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* According to EA Greswell (B'1899) who wrote in his Repton Cricket 1866-1905 book by Alfred Cochrane (O'1878):

† Pictures of The Arch

# Relaying of The Square in 2004

“Wayfarer” in a letter to ‘The Field’ of 13/1/55 gives the original contract as follows:-

Frank Watson remembers:

Date. Repton Feb 28th 1946 (sic 1846)

It didn’t look quite so good in the summer of 2004 when as master i/c Cricket and with the expert

Gentlemen,

supervision of the brilliant groundsman, Mike Kettle, I oversaw the relaying of almost the entire ground!

I will undertake to pare off the turf from the intended cricket ground and relay the turf upon the same in

accordance with the instructions given by Mr Bateman and others for the sum of Forty Two Pounds and

Nine Shillings. £42-9-0

J. Somers(?)

It was found among the papers of the Rev. J F Bateman d. 1907. He was at Repton under Peile 1843-47 and was

subsequently Fellow of St John’s College, Cambridge.

In his notes he says:

‘We used to play on a field at the back of The Hall, just across (sic. by) the Old Trent…

… I turned the first sod of the new ground 29th May 1846’.

It is curious that the contract was made with boys still at the school, and one wonders how the money was raised.

The original contract sum was clearly exceeded.'

This is the article from page 66 of The Field magazine of 13th January 1955:

(with kind permission of The Field magazine)

The long Abbey Wall on Milton Road

‡ JCP Aldous was given a silver wheelbarrow, pick and shovel by Dr Pears for his efforts in levelling the Paddock.

https://www.thefield.co.uk

Sadly the pick and shovel are missing but the wheelbarrow is shown below:

The levelling is discussed on p.179 of Macdonald's 'Short History of Repton'

"As the numbers increased, the little cricket field that had been levelled in 1845 became quite inadequate,

and in 1859 the fence dividing it from the Monks' Paddock was moved about a hundred yards, and space

obtained for another two games. But even this was insufficient by 1866, when there were 200 boys,

and an attempt was made to cope with the situation by bringing the Upper Paddock into use. It was then

a rough and sloping meadow, and the scheme of levelling it was evolved by J. C. P. Aldous of the Hall,

and carried out entirely by the School under his direction, with the aid of trucks lent by Lord Chesterfield

from his Bretby collieries. Dr. Pears took a lively interest in the work, and on its conclusion presented the

engineer (Aldous had himself designed and constructed his own water-level) with a silver wheelbarrow,

pick and shovel. It was a notable enterprise and deserved a happier result. Unfortunately the surface

proved too thin and hard; the ball flew about at any angle, and games there were somewhat farcical."

The inscription reads:

I. C. P. ALDOUS

J.C.P. Aldous

REPANDUNENSI OPERUM PRAEFECTO

A Repton Prefect who is called upon to

CAMPO QUI VOCATUR SUPERIORE

receive this present as most accurate

AD LIBELLUM ACCURATISSIME EXAEQUATO

compensation for his efforts on the upper field

D. D. S. A. PEARS

Doctor of Divinity S.A. Pears

A. S. MDCCCLXVIII

In the School Year 1868

D.D.

Doctor Divinitatis

Translation courtesy of Russell G Embery (Staff 1998- )

A.S.

Anno Scolastico