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Then and Now: The Journal receives complaint about Grantham Gala Committee after sport left out

05:00, 19 October 2024

In 1869 the Grantham Journal received a complaint about the Gala Committee from Tommy Dodd the secretary of the Pitch and Toss Society, writes Ruth Crook of Grantham Civic Society.

He claimed that the sport had been omitted from the list of events at the forthcoming Grantham gala. Mr Dodd went on to explain ‘for the benefit of those only partly acquainted with this noble study, and have a desire to gain further insight into its mysteries’.

He continued ‘I might add that it may be witnessed through all its progressive stage (from the first “toss-up for sides,” to the extraction of the last penny-piece from the loser’s pockets) by you or any one (policemen excepted) who will take a stroll along the banks of the canal, near the swing-bridge, on a Sunday morning or afternoon, because, having a taste for “the good and the beautiful,” the society for the encouragement for this sport always assemble in the most picturesque nooks and sequestered places’.

The swing bridge on Grantham Canal.
The swing bridge on Grantham Canal.

He continued that their current practice ground was either side of the swing-bridge and that their society now numbered 48 people.

The Pitch and Toss Society used to play their sport by the swing bridge at Grantham Canal.
The Pitch and Toss Society used to play their sport by the swing bridge at Grantham Canal.
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