Rifle club founded in Wateringbury (1901)

Post date: Jan 10, 2012 4:26:46 PM

The Wateringbury Parish Magazine of January 1901 reported the founding of a new club. There were many clubs and associations founded and active in the village at the end of the nineteenth century/beginning of the twentieth century. Some, like cricket, were founded and discontinued in a short space of time. The rifle club was founded during the Boer War and was still active in 1912, 1946 (when it acquired a new constitution) and 2017. Certain names seem to come up regularly in connection with these clubs, such as Miss Edith Login (see also Boys brigade) from the Thatched House.

THE WARDE MINIATURE RIFLE CLUB.—At a well-attended meeting held at the King's Head on November 8th, Colonel Warde in the chair, it was unanimously carried that a Rifle Gallery Club should be formed for the district, and a provisional committee was formed to draft rules to be submitted to a general meeting. Colonel C. E. Warde, M.P., was elected president, Mr. Augustus Leney a vice-president and Mr. Montague White honorary secretary.

Rules were subsequently drawn up, and a sub-committee formed to carry on futher arrangements for starting the club. The rules have been approved, with a slight alteration in the name, by the National Rifle Association. A general meeting must shortly be held for the purpose of formally adopting the rules and of electing the committee.

It may be well to give a little further information kindly supplied by the secretary. One of the advantages of affiliation with the National Rifle Association lies in the fact that the rifles would then be exempt from gun licence. The conditions imposed by the N.R.A. include the following: an affiliation fee of 10s.; a range of not less, than 25 yards; shooting always to be carried on under authorised supervision; regulations as to rifles and targets; no rifles or ammunition to remain in the possession of individual members.

The rules of the club regulate the conditions of shooting, and propose an annual subscription of 2s. 6d. per member to be paid in advance. Members will also have to buy all ammunition from the club— the cost will probably be 2¹/₂d. per 8 rounds. Members will sign their names in a book in the order in which they arrive at the range for practice at every meeting, and they will shoot in that order. But no member will be able to shoot off his rounds until he has received express permission from the instructor or committee-man in charge. Fines will be imposed for breaking the rules—to be paid before resuming practice.

We hope the club will be a real success, and that members will turn up in force at the general meeting. We must not omit to mention that the conception of the club was due to Miss Edith Login.

The Parish magazine subsequently reported that the Rifle Range was opened on Easter Eve by Dr. W. F. Fry (in the absence of Col. Warde due to illness) who fired the first round and 'made a respectable score'. At the end of it first year two competitions were held: Mr. Sidney Court won the Warde Cup; and A.A. Reader won the second, handicap competition. The club had 70 members at the end of its first year (including 5 Boys brigade members). The Boys Brigade collapsed about this time following the departure of Miss Edith Login from the village. In the second year membership had increased to 100 and there was a match against Maidstone Rifle Club which Wateringbury won by 'the handsome margin of ten points'. Wateringbury were represented by Percy Button, Ed Goodwin, A. E. Brooks, W. Fry, Sidney Court, Montagu White, A. Brooks and A. Starmer.