THE Lord Mayor of Leeds, Councillor Al Garthwaite, visited Adel Sports and Social Club on Friday last week to learn of its unique heritage.
At the beginning of the 20th century, the parish of Adel-cum-Eccup just north of Leeds was a rural patch of scattered farms, cottages, and a couple of big houses. It had only a large wooden shed where the people could socialise so, determined to improve community facilities, they began collecting donations of money and land to build a proper village hall.
Then came World War One, and into that little community came tragedy - 18 young men aged between 19 and 32 never came home to their families. These included four young men who had lived in the same row of cottages; co-workers from the Adel Grange estate and the East Moor reformatory; two neighbours and friends who served together and died in the same action; and all three sons of the Rector of Adel Church.
The people were determined their sacrifice would not be forgotten and, led by distinguished local soldiers Lt Colonel Arthur Bray and his older brother Major George Bray, a campaign was launched to create a living memorial to those 18 men rather than a conventional stone obelisk. The members of every household contributed money according to their means and local industrialists donated land. In 1928 Adel Memorial Hall was built and dedicated, along with land for sports grounds, and in 1945 the 25 men from Adel who died in the 2nd World War were added to the dedication.
On April 19, 2024, more than 100 years after the end of the 1st World War, Adel Sports and Social Club welcomed Leeds Lord Mayor, Councillor Al Garthwaite, to see the results of that legacy. Run by the Board of registered charity Adel War Memorial Association, the club has a a sturdy building with a lively bar for socialising, meeting rooms, facilities for snooker, badminton, squash, and live theatre, and 30 acres of grounds providing facilities for its football, cricket, lacrosse, hockey, tennis, archery, softball, and bowls sections. The club has more than 1,600 members, one third of whom are under 18.
Led by past Chairman Richard Poll who has undertaken extensive research into the club’s history, the Lord Mayor toured the sports facilities where she met members of all ages – from Vivienne Bate aged 91, a member since 1953 who was taking part in the theatre production by Drama section The Adel Players, and Morgan Walshaw aged 11, also a member of the cast.
The Lord Mayor saw photos depicting significant moments in the club’s history, enjoyed a buffet tea followed by a drink in the bar, and in the evening attended the current play Two by northern playwright Jim Cartwright which is set in a pub, and posed for a picture pulling a pint at the “bar”.
Some themes of Adel Players’ production featured issues such as domestic abuse and exploitation, the need for greater awareness of which the Lord Mayor has campaigned for since she was a student.
Councillor Garthwaite said: “I had no idea how big and successful Adel Sports and Social Club is. What a wonderful idea it was to turn something as tragic as the loss of local men in two world wars into a place of such enormous benefit to young and old alike. It has served this north Leeds community for almost 100 years and I am delighted to have seen today how its heritage lives on. It is clearly in safe hands.”
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