Club History
Glossop Tennis Club Early Years
A hundred and forty years ago tennis was being played somewhere close to our present site.
A newspaper report from 1894 says “Glossop Lawn Tennis Club held a dance to celebrate its 11th season”
Since then we`ve has several different names but this is when it all started!
The land from here to Norfolk Street then belonged to the Dukes of Norfolk, with Glossop Hall standing in landscaped wooded parkland which is now Manor Park.
In 1869 a son of the then Duke of Norfolk was created "1st Lord Howard of Glossop". In due course he set aside some of his land to the east of Manor Park Road for use as a recreation area for local people. All Saints Cricket Club (now Old Glossop CC) was born and our club too.
In the early 1930s the Howard estate was sold off piecemeal. In 1931 “The Duke of Norfolk`s Church Tennis Club” leased a small part of it from three local businessmen - close to where we are now.
Three silver trophies from this era are held for us by Glossop Heritage Trust – “The Barlow Challenge Cup Men`s Singles 1932”, “The Glossop Hospital`s Collection Committee Ladies` Singles Cup” & “The Glossop Hospital`s Collection Committee Gentlemen`s Singles Cup”!
By 1947 we were known as Pyegrove Tennis Club. We joined the Ashton & District Lawn Tennis League (forerunner of the Tameside & District League) & have continued to field successful teams in several local leagues ever since.
Photo 1
In 1951 Pyegrove took the huge & far-sighted decision to buy its land, thus securing it`s future while many other small clubs have gone under. Four brave members guaranteed the loan:
Our First Trustees are in the photo :-
Ben Cohen - Club President
Jack Kennington - A keen sportsman & cyclist – ran a bike shop on Glossop High Street .
Bob Wright – He & his wife & children were all team players
Bernard Bowden – Family all very involved, including his brother Norman “Curly” Bowden. Bernard served as Captain, Secretary, President, a Trustee until 1994. An enthusiastic supporter of the club right up to his death in 2005.
Photo 2
A thriving club by now.
Tom Cooper & Howard Marshall were both selected to play for Derbyshire.
Our Juniors flourished too, among them Beryl Sharples. Beryl married Tom Cooper & remained a key member for over 60 years , serving as First Team player, Ladies Captain, Club Chair, Trustee, Director. She died in 2020 and left the Club a substantial bequest which has helped with the recent renovations.
Photo 3.
Club members taken outside The Pavilion. This was an ex-Army hut, bought cheaply from somewhere in Ashton soon after the war & transported & rebuilt by our members.
Facilities were basic to say the least but it had room for table tennis, a bar & became a social centre for the local area, with bingo, whist drives, weekly dances, discos & BBQs & of course lots of tennis with whole families having fun.
Some of us older members remember it fondly as it gradually fell to bits around us!
Extra photo (Lesley Barnes`s son Stuart in early 1980s) The four courts were shale, unpredictable in dry weather, soggy when wet! Certain playing skills were needed & no tennis could be played in Winter!
Each April members had to work hard to prepare for the season, weeding, sweeping, raking, rolling, relaying the lines (white tape held down with big tacks!). We swept dust, spiders & mice from the pavilion & crossed our fingers for a warm, dry summer!
Cup Winners – Date
Ingham winners 1980 In the 70s & 80s more familiar names began to appear
Mel Harrop was Men`s Captain & our star player for quite a while. Sadly he died young in 2000 & his family donated a shield for an annual tournament to be held in his name.
Ruth & Cedric Clough, joined in the mid-60s & always said what a happy, friendly club it was. They brought in many new members through their famous local badminton coaching, including the Higginbottom brothers .
Geoff & Rae Wrigglesworth joined in the mid 70s & from Day 1 were invaluable, hard-working committee members & team captains.
Lesley Barnes & Beryl Cooper Lesley joined in 1980 & has been a Ladies`1st team player ever since.