Club History Corner

The contents below was originally compiled by the late Colin Dickinson (1932 to 2018), a member of the Club for more than 60 years

The discovery of gold and the founding of in the late 19th century led to the influx of settlers particularly from the UK. They brought with them not only their expertise but also links with their homeland as evidenced by the names of suburbs like Mayfair, and Kensington.

Belgravia, Kensington and were the choice of mainly professional immigrants who sort their recreation in the sports and activities associated with their country of origin.

Our Founding Fathers were mainly of British origin hence the choice of bowls and tennis as the sports to be played on the property. The choice of a name was obvious from the name of the suburb. Permission was then sought from the Royal Borough of Kensington in for the use of their crest and the colours in the crest to be the official club badge and colours. The request was granted by the then Borough Council of Kensington.

The club blazer is very distinctive and has gained recognition especially by the bowling fraternity. It is also a useful and clear identification at venues of the support by members of club teams participating in outside competitions.

It was indicated that the badge is the coat of arms of the Royal Borough of Kensington in the UK . It is derived from the arms of the Lords of the Manor who were the principal landowners when the land was gradually divided between them. The De Veres were the first Lords of the Manor so pride of place, the first quarter, is given to a portion of their armorial bearings.

On a red background in the top left hand corner is found a silver star, which was part of the arms of the De Veres. In addition, there are a gold celestial crown and a fleur de lis that are emblematical of the Virgin Mary to whom the parish church is dedicated.

In the second quarter, the black cross and the four martins on a golden background represent the Abbey of Abington, to whom part of the Manor was given in the 11th century by the De Veres and who dedicated the church to the Blessed Virgin.

On the bottom left hand corner, the third quarter of the badge the red cross and the four red roses on a golden background are taken from the arms of Sir Walter Cope and Henry Rich, Earl of Holland (there is a Holland Park in that area of London), who in turn became Lords of the Manor. The former is represented by the red roses and the latter by the red cross.

The golden mitre on a red background in the fourth quarter relates to the See of Abington, the mitred Abbot of which had the appointment of St Mary Abbots, Kensington.

In heraldry, which is the system by which the coats of arms are devised, described and regulated, no heraldic crest is complete without a motto. This is usually a short sentence or phrase chosen to encapsulate the beliefs or ideals guiding the individual, family, or institution, in our case the Royal Borough of Kensington in London. The motto is usually in Latin or the language of the person whose crest it is. The club has inherited the crest and the motto that is part of the crest.

The motto “Quid nobis ardui” is in Latin and loosely translates into English as “What is hard (or difficult) to us”.

In an earlier note, it was mentioned that the club began in 1914 but due to some inclement weather, the newly laid and levelled green with its freshly planted grass was swept away and deposited in ! One green was eventually completed and bowls began in the summer of 1916.

The tennis courts proved to be more stable and play began on the six clay courts that comprised the playing facilities for the section. There was a half-green running north/south on the boundary. The second green was not contemplated by the “Founding Fathers” in their original plan.

The suburb of Kensington in the post World War I years was developing rapidly. It was soon found that due to the growth of the suburb, and an increase in membership, that one green was not sufficient. In addition, there was a new bowling club, Kensington Polytechnic (formed in 1932), situated in the park. As there was little ground available, the tennis section was prevailed upon to give up one court that was situated adjourning the present Court 1 to facilitate the construction of the second green. This was agreed to and the work commenced early in the 1930’s. That is the reason the rinks 1 and 2 (north/south) are considered by the experts to be the finest in the club.

The two greens were named in 1936 by the then mayor of Johannesburg, Councillor Freeman, after the two men who had the foresight to establish the club – B J Penny and W Knuckey (now the Wally Tucker and North greens).

The memento presented to His Worship the Mayor on this occasion took the form of a solid silver replica of a bowl, mounted on a stand and suitably engraved. It could be seen in the Africana Museum in the Johannesburg Public Library.

It has been claimed that before greenkeeping became an art, the greens at Kensington were held up to the bowling fraternity of as an example of what greens should be. Indeed, it was one of the Kensington “fathers” Peter Fraser who nurtured the hallowed playing surfaces at the club.

He was of Scottish descent and a horticulturalist in the employ of the based in who brought his considerable expertise for the benefit of the club. He and his wife lived in Robert Avenue Mansions in an apartment that overlooked the greens. In the closed season, August and September, after the greens had been scarified, hollow-tined and levelled, he would it at the window of his flat to survey his handiwork. Woe-betide any unthinking tennis member seeking to recover a tennis ball from Knuckey (North) Green. A loud bellow would emanate from the apartment building sending a clear message to ‘Keep Off The Grass!’

Peter fostered the formation of Greenkeepers’ Associations as well as establishing a tradition upheld by a succession of greenkeepers at the club (Ken MacKenzie, Jack Pitman, Ted Cockrell) to ensure the almost perfect playing surfaces. We have also been fortunate to have had loyal staff working under these guardians of the greens assisting in maintaining this long-standing tradition.