Members Work

Articles and writing from Heritage Society members and contributors

From Leicester Fosse to Leicester City…
14
Aug
By Lyndon Lloyd
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1890-1899, 2010-2019, History, Lyndon Lloyd, Members Work

From Leicester Fosse to Leicester City…

The Premier League champions are at Goodison Park this afternoon but did you know that the club played for 25 years after its formation before becoming Leicester City? Today’s visitors were formed in 1884 by a group of young men from a local evangelical chapel who decided to form a football team that they chose to call Leicester Fosse. This suffix was selected because the old Roman Road, known as the Fosseway, had once passed through the area. The group then all agreed to pay nine old pence membership fee and another nine pence was collected to purchase a football.…
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14
Aug
By Steve Johnson
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1950-1959, Articles, Goodison, History, Members Work, Programme Articles, Steve Johnson

Clocking On…

The Good Old Days of the Three O'Clock Kick-Off.....   Today’s 2.05pm kick-off inevitably gets supporters talking about the ‘good old days’, when we remember all football matches being played on a Saturday afternoon at 3pm… but just how common was that 3pm time slot? Well, it depends on how far back you look! Prior to the Premier League era, most of Everton’s home matches, aside from those played in midweek, did indeed commence at the ‘traditional’ time of 3pm – but that had only been the case from the early 1960s onwards. From 1957 to late 1961, Everton’s Saturday…
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The Blacksmith of Crossmyloof
14
Aug
By Tony Onslow
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1878-1889, Articles, History, Members Work, Tony Onslow

The Blacksmith of Crossmyloof

John Weir, a blacksmith who once played football for both Everton and Scotland, was also one of the players famously suspended by the Football Association for playing for Everton as a professional in November 1887. John Weir was born, 10 January 1865, at Crossmyloof, Renfrewshire, and was the third child of a fairly mature couple who had moved to the west of Scotland from their native Ireland. The 1871 census found him still living at Crossmyloof, by now fully involved in the City of Glasgow, along with his elder brother, born 1862, whose name was Charles. By 1881, the two…
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06
Jun
By Rob Sawyer
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1930-1939, Articles, History, Players, Programme Articles, Rob Sawyer

T.G. Jones And The Boys Of ‘39

EFC Heritage Society member Rob Sawyer is appealing for supporters’ memories of Everton players from a golden era. Rob, who wrote the excellent biography of Harry Catterick, says: “My dad and I watched the Blues sweep all before them in the 1980s, but his greatest praise was reserved for the championship-winning team of 1938/39. This has inspired me to chronicle the players’ stories particularly that of Tommy ‘T.G.’ Jones, dubbed ‘The Prince of Centre- Halves’.” Those lucky enough to see it, claim that this team best-fulfilled the School of Science billing bestowed upon the Club by former Derby County striker,…
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06
Jun
By David Prentice
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1950-1959, Articles, David Prentice, History, Members Work, Players

When Parker Tamed Tigers

Run through the list of Everton’s record scorers against almost every club we’ve ever faced and one name predictably dominates. William Ralph Dean. Everton’s top scorer against Arsenal? Dixie with 12 goals. Liverpool? Dixie with 19. Chelsea? Dixie again with 10. But not today’s visitors Hull City. The man who tormented the Tigers even more than the celebrated Dixie throughout his career was another Everton striker, a man who doesn’t feature as frequently whenever lists of Everton’s great forwards are mentioned but whose goals return was impressive. John Willie Parker was described as a “stylish inside- forward” who played much…
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Phew, 9-1 Win is a Scorcher!
06
Jun
By David Prentice
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1900-1909, Articles, David Prentice, History, Members Work

Phew, 9-1 Win is a Scorcher!

The start of September 1906 saw England sweltering in a heatwave – the most intense temperatures recorded in the 20th century. It was weather for sunbathing, not sport, as the temperatures topped 32 degrees for four successive days throughout most of the country.  No surprise, then, that the Liverpool Daily Post & Mercury’s headline for Monday 3 September read:  Football Hot O! A Warm Kick- Off And Enormous Crowds. Players Collapse. While the editorial began: “The Glorious First, which duly celebrates the commencement of two distinct classes of sport – football and partridge shooting – will long be remembered for…
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02
Jun
By John Shearon
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1900-1909, Articles, Everton Clubs Abroad, History, John Shearon, Members Work, South America

Spreading the Everton name…

At the final whistle of this evening’s game both sets of players will be looking forward to a well-earned  rest over the coming months. In late April 1909, this was not the case as Everton closed the season with a 4-2 win over Leicester Fosse to finish runners-up to champions Newcastle United. The Toffees, along with Spurs, who likewise had finished runners-up but in the Second Division, had been invited to play a number of friendly matches in Argentina and Uruguay where the sport was still in its infancy. This was not the first such tour. Southampton in 1904 and…
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Another Great Book from deCoubertin: Rob Sawyer’s The Prince of Centre Halves – the Life of Tommy ‘TG’ Jones’
02
Jun
By Rob Sawyer
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1930-1939, 1940-1949, 1950-1959, Articles, Books, History, Interview, Members Work, Players, Rob Sawyer

Another Great Book from deCoubertin: Rob Sawyer’s The Prince of Centre Halves – the Life of Tommy ‘TG’ Jones’

ANOTHER GREAT BOOK FROM DECOUBERTAIN - Q&A WITH ROB SAYWER, AUTHOR OF 'THE PRINCE OF CENTRE-HALVES: THE LIFE OF TOMMY 'TG' JONES' Posted by Jack Gordon-Brown on May 31, 2017 Rob Sawyer comes from a long line of Everton FC supporters. Listening to his father and grandfather regale the stories of Dixie Dean and the Holy Trinity led to a deep interest in Everton's illustrious history. Whilst researching his first book, a biography of Harry Catterick, Sawyer found just how important TG Jones was to the Toffees. We spoke to him about the Everton great... Hi Rob. You say that…
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30
May
By Brendan Connolly
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1900-1909, Brendan Connolly

Sponsorship deals in the early 1900s ‘Everton by Postcard’

Sponsorship deals in the early 1900s ‘Everton by Postcard’ By Brendan Connolly In the early 1900s, postcards were the equivalent of current day text messages. Very few people had telephones, so the postal system was the main method of communication. As a result, demand dictated that there were four mail deliveries per day, with the last post being late in the evening. It was not unusual to post a letter or postcard early in the morning and receive a reply the same day. Postcards carried a lower postal rate than letters and by the early 1900s picture postcards had become…
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