125 Years Of History

Mount Albert Bowling Club Established 1897

On September 15th, 1897, just down the road at Ferndale House, the home of Mr Tonson Garlick, a meeting was held among those of the district who were interested in forming a bowling club. The meeting unanimously resolved to form the Mount Albert Bowling Club. They adopted the rules of Bowls Auckland with a few minor amendments.

They elected a committee, with Mr Garlick as President, to run their affairs. The Garlick’s were a prominent family in the district and much of the local activities occurred in and around their place. The local tennis club was already established on their property so it was only natural that the family would make available some land on which the bowling club could be established.

The club hired their first greenkeeper for 15 shillings a week. Two rinks were laid in, and eventually the inaugural opening day for the new club arrived on October 23rd, 1897. The first members paid a subscription of one guinea.

The young club was not a year old when disaster struck. Mr Garlick embarked upon a trip to England, contracted an illness, and died. The loss was a severe blow for the fledgling club as Tonson had been the driving force behind the club’s establishment. The Garlick family, however, maintained a significant involvement with the club during its formative years.