Originally a multi-sport recreational club in the early 1900's, Carlton has got over a century of history in the Southport area.

As well as Tennis, Carlton also did Hockey, Cycling, Golf and organised many dances at various local establishments such as the former Queen's Hotel on the Promenade and an old dance hall on Derby Road.

Basing themselves at Victoria Park (pictured below), Carlton were quickly becoming a popular club to be part of.

1910 saw the club branch out and rebrand themselves as Carlton Lawn Tennis Club and Carlton Hockey Club.

The 1920's saw Carlton be one of the founding clubs to the Southport Parks Lawn Tennis Association where they secured early success with multiple triumphs in the annual Christiana Hartley Trophy team tournament.

On 13th September 1921, the hockey club merged with Hesketh to become Carlton-Hesketh Hockey Club.

In 1924, as more housing was being developed in the surrounding area, Carlton found an opportunity to take a bit of land of their own to construct their own courts and pavilion. May 31st saw Carlton move onto Dunkirk Road in Birkdale (pictured below), where they still play to this very day. They initially played on four grass courts.

Notable achievements since moving onto Dunkirk Road include being the first Tennis club in the Southport area to accept Jewish members and install floodlights. The latter occurred on 4th April 1968 (pictured below) which led to the club hosting an inter-club floodlit tournament every September up until 1998.

1970 saw the club enter the Southport Tennis League and have remained there ever since. The club have had as many as 5 teams in 2015 and has been as high as 5th in the first division in 1988.

After playing on four shale courts for almost a century, 28th October 2024 saw refurbishment begin on the installation of two floodlit artificial clay courts. With their previous court surfaces being seasonal ones, this refurb guaranteed all-year round Tennis for the first time in the club's history.

One thing that has remained at Carlton Lawn Tennis Club throughout its history though, is its inclusiveness, family friendly environment and highly sociable vibe.

Below are various pictures of the club through the decades: