The purposes of the not-for-profit group are:

  • To celebrate and publicise the life of Thomas Henry Gem (1819 – 1881) through publications, exhibitions, community events and a dedicated web site
  • To publicise his role as the originator, with his friend JBA Perera, of lawn tennis here in Birmingham and the creator of the world’s first lawn tennis club in Leamington Spa in 1874 and which survived for less than twenty years
  • To restore and maintain Harry Gem’s grave in Warstone Lane Cemetery
  • To produce and publish the history of Edgbaston Archery & Lawn Tennis Society, the oldest lawn tennis club in the world, where Harry Gem was a member in the 1860s, including the history of the origination and rapid development of lawn tennis in Birmingham and Warwickshire
  • To distribute the book to schools and libraries in Birmingham free of charge
  • To devise and promote a Birmingham lawn tennis trail
  • To create a lawn tennis history display to be erected in the grounds of Edgbaston Archery & Lawn Tennis Society
  • To work with other interested parties to establish a higher profile for this important aspect of Birmingham’s sporting heritage

The Harry Gem Project is a member of the Birmingham Heritage Forum.

Trustees

Chris and Sue Elks are noted historuans of lawn tennis with a significant colletion of related items

Robert Holland, the founding trustee, was born and educated in Birmingham, has spent his working life in the advertising and marketing business and lives in Harborne.

Robert was a pupil at St. Philip’s Grammar School and went on to further study at Birmingham Art College and Oxford Polytechnic (now Oxford Brookes University).

His enthusiasm for lawn tennis was nurtured at a very early age on his grandfather’s grass court in Lincolnshire. In the 1960s Robert was a junior member of the Edgbaston Lawn Tennis Club and then a member of Edgbaston Priory Club, the amalgamation of Edgbaston LTC with Priory Tennis Club.

In 1985, after a number of years away from the game, he joined Edgbaston Archery & Lawn Tennis Society, the oldest lawn tennis club in the world. Here he spent most of the 1990s as honorary secretary, for three years he combined this role with that of chairman and is now a Trustee of the Society. He has been also a council member of the WLTA.

Among his many interests Robert is an historian of lawn tennis, a collector of lawn tennis books and ephemera, and is passionate about promoting Birmingham’s rightful place in the history of early lawn tennis.

Vic Lyttle is a lifelong sportsman (cricket, golf and lawn tennis) whose father represented Ireland in Rugby Union. Vic is a former chairman and honorary treasurer of Edgbaston Archery & Lawn Tennis Society where he is now senior trustee.

Mike Roberts played tennis for Wales as a junior. He is a longstanding member and former chairman of Edgbaston Archery & Lawn Tennis Society.

Grateful thanks to:

Kay Downes for her invaluable advice and assistance in setting up this new web site.

Susie Ridell for narrating our video.

Greg Hughes (1966-2028) friend and sponsor of the original web site domain name and hosting.

English Heritage – West Midlands Heritage Open Days 2010 for permission to use some of their photographs (taken at Edgbaston Archery & Lawn Tennis Society) in the header and elsewhere in this web site.

Sue Behan of Birmingham Tours for her help in raising funds.

Wright Hassall LLP for their generous donation towards the cost of conservation of the Gem Scrapbook.

Gem Grave Restoration Donor Roll of Honour

We extend our grateful thanks to the following for their generous support and donations:

All England Lawn Tennis Club

Bathurst, Sir Benjamin

Birmingham City Council

Calthorpe Estates

Grimmitt Trust

Jagger, Mr P

Lawn Tennis Association

Leigh Masonic Lodge

Limoges Charitable Trust

Malavan Media

Paton, Mr W & Mrs HM

Real Federación Española de Tenis

SAPCA – Sports & Play Constructors Association

Thompson, Mrs S.J.

Turner Trust

Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum