The
Mystery of the lost Silver Cup
One of the biggest mysteries
recently solved at Rainham Cricket Club involved a photograph hanging
on the clubhouse wall of a silver cup that was presented to a local
wealthy farmer named James Miles of Siloam Farm in 1857. He allowed
the club to use his meadow at the farm as their original cricket
ground situated in the present Mierscourt Road opposite the Primary
school. On the cup are inscribed the following words:
'Presented to Mr. James
Miles by the members of the Rainham Cricket Club for his kindness
in allowing them the use of his meadow. July 1857.'
In 1957 a relative
of James Miles brought the cup to the club and presented it as a
gift to celebrate the 100th anniversary of that year. A photograph
was taken of it and placed on the clubhouse wall but after this
nobody seemed to know what had happened to the cup. The mystery
remained unsolved for many years until recently when ex club captain
Terry Glazier (who played during the 1960s and 70s and now lives
in Hastings) saw my article about the founding of Rainham Cricket
Club in a 2003 edition of 'Action Forum.' He made a special journey
to inform other club members and me that the cup was in fact safe
and secure in the Rainham branch of the Midland Bank. Club President
Stewart Macfarlane, realizing that the Midland Bank no longer existed
in Rainham, traced it to the HSBC Bank vault in Rainham Shopping
Precinct where it is safe and secure.
Terry Glazier
informed the local press in 1972 that the cup, that was originally
made in 1823, had been valued at £6,000 and had been put in
the bank vault because it was too valuable to be left on show at
the club. This now means that the oldest club artefact can be displayed
in 2006 as part of the 150th anniversary celebrations - a very timely
discovery.
The other debatable point
involving the cup is that of the date. The founding date of the
club was always believed to be 1857 because of the date on the cup.
However, with my discovery of a match report and scorecard of the
first ever club match against the Angel Club Strood in an 1856 copy
of the 'Rochester Gazette' which took place on July 2nd, 1856, this
was found to be incorrect. The cup was presented to James Miles
at one of the club quarterly meetings in the year after the club
had played their first ever match in their first season. Therefore,
the correct founding date of the club and the whereabouts of the
silver cup have now been solved.
David Wood 2004
