Club History
Established in 1873, West Heaton Bowling, Tennis and Squash club has a long and interesting history.
Timeline
West Heaton has always been run by volunteers and always in our current location. People have always played sports and enjoyed a social activities here.
The opening of Heaton Moor railway station in 1851 brought about development of both housing and shops along Heaton Moor Road and surrounding locality. Much remained green fields in 1873 and were developed over time to become the vibrant suburb
we know today.
What made a group of people decide to create a sports club, and on this location? We don’t know - only that on 15th July 1873 the first meeting of the Club took place. These members formed West Heaton Bowling Club Ltd.
1873
15th July The first meeting of the Club. The land had been obtained for 21 years on lease from Mr J. Brown, the freeholder.
Today
Roll of honour
our recorded Presidents. The Presidents from 1873 to 1921 are not recorded on our Honours Board but became known thanks to diligent work for the Centenary brochure in 1973 by our 1949 President, Fred Towns.
1873-1875 W.R. Callender, MP
1876-1877 None elected
1878-1880 J. Chadwick
1881-1889 B. Marsden
1890 Mr. Newby
1891 Mr Withy
1892 J.W. Berra
1893 Mr Laidlaw
1894 J. Roberts
1895 F.Pearn
1896 J. Roberts
1897 J. Bowker
1898 E. Walton
1899 W. Lewis
1900 J. Watson
1901 S. Knowles
1902 J.R. Frame
1903 W. Curbstone
1904 Mr Tomlinson
1905 S.A. Jackson
1906 N. Bradley
1907 G. Jarvis
1908 Mr Binns
1909 A.V. Sharratt
1910 C.E. Thomas
1911 H. Mushlian
1912 J.H. Abbott
1913 R. Grenville
1914 F.G. Smith
1915 G.W. Wild
1916 J.R. Ball
1917 J.T. Wainwright
1918 J. Ware
1919 G.Nicholl
1920 G. Mason
1921 J.N. Hopwood
1922 - 1928 Not recorded
1929 Gerald Linfoot
1930 Gerald Linfoot
1931 Stan H. Heighway
1932 George Mason
1933 Len Worsencroft
1934 Geo. H. Byrom
1935 A. E. Travis
1936 Wm Dootson
1937 Wm Dootson
1938 Harold S. Todd
1939 Wm Sidebotham
1940 Wm Sidebotham
1941-1944 2nd world war - none elected
1945 Arnold Welch
1946 Arnold Welch
1947 George Ball
1948 R. A. Brittain
1949 F. W. Towns
1950 C. H. Sheldon
1951 H. K. Harrison
1952 J. Arthur Stewart
1953 Eric A. Todd
1954 S. Locke
1955 G. B. Mattinson
1956 Frank R Grieve
1957 T. Bowden
1958 J. O. Lupton
1959 Ernest M. Kershaw
1960 R. H. Sheldon
1961 H. Q. Mann
1962 R. Brelsford
1963 J. Marsh
1964 D. N. Rothwell
1965 R. S. Brown
1966 G. M. Davies M.B.E.
1967 J. W. G. Mason
1968 R. Holt
1969 F. G. C. Atkinson
1970 I. R. Duncan
1971 K. J. Gordon
1972 R. D. Lodge
1973 G. M. Haslamz
1974 J. F. Wright
1975 D. E. R. Swallow
1976 I. Lunn
1977 G. B. Chadwick
1978 S. H. Mattinson
1979 R.L.E. Rimmington
1980 G. N. Stephens
1981 R. W. Woosey
1982 D. W. Porter
1983 P. H. Locke
1985 Dan Blunt
1984 Owen Corrigan
1986 Peter F. Mundy
1987 Bernard McGrath
1988 Peter E. Dunne
1989 Alan Woosey
1990 Roger Knowles
1991 E. Greenhalgh
1992 Peter Jackson
1993 G. T. Kay
1994 W. Barry Oswald
1995 John H. Whitby
1996 Peter Podmore
1997 Keith Anderson
1998 Michael Coward
1999 W. P. Henderson
2000 Mike Gibson
2001 John P. Howarth
2002 Barrow Gaskarth
2003 Barbara Dunne
2004 Andrew M. Rayner
2005 David G. Hopwood
2006 Janet E. Cowan
2007 Elizabeth A. Jordan
2008 R. D. B. Stringer
2009 John R. Helliwell
2010 Edward Tasker
2011 Norma Eccles
2012 Alan C. Mansfield
2013 Martin Sharman
2014 Chrissie Gibson
2015 Richard Meadowcroft
2016 Andrew Taylor
2017 Matt Jackson
2018 Una Goulding
2019 Joyce Barkclay
2020 John Mandy
The rediscovered Great War Memorial
Not much is known about the story of this memorial.
Found in Manchester, in a mill about to be demolished, it was returned to the Club in the 1970s.

The Oundle Woods
Many members, especially bowlers, know that the president officially opens each Bowling season by bowling an “end” with the famous Oundle Woods, pictured. But what are the Oundle Woods?
They are two woods with engraved silver mounts which were presented at West Heaton in 1886 as a competition prize from William Adam to Alexander Adam (its not known if they were related).
After then there was no trace of them till 1985 when a lady in the Northamptonshire town of Oundle found them in an old box in her attic when helping to clear a house following the death of her God-daughter who was married into the family of Alexander Adam.
She passed them to her local bowling club asking if they could find the orignal owner. The President of the Oundle Club then set about this task and placed enquiries and adverts and finally received a response from a Jack Smith in Cheadle who knew of West Heaton.
No internet and social media to help then. Interestingly, the adverts had been placed in flat green bowling magazines and it was quite by chance that a bowler from a crown green area should see the advert and link it to West Heaton.
Raymond Prior acted on behalf of the Club and passed on our sincere thanks. The woods are very heavy at over 3 pounds each so it was decided to use them for the very appropriate traditional ceremony.
