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1924 saw the official opening of the Miners’ Welfare recreation field which had been secured through funds allocated from the Miners’ Central Committee under the welfare scheme which had originated out of the famous Sankey Commission report. The securing of a recreation field in Timsbury was just what the neighbourhood needed. The field itself was purchased at a cost of £750 and the opening ceremony was performed by Mr. E.L. Speakman of Timsbury. A fancy dress parade took place and amongst the winners was Roy Purnell, Jack Bowditch and Olive Moon.
One of Timsbury’s most prominent figures of the day, Harry Cox, died in a tragic accident at Wheeler’s Crossroads. The clerk of the Parish Council and assistant overseer of the Parish was a passenger in a sidecar driven by Charles Rhoades of Clutton who was also killed. The motor cycle combination was in collision with a car driven by Timsbury doctor George Bevir who was not seriously injured. At the inquest a hedge was blamed for the accident and no blame was attached to the doctor.
A memorial service was held at Tabor Church where Mr. Cox was Sunday School Superintendent. He was clearly a man who was highly respected and I quote from the newspaper of the day:
“ The distressing event has cast quite a gloom over the whole of the parish and it is doubtful if the sympathies and sorrows of the whole district has been stirred to such depths since the days of the never-to-be forgotten Timsbury colliery explosion”.
Captain Walter Barton Scobell, formerly of Kingwell Hall, was selected as prospective Labour Party candidate for Bath. Kingwell Hall in 1924 was used as a preparatory school for boys and in earlier times it had been the venue for village cricket matches. Captain Scobell was a keen sportsman playing tennis, polo, rugby and cricket. He was chairman of the North Somerset branch of the Labour Party and he spent a lot of time helping with social welfare in High Littleton.
The co-operators of Timsbury held their annual tea and sports in August. The event was organised under the auspices of the Central Education Committee and the fancy dress procession was headed by the Peasedown Brass Band. Tea was held for approximately 400 people but true to British tradition the sports had to be abandoned due to rain! A meeting then followed in the Church House with the speakers Mr. A.V. Alexander ( Co-op M.P. for Hillsborough and Parliamentary Secretary to the Board of Trade) and Mr. Fred Gould, the constituency M.P.
Timsbury Athletic lost 1-0 to Paulton in the second replay of their Somerset Senior Cup tie after Paulton had grabbed a late equalizer in the first meeting between the two sides. Timsbury finished just below half-way in the Somerset Senior League but they were struggling financially. At the AGM it was reported that the club had a deficiency of £21-19s and it was decided to resign from all senior competitions and to apply to join the Bath and District League and the Chew Valley League. The club’s colours were also to change to maroon and sky to fit in with the Aston Villa design.
Timsbury Male Voice Choir under Oliver Janes won a competition at Frome. The test pieces were “Crossing the bar” and “Hymn to Apollo” and the rendering of Tennyson’s famous poem received “well merited appreciation” and was spoken highly of by the adjudicator Dr. Cooper. Timsbury gained 173 points, High Littleton 171, Yeovil 166, Midsomer Norton 164 and Bishop Sutton 161. The first prize was worth £10.
King George V declared the British Empire Exhibition open at Wembley. The king’s speech was broadcast by wireless all over the Empire – the first time this had been possible:
“His majesty’s voice was amazingly clear. Not a single syllable was indistinct and to all seated in the stadium it was as clear as if the King were speaking only a few yards away.”