As promised here are the cricket items I could not resist buying. Two things jumped out at me when I saw these. Firstly, the rare skeleton cricket pads that probably date to c1880/1890. I'd like to think that a pair like this might have been worn by W G Grace but all photos of him seem to show the standard pads. Secondly, the photo of two women cricketers, wearing culottes and hairnets, striding off the pitch. I think the clothes and hairstyles point to a date of the 1930s but would welcome your views One of these women appears to be Mrs Somerset (her name and Chelsea address are on the bag label). For no good reason I think she may be the female on the right and who looks just a bit like Vita Sackville-West or is it Nancy Mitford? It will be a pleasure to own these for a very short while, before they go off to a museum or private collector! BTW, you may notice that the pads bear traces of Blanco, which has a fascinating history of its own.
Holbein House is now apartments. I think the pads are 19th century, although fairly scarce, not the greatest of sellers. Here`s some with other cricket stuff that went for £80 http://www.mullocksauctions.co.uk/lot-54241-2_x_earlymid_20th_c_cricket_bats_and.html?p=12
Yes, a pair in good condition fetched £140 at auction (plus buyers premium of course so about £168). Got to say that the photograph really made the buy worthwhile and it is nice to get a rare item with matching old ephemera and a back story
I wonder if she was an ancestor of Lady Henry Somerset. Her marriage and life looks like a train wreck. I can see why she dropped her maiden name https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lady_Henry_Somerset
Well... I know Nancy Mitford from some of her books, but W C Grace? Obviously a cricketer, but what first came to mind was Grace Brothers Department Store from Are You Being Served.
Spent a little time checking this out but didnt get very far. I suspect that the lease/rental records or electoral roll might be the way forward. But I agree that there is a distinct air of pre war upper class England so wouldnt rule out an aristocrat link.
Back then cricket wasn't for the hoi polloi, or the likes of us upstart Colonials. Upstart Indians and Jamaicans however are not only still playing it, they've imported it to the US too. Not that the locals can make heads or wickets out of it, but at least they tried to civilize us.
If anybody here has access to the British version of Ancestry, they probably have London city directories. Perhaps they have some from the same time period.
If you want London city directories, the best bet is Kellys, which are on line. Ancestry has census records. Thing about cricket is it's the only game that includes a mandatory meal break.
Electoral Register for the Inner Temple District of London, 1920, shows Adelaide Millicent Somerset and Raglan Horatio Edwyn Somerset living at 24 Holbein House, Chelsea, S.W.
This got very confusing, although the explanation turned out to be fairly simple. I think. Adelaide's full maiden name was Adelaide Millicent Blanche Gwendolyn Somerset. She was born in 1889 in St. George's, London. Her husband Raglan Horatio Edwyn Henry Somerset was born in 1886 in Raglan, Monmouthshire, Wales. Her parents were Gwendolyn Somerset (yes that was her maiden name too) and Arthur Fitzroy Somerset. Her maternal grandparents were Sir Alfred Plantagenet Frederick Charles Somerset (the son of Lord John Thomas Henry Somerset) and Adelaide Harriet Brooke-Pechell. I threw all of that in there because I don't think she's in any way directly related to Lady Henry Somerset mentioned above (whose maiden name was thankfully not Somerset. )
Bakers, you are simply amazing! Look like this is a 1920s photo rather than 1930s (Edit, from cricket archive this probably is early 30s) When I've finished the sold parcels today I will take pleasure in digging further based on your superb detective work. Thank you again!! Edit. Bakers, just given you official credit for the research on my Ebay listing
Arthur Fitzroy Somerset was a first class cricketer playing for Sussex and London County as well as captaining Worthing. That could mean that the pads were used by him as the dates look right and could also explain his daughter's continuing love of cricket. She also has her own page on cricket archive
Going to that link, clicked on another link and got to this photo. It says the woman on the left is AF (Amy Frances) Bull http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Pictures/32/32939.html Do you think that Amy Frances Bull might be the woman on the left in your photo? Here is AF Bull's page: http://cricketarchive.com/Archive/Players/244/244410/244410.html
I wasn't sure, either. I think it is possible, though. Even the two pictures on that site that are both identified as her look somewhat different from each other. But I can see why you would be cautious since you are trying to sell the photo.
