of George Sneddon. Mr Sneddon’s grand record as a member shows that on four occasions he won the Tait Trophy, on eleven occasions he won the Club Championship (including two hat tricks), and was President from 1903 – 1905.

No club can flourish by its members playing ties among themselves and Lutton Place is no exception; so it would be well at this stage to mention some of the Kindred clubs with whom matches are regularly exchanged. The first on this list is naturally the Edinburgh, and this is followed by Ardmillan, Corstorphine, Dean, Northern, and Willowbrae – all of whom are taking part in the Centenary celebrations.

This exchange of what one might call fraternal greetings was not confined to clubs within the City of Edinburgh but stretched to such places as Broxburn, Fauldhouse, Leven, and Penicuik where annual matches are still exchanged.

It is through meetings such as these that many lifelong friendships have been founded and annually further cemented. Apart from the social side, these encounters have allowed the discussion of various topics affecting clubs such as care of the greens, exchange of ideas on administration, policies to be followed regarding financial matters, and points that could be usefully utilised in maintaining the running and well being of the clubs concerned. That all the aforementioned clubs are still to the fore and running healthily is sufficient tribute to the good that has emanated from these pleasantly anticipated outings.

During the season of 1955 it was found that the condition of some of the woodwork of the clubhouse was in need of attention, and temporary repairs were carried out to enable the members to continue having the full use of the facilities provided. The whole position was reviewed and discussed at the Annual General meeting in 1956 and as a result of the proposals put forward it was decided to inaugurate a Building and Centenary Fund to be applied in the proportions of two thirds to the rebuilding of the Clubhouse and one third to the Centenary celebrations. So well did the members respond to the appeal that at the end of the 1959 season the fund had a balance to it’s credit of over £1,000. In conclusion it would be well to point out that Mr David Harkess has the honour of having the longest membership of the club and during this time has served terms of office as both President and Secretary.

The oldest member in terms of age is Mr David Milne but so energetic is he that one regards his as just one of the average members. The first hundred years has gone and may be termed the end of the beginning. So forward now, Lutton Place, to greater things.

Thanks are due to all the Presidents, Secretaries Treasurers and Committees, and the members who so ably supported them.

Club Photo c. 1900

Being involved in the set up of The Edinburgh Secretaries Association was not James Pretsell’s first involvement in the organisation of a Bowling Association.

In late August 1892 a circular was sent to Clubs and Associations throughout Scotland requesting they send delegates to the Central Station Hotel in Glasgow to discuss the formation of a National Bowling Association, James Pretsell, as Treasurer of the Edinburgh & Leith Association, was one of the twelve signatories on this circular. At this meeting, which 120 delegates attended it was agreed that a National Bowling Association be formed. A Committee of 25 delegates were elected to draw up the rules and constitution of the Association, James Pretsell being one of the four Edinburgh delegates on this Committee. In 1894 the Scottish Bowling Association was formally launched and the first games played.

In 1898 James Pretsell was elected as the 4th President of the Scottish Bowling Association, the same year and the following year he was also President of Lutton Place Bowling Club.

Earlier in his Bowling career James Pretsell championed the public green movement and along with other interested parties persuaded Edinburgh Town Council to lay down greens at the West Meadows.

In 1901, a Scottish Eight visited London and played what was probably the first England v Scotland International. James Pretsell played second in an All Lutton Place Rink skipped by Andrew H Hamilton. Dr W.G. Grace skipped the English Eight; the Scots were victors in this game.

England, Wales and Ireland went on to form their own National Associations and along with the Scottish Association our current game has evolved.

(from the book “The Game of Bowls” by J.M. Pretsell (son of James Pretsell))

The first Secretary of the SBA, James Brown was succeeded in 1895 by Andrew H Hamilton who went on to hold the post for 41 years and indeed the SBA and the game in general owe him a debt of gratitude.

Hamilton Joined Lutton Place in 1889 on moving to Edinburgh from Moffat, in his first year he won the club’s singles title and repeated the feat on another four occasions along with winning the Champion of City Champions trophy on three occasions thus proving his administrative duties had not dulled his appetite for success on the green.

When the International Bowling Board was formed in 1905 Hamilton was elected as it’s first hon. Secretary, he retired from this post in 1907 only to take it up again in 1913.

Hamilton obviously had a niche for administrative posts as he also served as hon. Secretary of the Royal Caledonian Curling Club and was also a High Constable of Edinburgh

In 1939 he presented the A.H. Hamilton trophy to be played for by teams representing county and city associations and this has become one of the most sought after trophies in the Scottish game, it was originally devised as a knockout competition but has evolved into a competition based on a league format.

Committee 1900	Centenary Committee
Opening Day 1960	Opening Day 1960