Greatest Cricket Moments

Surrey County Cricket Club Formally Founded — Horns Tavern, Kennington, August 1845

1845-08-22n/aFoundation meeting of Surrey County Cricket Club, Horns Tavern, Kennington, 22 August 18452 min readSeverity: Mild

Summary

On 22 August 1845, around a hundred Surrey cricketers met at the Horns Tavern in Kennington and resolved to constitute themselves as the Surrey County Cricket Club. The meeting confirmed the lease of a market garden at Kennington — what would become the Oval — and laid the foundations for one of the strongest first-class counties of the next two centuries.

Background

The Montpelier Cricket Club had been the strongest Surrey side of the 1830s. When their Walworth ground was lost to housing in 1844, leading members began to look for a new venue capable of hosting major cricket. The Duchy of Cornwall's Kennington market garden — flat, well-drained, accessible by the new railways — was identified as ideal.

Build-Up

Through the spring and summer of 1845 the ground was turfed and a small pavilion built. Cricket was already being played on it before the formal foundation meeting in August.

What Happened

The Montpelier Cricket Club, then Surrey's strongest, had lost its ground at Walworth in 1844 to housing development. William Baker, a member of Montpelier and the Surrey Club, identified a market garden owned by the Duchy of Cornwall at Kennington and persuaded the proprietor of the Horns Tavern, William Houghton, to take the head lease. Houghton agreed terms with the Duchy in March 1845 and a 31-year lease was signed at a rent of £120 a year. The ground was turfed in the spring and summer of 1845 and the first match was played on it in May. The meeting of 22 August at the Horns Tavern, attended by around a hundred Surrey gentlemen and professionals, formally constituted the Surrey County Cricket Club, elected officers and confirmed the financial arrangement with Houghton. Within ten years Surrey would be playing the leading counties at the Oval and the venue would be hosting the championship match between North and South. By 1859 the Oval would be staging Test-class cricket; by 1880 it would host England's first home Test.

Key Moments

1

1844: Montpelier CC lose their Walworth ground

2

Mar 1845: Houghton signs 31-year lease with the Duchy of Cornwall

3

Spring 1845: Kennington market garden turfed and prepared

4

May 1845: First cricket played on the new ground

5

22 Aug 1845: Foundation meeting at the Horns Tavern; Surrey CCC formally constituted

Timeline

1844

Montpelier CC lose Walworth ground

Mar 1845

Lease signed with Duchy of Cornwall

May 1845

First match on the Oval

22 Aug 1845

Surrey CCC formally constituted at the Horns Tavern

Aftermath

Surrey CCC grew quickly. By 1851 the club had over 800 members. The Oval was leased directly to the club from 1854. The ground's status as one of the great cricket venues was confirmed by the staging of the first home Test in 1880 and the Ashes Test of 1882 from which the urn took its name.

⚖️ The Verdict

The foundation meeting that created the strongest of the early professional counties and the ground that became the spiritual home of English cricket south of the Thames.

Legacy & Impact

Surrey CCC has won the County Championship more than 20 times and produced an unbroken line of England players from Caffyn and Stephenson to Hobbs, May, Surridge, Stewart and Pope. The Oval, the legacy of that 1845 lease, is now a Test ground of 25,500 capacity and the customary venue for the final Test of every English summer.

Frequently Asked Questions

Who actually held the lease of the Oval?▾
William Houghton, proprietor of the Horns Tavern, took the head lease from the Duchy of Cornwall in March 1845; Surrey CCC sub-leased from him until taking on the head lease themselves in 1854.
Was Surrey CCC the first county cricket club?▾
No. Sussex (1839) and several other counties already had clubs; Surrey was, however, the first to establish itself on a permanent metropolitan ground that could host major matches.

Tags

#surrey-ccc#horns-tavern#kennington#1845#the-oval#william-baker#william-houghton#iconic-moment#county-foundation

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