Job done.
At long last, with sufficient monies raised, the restoration work has been commissioned via Midland Conservation Limited. A site meeting was held recently and materials ordered.
The ledger stone should be lifted early in October and taken into the workshop for the engraving of Harry Gem’s wife’s details.
More on the schedule as it is known.
Our appeal for funds to restore Harry’s grave in Warstone Lane Cemetery, Birmingham has reached £8,000 and we send our grateful thanks to all the organisations and individuals who have given so genereously.
We have launched a Crowdfunder campaign to raise the final £2,000. Please help by giving what you can and spreading the word among your friends.
We’ll be launching a Crowdfunder Appeal in June to raise the remainder of the money required to commission the work to restore Harry’s grave. In the meantime, here’s an extended version of our video giving some of the background to the story of Harry Gem and Augurio Perera and details of the restoration plan.
Article from the Birmingham Post of 9th October 1962, the 100th anniversary of Harry Gem’s run from Birmingham to Warwick.
We’ve raised just in excess of £5,500 so far and need another £2,000 – 2,500 in order to commission the work. On top of that we hope to raise £1,000 – 1,500 to hold in trust to cover future maintenance requirements. If you can help please contact us at: theharrygemproject@gmail.com.
Click here to see our video giving a brief introduction to Harry’s story.
The Leamington Tennis Court Club was established in 1846 and Harry Gem joined in 1872. The club is discreetly located at the heart of Royal Leamington Spa and here members may play tennis, squash rackets, rackets and fives. Click here to see a real tennis match at Leamington.
The All England Club adopted the real tennis method of scoring (love, fifteen, thirty, forty) when revising the laws of lawn tennis in 1877, in readiness for the first championships at Wimbledon.
The racquets kindly donated by Grays are now ready for the upcoming season of demo days, etc.
We send our thanks too for the good offices of Norman Hyde, at the Leamington Tennis Court Club, in organising the stringing by Tom Granville, head professional at the Moreton Morrell Tennis Court Club. Nice work Tom and many thanks.
The appeal for funds to restore Harry Gem’s grave in Warstone Lane Cemetery at the heart of Birmingham’s Jewellery Quarter has begun.
Just over £7,000 is needed to rebuild the grave architecture and we aim to raise an extra £2,000 to provide a fund for maintenance in the future.
So far we have raised £5,500, over two thirds of the amount for the restoration, and hope to have the full amount in place ready to commission the work later in the year.
If you would like to contribute please contact us by email: theharrygemproject@gmail.com
Here’s a sample of the material we’ve been sending out to potential ‘corporate” sponsors (click images to enlarge):
It has been assumed that Gem and Perera moved to Leamington Spa in 1872 and formed their Leamington club in the same year. Research commissioned by Bob Everitt, of the Tennis Collectors’ Society, indicates that Gem had moved into the town in late 1872. This was established by reference to the ‘General Arrivals’ section of the Leamington Spa Courier and Warwick Advertiser of that year. Perera was not listed during or before 1872 and, unfortnately, newspapers for 1873 and 1874 were not available.
However. an article in the Leamington Spa Courier and Warwick Advertiser dated 24th July 1875 indicates that the club was without doubt formed in 1874.
The current series of the Great British Menu competition on BBC TV celebrates the 140th anniversary of the Championships at the All England Lawn Tennis & Croquet Club. The competition culminates in a banquet at the AELTCC, Wimbledon, London to be broadcast on Friday 230th June.
Nick Deverell-Smith, one of the central region competitors, was a Warwickshire county player as a young man. He paid a visit to Ampton Road, Edgbaston, Birmingham to look over and play on the oldest tennis lawn in the world.
Here’s GBM 2017 Central Fish Ep32 in which Nick Deverill-Smith visits Ampton Road and hears about the earlt days of lawn tennis from Bob Holland (piece commences around 9:52). Also the grand finale, a banquet GMB Ep45 at the All England Club, Wimbledon. Click here.
