Bexley Lawn Tennis & Squash Club - Tennis Section
Contact Details:
Ian Wright
Parkhurst Road
Bexley,
Kent,
DA5 1AX
Phone: 01322 524544
The Tennis Club is unique, in that it has the distinction of being the third oldest tennis club in the world with tennis still being played today on its original site. In the year 2000 it will be celebrating its 120th anniversary.
At the time the club was formed there were many changes occurring to the size of the court, the height of the net, and several other changes which produced the game as we know today. One of the founder members and first President of the club was Sir William Hart Dyke who played a major role in the formulation of the rules of Lawn Tennis. Up until the changes the tennis court was hour-glass shaped and the net 4 feet high.
The old club pavilion was erected in 1893 being of a mainly wood construction, but giving excellent service to the members for over a century, with alterations to the building as the changes in our life style required. There are still in existence minute books dating back to 1908 when the tennis club annual subscription was equivalent to £1-30p in present day money.
In 1914 it is recorded that after the annual dance the local train from Dartford to London made an unscheduled stop to pick up members who had been attending the annual function. Things have changes today, that was the time when passengers mattered.
There is not very much documentation on the club in the first world war, but it continued to flourish until the second world war when the courts were forced to close in 1941. The courts were continued to be cared for with the grass being cut by hand and a pony fitted with overshoes pulling the roller, as no petrol was available for the machines during the war. The pavilion did sustained minor damage from a flying bomb before hostilities ceased.
In 1950 the ground rent that was paid to Oxford University who are major landowners in the Bexley area was £45 per annum. At that time the club was unable raise the funds to purchase the ground from the University. Mr.A.R.Potter bought the land on the understanding that the club would eventually buy the land from him in the future. The ground was eventually purchased by the club from the Potter family in 1963.
On 19th June 1965 the secretary opened the clubs first Squash Rackets court which was built to the cost of £3,800. In 1967 the second Squash Rackets court was constructed for only £3,000 as the club secretary acted as site foreman. The club enjoyed success in the London Squash Leagues and played host to the Kent Squash Championships.
The then Prime Minister Edward Heath paid a visit as our Member of Parliament to the Club to film for a television political broadcast.
This was the time when the club saw many visits from teams from abroad and International matches, 1973 was the year when a further Squash court was added to the facility. Three porous concrete tennis courts were added in 1979 complete with flood lighting being the first of its kind in the County.
A new two storey pavilion was constructed in 1998 with all the modern facilities that are required by today's players and social members, there is even a lift to the bar area for the less able of us, as the club still has a loyalty from its old members! The building is attached to the old squash courts with the addition of two new glass backed courts with easy access from the bar and lounge.
Our category listings:
Tennis : 2 - Tennis Clubs
Tennis : 4 - Tennis Facilities
Tennis : 5 - Tennis Coaching & Education