Hotspur Towers

You might be wondering why there is a futuristic picture on a column that normally tends to trip through the archives. I expect you have seen over the last week that the Secretary of State is expected to make a decision soon on Haringey Councils plan to compulsory purchase some properties near White Hart Lane and thus help move the new stadium a little closer. Therefore it seems a suitable moment to look back at "The Lane" and a few moments in its history.

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5- Lets first look at the Tottenham High Road. In this first image from a postcard dated 1900. This is from the south as you approach the ground. The shop blinds on the right are roughly where the Spurs mega store now stands. Just a year earlier in the summer of 1899 Charrington’s Brewery were planning to build houses on a plot of land they owned off the High Road in Tottenham. Beckwith’s Nursery had been used to grow flowers for the London markets. When the club offered to purchase the land from them. The brewery decided that the income from match day fans would be higher than the regular income from the houses and sold the land to the club.

Work went ahead at full speed and only four months later Tottenham held their first public event. A fundraising military tournament. The first game at the stadium was on Monday 4th September 1899, a friendly with the Nottingham County club. A ceremonial kick-off was performed by the then Chairman, Charles Roberts before a crowd of 5,000.
For the record we won 4-1 and David Copeland hit the first hat trick on the ground. Copeland hit 106 goals in 300 games for Spurs.

1. The High Road, 1900

That season we won the Southern League and were runners up in the Southern District Combination. With one  FA Cup game that's a total of 45 games for the season.

Image 2 -  Is an Ariel shot from the west in 1923. You can see the houses that ran along the east side of the stadium and part of the north.
You will also note that Paxton Road on the north side then turns and goes down the east side of the ground. The name was changed to Worcester Road much later when a road extension leading away to the north was added.

Image 3 - Is a much more recent ariel view from the same side, and you can see how the whole area has been developed. White Hart Lane station and the   properties currently under review are bottom left corner.

2. From the west, 1923

Another moment in the Lane’s history worth remembering came with the Second Round of the FA Cup on 20th  February 1904 which saw us entertain Aston Villa. Having won at Everton in the previous round Spurs hopes were high and a massive crowd was expected. The club installed extra seating with benches along the side of

the pitch.  A crowd of 32,000 is recorded for that day, nearly three times the average. The club closed the gates half an hour before kick-off, for the first time in the clubs history. It was clear very quickly that this was done too late. After fifteen minutes the crowd split over on to the pitch, then again a few minutes later. At half-time the crowd again split over, most likely to ease congestion, however news spread that The FA officials at the ground had conferred with the referee and decided the game should not be recorded as a Cup-tie. Many people refused to leave the pitch.

3. From the west

It has been suggested that with Spurs trailing 0-1 they were trying to get the game abandoned something that had happened previously at other grounds and finally the crowd got their way. The FA fined Spurs £350 and the game was replayed at Aston Villa. A game Tottenham won with a goal from “Bristol”Jones. Known as Bristol as that was his previous club and we already had Jack Jones in the team. Sadly 'Bristol' died only a couple of years later from typhoid.

4. The West Stand opening, East Stand, 1909

The first West Stand was a wooden structure transferred from the Northumberland Ground.  Archibald Leitch designed both the new West and East Stands.
Does that name sound familiar?  Archibald Leitch was also the real name of Hollywood star Cary Grant. Which is why John Clesse used it in the film "A Fish called Wanda"

The West Stand was replaced in February 1982. It was re-opened by former FIFA President Sir Stanley Rous. Who then watched Spurs beat Wolves 6-1 with Ricki Villa grabbing a hat trick.

The East Stand containing the famous 'Shelf' was rebuilt and due to open for the 1989-90 season. However delays meant it wasn't ready on time.

5. East Stand, 1934

The first game with Coventry was postponed. The FA deducted two points but this was later changed to a fine on appeal. It was finally opened in time for the Arsenal game which we won 2-1. 

6. The East Stand.

Image 6- The East Stand, with the famous "Shelf" and TV Gantry above it.  On the roof is the old press box, which you reached by lift and on top again the Cockerel.

The press use to complain regularly they were too high. The Daily Express even carried cartoons about it. So when the new West Stand was opened the media were moved and now they say its too low
and cant see properly!

White Hart Lane was taken over by the government during World War 1. The ground was used as a gas mask factory and a rife range. Tottenham would play their 'home' games at Highbury and Clapton Orient. During World War 2 Spurs played at the Lane and the East Stand was used as a morgue for air raid victims and the police stationed their horses in the lower levels. Highbury was used as an ARP (Air Raid Precautions) depot so this time we played host to our neighbours. On the 22nd April 1944 we had the strange occurrence of Arsenal playing their home Wartime League South game against Spurs at the Lane in front of more than 26,000. It was a 3-3 draw. Incidentally our 'home' game in December was won 2-1 as we won the League and the Football League South Cup that season. 

Maybe someone out there can help! When I was knee high to a corner flag I was told that at the end of World War 2 the Arsenal Board said they would always have some blue in their badge to mark the fact we "had taken them in." Although I was told a number of stories which I found hard to believe at the time they turned out to be true, (I will save the dead parrot for another day). Except for this tale,I've not come across this 'fact' elsewhere If anyone else has heard it before please pass it on.

Images  - Top -THFC, 1,3,4 & 5- Tottenham Summerfield, 2- English Heritage,
Thanks - THFC, THOS, Bob Goodwin - The Complete Record, Tottenham -Summerfield. English Heritage, Enfield Newspapers, The Daily Mail.

About the author:
Keith Harrison, Nilgiris, TN
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