St Helen’s ArchivePreserving the past for the future
Item
PQ109
Object ID
PQ109
Type
Rights Holder
Swansea RFC Memorabilia Community Interest Company
Provenance
St Helen's ground
Season
Description
A composite of three pieces of wood combined use of tongue & groove joints to form a rectangular plaque. Half inch batton lengths run across the joints at top and base for extra support. The whole is hand carved to represent the Swansea Town/City arms and painted the colours of the coat of arms. The plaque originally resided in the grandstand at St Helen's and was removed when the existing stand was replaced by a modern structure in 2005. Dimensions: w: 23 1/2" (59.5cm) x h: 23 1/2" (59.5cm) x depth: 2" (5cm).
Info
This hand carved representation of the Swansea town and later city coat of arms dates back to the demolition of the older grandstand at St Helen's which was built in the early 1890s and replaced by a new one in 1923. This plaque was installed above the players' entrance to the pitch and remained there until the stand in its turn was demolished due to fire risk (the seating galleries were all of wooden construction) in July 1905. A new much unloved metal temporary stand was erected in place of the wooden seated stand.
Interestingly, the plaque represents the motif of the then town of Swansea and not that of the incumbent Swansea Cricket & Football Club (SC&FC), as seen elsewhere in the ground. The announced cost of the 'new' grandstand in 1922 was £7,000. this project to increase capacity and allow a better view than the previous grandstand, was in response the the Cardiff club at Cardiff Arms Park getting an upgrade to its own stand. Clearly the future of international rugby games at St Helen's was also a major factor in such a large expenditure (the 1891 stand had cost £400). It is possible that the Swansea Corporation made funds available to help build the new stand at Swansea - Swansea RFC had announced they could pay half the cost. If this is so, then it does explain how the town's motif and not that of the SC&FC appeared embedded in the stand. The 'new' grandstand was completed in time for and opened at the Wales v France match on 24 February 1923. WRU Hon. Secretary Horace Lyne performed the opening with a gold ceremonial key, which he was presented with afterwards. The earliest known image of the plaque is in the background of a 1927 image of the Swansea 1st XV (see: PH210).
This piece of history from the old stand was kept safe in the groundsman's lock up until it was rediscovered and passed to the St Helen's Archive in 2018. It is possible a place for it may be found when the layout of the St Helen's ground is again changed in 2025. A renovation project has been planned to restore the original bright colours to the plaque.
Interestingly, the plaque represents the motif of the then town of Swansea and not that of the incumbent Swansea Cricket & Football Club (SC&FC), as seen elsewhere in the ground. The announced cost of the 'new' grandstand in 1922 was £7,000. this project to increase capacity and allow a better view than the previous grandstand, was in response the the Cardiff club at Cardiff Arms Park getting an upgrade to its own stand. Clearly the future of international rugby games at St Helen's was also a major factor in such a large expenditure (the 1891 stand had cost £400). It is possible that the Swansea Corporation made funds available to help build the new stand at Swansea - Swansea RFC had announced they could pay half the cost. If this is so, then it does explain how the town's motif and not that of the SC&FC appeared embedded in the stand. The 'new' grandstand was completed in time for and opened at the Wales v France match on 24 February 1923. WRU Hon. Secretary Horace Lyne performed the opening with a gold ceremonial key, which he was presented with afterwards. The earliest known image of the plaque is in the background of a 1927 image of the Swansea 1st XV (see: PH210).
This piece of history from the old stand was kept safe in the groundsman's lock up until it was rediscovered and passed to the St Helen's Archive in 2018. It is possible a place for it may be found when the layout of the St Helen's ground is again changed in 2025. A renovation project has been planned to restore the original bright colours to the plaque.
Keywords
plaque, grandstand
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