Origin of historic old football turnstile at Guisborough Town to ‘click’ with local fans!
Written by Bill Perfitt
Teesside football fans attending tomorrow’s big Teesside FA Cup derby clash between Guisborough Town and Redcar Athletic will be literally passing through over 100 years of footballing history.
For an historic classical old football turnstile – which hundreds of thousands of Middlesbrough fans will have passed through for well over 100 years – is being given a new lease of life at Guisborough Town’s Kevin Edward KGV Football Stadium.
The turnstile, thought to be around 130 years old, was legally salvaged from Middlesbrough FC’s Ayresome Park stadium by Guisborough Town about 30 years ago in 1995.
That was around the time Ayresome Park closed its gates for good and Guisborough Town retrieved two turnstiles, one of which has been in operation for about 30 years since at the Club’s Kevin Edward KGV Stadium.
But one of the old turnstiles has been stored in a disused entrance next to the main entrance and Guisborough Town groundsman Don Robinson and his son Paul in particular have been carrying out some detailed research into the history over the turnstile from markings and plates on it…and the actual origin of the turnstile eventually ‘clicked’ on Paul – pun intended!
Says Paul: “I’m 99 per cent certain from my research that this particular turnstile dates from around 1903 when Ayresome Park first opened. There were four turnstiles originally in new Archibald Leitch-designed north stand and the serial numbers of the turnstile dates to that period, so it seems pretty likely the one my dad is restoring at Guisborough KGV Stadium is one of these”.
“It’s more than likely the other one that’s been in operation for about 30 years is also an original dating back to the opening of Ayresome Park, so it looks like out of the four from 1903 Guisborough Town have two of them” added Paul.
Having laid unused for 30 years, the turnstile is being given a face-lift including being repainted – in Guisborough Town and Boro red of course – by Don and other dedicated volunteers at the club.
And here’s the really big news – it will recommence clicking operations this coming Saturday 16 August when Guisborough Town take on Teesside derby rivals Redcar Athletic in a mouth-watering FA Cup Qualifying Round tie.
The newly renovated turnstile will be in the entrance to the right of the main existing turnstile as you look at it from the car park, and will dedicated a ‘Card Only’ entrance – the cash and season tickets entrance is the one on the left.
So roll up you Teesside football fans in your hundreds tomorrow and experience a special piece of history just by passing through the Card only entrance. The ‘clicker’ on the turnstile mechanism is still working so you should be able to hear it as you’re counted through!
