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The 12^th Annual Ham United Group (HUG) architectural tour will take place at Ham Polo Club. The emphasis will be landscape, setting, as well as the club buildings. The tour will be led by Richard Woolf, Ham resident, architect and building historian, in conjunction with Howard Davis, local Petersham resident and past Ham Polo Club chairman.

In its centenary season, Ham Polo Club continues to bring together sport, hospitality and community across its 23-acre grounds. Founded in 1926 as the Ham Common Polo Club, located initially by Brown Gate House on Church Road, Ham Polo Club is the last remaining survivor of the many smaller clubs that once surrounded London. From the beginning, Ham had a different character to the larger institutions. It was less formal, more local and built around players who came for the enjoyment of the game, rather than the prestige surrounding the major tournaments.

The club’s original grounds included one full-sized pitch between Richmond Gates and Sheen alongside two smaller playing areas near Ham Common. In 1954, George Stevens, the Dysart family’s tenant at Ham House Farm, agreed to turn the Ham House orchard into a polo field for the club. The move helped establish the setting that still defines Ham Polo Club today.

During the 1970s, Ham secured the freehold of its land, protecting the long-term future of polo at Ham. This permanence became increasingly important as development pressure across London threatened many sporting grounds and open spaces. The club’s survival through this period ensured that Ham would remain part of London’s sporting landscape while many of its contemporaries disappeared. The club increasingly became a custodian of the London polo tradition, while remaining rooted in a strong local playing community.

In 1996 a second ground behind the current clubhouse was acquired. The new ground was formally opened by HRH The Prince of Wales, now King Charles III. Today, Ham Polo Club retains is ethos of a hundred years ago. Horsemanship, competition and a strong sense of community.

Richard Woolf RIBA

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Numbers for the tour will be limited to 30. There is no charge.

Directions: Arrival on foot or bicycle is advised. Ham Polo Club entrance is by the Deutsche Schule main gates off the avenue leading from Tree Close on Petersham Road (A307), located between Richmond and Kingston and opposite The Fox & Duck Pub. Take the road to the left of the gatehouse and follow signage.

Car parking is available on Meadlands Drive, TW10, with a short walk through Ham Copse.

Further directions can be found on the Ham Polo website:

https://www.hampoloclub.com/visiting

Photo: Ham Polo Club, © Richard Woolf, 2018