...a Centur
ALL OUR
Those were the days or were they? Looking back to
pre-World War One is easy with the aid of Albion News.
To watch football at The Hawthorns came out thus For Bir
mingham Wednesday. League matches the cost was 3d. For
Reserve football in the Birmingham League 4d, and for the Foot
ball League encounters 6d. In modern day the rates respectively
are 1-25p, 1-66p and 2-5p. Aside from the games the Dartmouth
Military Band was in attendance at all home games. How times
have changed.
The local picture palace, The Queens, had two films showing,
King Lear and The Tower of London, a fine historical drama. Both
films were over 1,000ft in length and the best of their kind. The
Morrisons a comedy duo and other star artistes will also be enter
taining the filmgoers.
Receipts from the Charity Shield game held at Chelsea between
Brighton and Hove Albion and Aston Villa amounted to
£283 17s5d (or £283-87).
The princely sum of 9s6d W/zp) would purchase the 'Albion'
football. £1 1s (£105) would buy a set of shirts and 15s (75p) a
set of knickers.
As a cure for coughs, colds and chest complaints you could
do worse than buy a bottle of Prices Perfect Chest Tonic for
1s1J4d (554p).
You could borrow £2, repayable weekly, the interest being 4s
(20p), so even in those days interest rates were 10%.
For the home one could visit A. G. Turiey the cabinet makers and
procure one of his most artistic pieces of furniture for £33s
(£3-15). Hadieys of Oldbury would attire you in a smart suit or
overcoat for £1 10s (£1 -50).
Times have changed and if we are realistic it is for the better. Who
would deny that the current level of football is a vast improvement
from the 'Good Old Days) European football is very much a part of
the domestic scene. Supporters are able to travel abroad in
following their favourites in something like the time it took for
Albion of the 1880's to get to Manchester.
Did you know that on the opening day of the 1908-09 season
Albion played Wolves the previous season's FA Cup winners. To
celebrate the occasion we gave away to every reader of the match
programme a fine art picture of the English Cup Winners? What a
good Public Relations exercise that was.
Half-way through our first 100 years, reflecting back to
season 1929-30 we see that KAPS is the topical cough and cold
cure at 2d (0-8p) per ounce. Sanatogen too was readily obtainable
only in powder form at 2s3d (11 -25p) a tin! Fred Keener the team
captain of Cardiff City endorsed the product claiming it to build up
his strength and prevent fatigue to such a degree that he was able
to play two strenuous games a week without feeling any strain.
Don't think Esther Rantzen would agree with that.
The Dartmouth Military Band had given way to the West
Bromwich Borough Prize Band for pre-match entertainment.
Goalkeeper Pearson was unable to catch the team coach due to
his train being delayed bringing him to Birmingham from his
Tamworth home. The party departed for the match at Preston,
however, Pearson did manage to get to Crewe, via Stoke, by train
only to find that there wasn't a train suitable to get him to Preston
in time to play. Secretary Fred Everiss chartered a 'fast' car to com
plete the journey..the 64 miles taking only two hours. Phew!
The Queens Picture House was showing Warner Baxter in
Romance of Rio Grande and Mrs Wallace Reid in The Satin
Woman. Talking pictures were just coming into vogue.
