Tony Onslow – Page 7 – Everton FC Heritage Society

06

Sep

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Rest in Peace, Tony Onslow

In Search of the First Everton Stalwart

Rain was falling heavily as I left the train at New Brighton railway station in search of a former Everton captain who I had discovered was buried in Rake Lane cemetery, Wallasey. The person, whose last resting place I was searching for, was George Dobson. I knew he had died in 1941 but, as I had no grave number, I searched for over an hour without success before, wet through, I started to head for home. However, as I passed through the main gate, I noticed the resident stonemason's office and knocked at the door. My luck was in. I…

06

Sep

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Managers, Members Work, Tony Onslow

The Man Who Coached Everton to Their First League Title

It is the summer of 1891 and the players of Everton Football Club proudly pose with Football League championship trophy which they had recently won for the first time. The club executives, who were at that time in charge of team selection, must take much of the credit for this triumph because of their clever dealings in the transfer market. The extra players they had brought in had proved to be good enough to carry off the championship after finishing second in the previous season. Their fitness and welfare, however, had been placed in the hands of a former Everton…

06

Sep

By Tony Onslow

History, Members Work, Tony Onslow

Andrew Hannah

By being the first man to captain both Everton Football Club and their local rivals Liverpool, Andrew Hannah holds a unique position in Merseyside folklore. He was born of Irish parentage on 17 September 1864, at Renton, Dunbartonshire where his father, Henry, was running a grocery shop. The premises stood at 72 Main Street where he was assisted by his wife, Margaret. The couple had one other son. Hannah started his football career playing at full back with the Renton club and was in the side that beat Vale of Leven, by 3 goals to 1, in the 1885 Scottish…

26

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1890-1899, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The Tale of a Former Everton Full-Back

George Molyneux was on the books of Southampton when he was selected for England against Scotland, and thus became the first Liverpool-born man to do so, having previously played football for Everton. The 1881 census revealed that George, then six years old, was living with his parents at 29 Sessions Road in the Kirkdale area of the city. The 1901 census showed that the family had moved to nearby Croyland Street and that George, now fifteen, had begun serving an apprenticeship as a plumber. It was around three years later that his name started to appear in the local sporting…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The Lost Professional of Everton FC

It has now been a long-accepted fact that George Dobson and George Farmer were the first two players to be employed as professional footballers by Everton Football Club. However, it is quite possible to believe that the same terms offered to these two players might well have extended to a third man. His name was Job Wilding and he came from Wrexham. Job Wilding (far left) Both Dobson and Farmer first came to Liverpool during Easter of 1885 and, having had a trial period with Everton, were invited to return to the club the following season. Dobson returned alone and…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1890-1899, 1900-1909, 1910-1919, 1920-1929, Articles, Directors, History, Members Work, Tony Onslow

The Good Doctor of Everton

When William Baxter moved to Liverpool from Clitheroe, he opened his own business, as a Chemist and Druggist, at 259 Great Homer Street in Liverpool. Some years later he married a local girl with whom he began to raise a family. James Clement Baxter, the second child to bless this union, was born in 1857. He attended his local school, dedicated to St Frances Xavier, where he proved to be a bright pupil. He quickly moved on to the school's college, run by the Jesuit Order, from where he won a place to study medicine at the King and Queens…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The First Everton Scot

The Life and Times of an Everton Goalkeeper A star of Stanley Park, Priory Road, and Anfield It was the winter of 1880, and the football players of Everton were trooping off their pitch on Stanley Park having just been soundly beaten by the parishioners of St John's Church in Bootle. Later that year they were approached by a young Scotsman who, having just moved to the area, asked them if he might be allowed to join them in their 'kick about' matches on the park. The Everton players agreed and welcomed him into the fold. The new arrival immediately…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

The Life and Times of Thomas Evans

Introduction When you read this article, it might make you think that parishioners of St Saviour's were more instrumental in the formation of Everton than those of St Domingo's. It's true that the Cuffs and the Wades were members of the Methodist chapel but Tom Evans, who I believe was an experienced footballer, could well have been the main driving force behind Everton on the football field. Tom Evans, I believe, was a friend of William J Clarke and both men once lived on the Derbyshire/Nottinghamshire border. Both men are the same age. It is Clarke's father, who also came…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1910-1919, 1920-1929, Articles, History, Members Work, Players, Tony Onslow

In Search of George Brewster

When I was asked for assistance by a fellow historian to find out what became of a former captain of Everton, I set off, armed with the information he had supplied, in the direction of Wigan. The last resting place of the man I was to search for was that of George Brewster, and also to find out the year of his death, because it was missing from the records of both Everton FC and the Scottish FA. I had not been aware, as my train drew slowly in to Wigan North West Station, that I had just passed within…

16

Aug

By Tony Onslow

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1890-1899, Articles, Goodison, History, Members Work, Tony Onslow

Rob Howarth – a Former Everton Captain

The host of FA dignitaries who had been present at the opening of Goodison Park had now left Liverpool and the Everton committee assembled to start the new Football League season in earnest. (Goodison had been officially opened on 24 August 1892 by Lord Kinnaird and Frederick Wall of the Football Association. No football was played; instead the 12,000 crowd watched a short athletics event followed by music and a fireworks display). Their first opponents would be Nottingham Forest. The much published decision to move from Anfield was complete and the new club, now a limited liability company, would be…