Hitchin Town Fans Forum

I visited the Reverend Pardoe's memorial on Saturday, at Graveley church. His stone records that he was the rector there; but I wonder if the Graveley residents realise that he was once a noted footballer?

...among the original members of the team [Forest FC] was J.Pardoe, who subsequently contributed largely to the development of Association football in Hitchin and Hertfordshire.
The Book of Football (1906) Charles William Alcock

anthony.brown wrote: ↑Mon Jun 28, 2021 8:17 pm I visited the Reverend Pardoe's memorial on Saturday, at Graveley church. His stone records that he was the rector there; but I wonder if the Graveley residents realise that he was once a noted footballer?

Hi Anthony

Thank you for all your excellent postings on the history of Hitchin FC.

Going a little off topic but it is amazing the noted people that are buried in our local graveyards.
I now tend my late grandparents grave at St Ippolyts along with three family graves directly around my grandparents. I read the surname of the grave to the left of my grandparents but did not recognize the surname to anyone I knew from St Ippolyts however one day I looked up and saw this person was a lord. I then noted the grave next to the lord belonged to his late parents.

After some investigation I found the father was a prominent member of the House of Lords in the 1950's and Lord in Waiting (House of Lords version of Chief Whip) to Churchill whilst his mother, was the sister in law of one of the Queen's first cousins.

The grandfather of the Lord was also a prominent politician in and around Churchill's government in the lead up to WW2 and during the early years of the war before his passing. I haven't come across his grave yet but I have read he is also buried at St Ippolyts however I am guessing in the church graveyard rather than the newer graveyard where nan and grandad are.

Another Gravely burial is that of Cuthbert Lucas the son of Hitchin FC stalwart William Tindall Lucas. You may remember his story from a recent Antiques Roadshow. The highest ranking officer kidnapped by the IRA, Cuthbert escaped and lived to a ripe age.
Also there, a lovely memorial to a former Spitfire pilot.