Through the years.
The First 20 Years
Between the Wars
Re-formation & Hornsey
League Hockey
The Paddington Effect
The National League Era
Of General Interest
Welcome
Welcome to the online Registry of Hampstead & Westminster Hockey Club, created to celebrate the Club’s 125th anniversary in 2019.
If you are searching for the Club's main website click below
We hope that you will enjoy our extensive collection of hockey material and memories covering the period from the founding of the Club in 1894.
1894
Hampstead Hockey Club became Hampstead & Westminster on the move to the artificial playing surfaces at Paddington Recreation Ground in 1984. Even before the founding in 1894, the Club existed as the hockey section of Hampstead Cricket Club.
1950s
The Club had a nomadic existence in its early days and, again, in the 1950s, when it was reformed after the Second World War. It has played at several grounds, having struggled to find suitable pitches when hockey was played predominantly on grass. These difficulties are outlined elsewhere on this site.
1908
On the playing front, the Club enjoyed huge success in its early years up to the outbreak of war in 1914. The Great War led to the suspension of the sport at almost every club in the country. Two club players won gold medals for England at the Olympic Games in 1908. At the Antwerp Games in 1920, three club players won gold medals and a fourth winner joined the Club shortly after the Games had concluded.
1970s
In the 1970s, the Club considered how to support women’s hockey and a few years of mixed hockey preceded the first appearance of a women’s team in Hampstead colours in 1982. This led to the formal constitution of a women’s section in 1984.
The last 20 years
The last 20 years have witnessed a resurgence in the Club’s playing fortunes. The Men’s 1st XI gained promotion to the National League in its Centenary year, and in 2002, joined the Premier Division, of which it has a remained a member ever since. The Women’s 1st XI was also promoted to the nationally constituted Investec Women’s Hockey League in 2015 and played initially in the East Conference.
The collection on this site is by no means a complete record of the rich history of the Club. We will add to it over time as new material comes to light and as current information is added for the record.
In large part, the collection contains material preserved over many years by former members, Colin Greenhalgh and the late Stan Elgar. It has been supplemented by records kept by Richard Chapman and Dave Dixon.
The story of the shirt
Take a look through the history
Take a look at the most recent entries to the Registry of Hampstead & Westminster Hockey Club
