By Mark Andrews and Andy Kelly
After our last post regarding shareholdings we were sent some very interesting 1910, 1911 and 1914 registers of shareholders.
While various sources on the net have alluded in the past to Glasgow Rangers holding shares in The Arsenal, these lists show that they did purchase 2 shares sometime in the latter part of 1910 and early 1911. They still hold shares, but their current holding is either a continuation of these early ones which due to share splits has now become a total of 16 shares or alternatively they were gifted some in the 1930s for assisting when Woolwich Arsenal were in financial straights, which they certainly were in 1910. This initial purchase was possibly prompted by George Morrell the Woolwich manager at the time and fellow shareholder, who had been at Rangers previously.
Whatever the real reason for their accumulation of 16 shares, their current parlous state suggests they would do well to sell, as financially Rangers appear to an outsider to be in a similar position to Woolwich Arsenal 100 years ago. [Update 16 May 2013 – Rangers sold these shares in their recent turbulent financial period]
However two other teams felt that Woolwich Arsenal were the kind of football company they wanted to be a part of.
The first team was Fulham who at around the same time as Rangers purchased one share. They disposed of this share sometime between the first and second world wars. Their purchase was understandable as at this period Hall and Norris were heading up both clubs.
The second team may be a surprise, but not if you read the title, for they were none other than our old friends: Tottenham Hotspur, who purchased one share sometime between May and July 1910. (The July date is our best assumption of when they sold it, but their name was still in the logs in 1916 with the total crossed out).
This purchase was not from a friendly team helping out another as at this period the teams were rivals; they had replaced Millwall as Woolwich Arsenal’s chief adversary for the past few seasons.
On the other hand if it was a hostile attempt to take over it was pretty poor as they only purchased one share and would have needed approximately 600 to gain control from Hall, Leavey and Norris.
Dear sir
I am plotting my family tree and it is said that one of my ancestors A Cameron was an original Arsenal shareholder. I noticed in your introduction that you have the shareholders list for 1910 – 1914. Would you be able send me any information you have that would shed any information. I believe he was a baker in plumstead and may have lived at the grange. If it is not possible to send the information for any reason would you be able to advise where I could obtain a copy of the register.
Thanks in advance
Glen howorth
We have an ancestor wh
Why are the Arsenal archivists reluctant to acknowledge that small independent business owners such as my Grandfather John whybrow invested in shares in Arsenal in 1912/3 to help with the move to Highbury?
Ive no idea Colin, but as I understand it the company that existed in 1912/13 doesn’t exist now. But I do know that when I wrote the series of booklets on Arsenal’s history for the Supporters Association, the directors at the time (not the ones who are now directors) thanked AISA for doing it, and said they were not aware of the history of the club – and that was the broad history, not the history of detailed events.