The Walkers of Southgate

The Walkers of Southgate were a prominent English cricketing family associated with Arnos Grove house in Southgate, Middlesex. They were not a commercial brand in the modern sense, but a family group remembered for its collective contribution to nineteenth-century cricket, local sporting life, and the institutional development of Middlesex cricket. Their social and financial position was connected partly to the brewing business Taylor Walker. Isaac Walker, the brewer, and Sarah Sophia Taylor had twelve children, seven of whom became notable cricketers: John, Alfred, Frederic, Arthur Henry, Vyell Edward, Russell Donnithorne, and Isaac Donnithorne Walker. The brothers were educated at Harrow School and Trinity College, Cambridge, institutions that helped shape their shared sporting and social networks. The family’s cricketing importance developed in Southgate. The three eldest brothers initially played for the Southgate Albert, a village team that used the uneven Chapel Fields wicket. During the early 1850s, John Walker arranged for the ground to be improved and re-turfed. The brothers subsequently founded Southgate Cricket Club in 1855, creating a more permanent local base for their activities. Their influence expanded beyond the village when they helped establish a Middlesex team in 1859 and were involved in the formation of the official Middlesex County Cricket Club in 1864. The first match played by the Middlesex team took place in Southgate against Kent in 1859, with Middlesex winning by 78 runs. The family’s ground also became a venue for important pre-Test-era cricket. Before Test cricket began in 1877, four of the brothers played for the United All-England Eleven. The United All-England team and Marylebone Cricket Club visited Southgate to play the Walker brothers and their local side, and crowds were reported to have reached approximately 10,000. These matches illustrate the family’s role in connecting village cricket with the increasingly organized and nationally visible form of the sport developing in Victorian England. The brothers were also instrumental in securing Lord’s as the home of Middlesex county cricket in 1877. Their contribution therefore extended from playing and hosting matches to helping create the institutional infrastructure of county cricket. The family’s original ground at Chapel Fields, on Waterfall Road in Southgate, later became known as the Walker Cricket Ground. It was renamed in 1907 and continued under the care of the Walker Trust, preserving a physical link between the family and the local game. The seven brothers were part of a wider family with cricketing and scholarly connections. Their uncle Henry Walker was also a cricketer, while another uncle, Francis Walker, was an entomologist. The brothers were nephews of Henry Walker and great-grandsons of the merchant Isaac Walker. All seven brothers were eventually buried in the family vault at Christ Church, Southgate. Their legacy is therefore both sporting and local: they helped shape Middlesex cricket, supported the development of Southgate as a cricketing center, and left an enduring name attached to the Walker Cricket Ground.

The history of the Walkers of Southgate is primarily a history of family participation in Victorian English cricket rather than the history of a formal company or consumer brand. The family lived at Arnos Grove house in Southgate, Middlesex, and possessed social and financial resources associated in part with the Taylor Walker brewing business. Isaac Walker, a brewer, married Sarah Sophia Taylor, and their twelve children included seven brothers who became keen and accomplished cricketers. Their education at Harrow School and Trinity College, Cambridge placed them within institutions where cricket was an important element of public-school and university culture. The brothers’ organized cricketing activity began locally. The three eldest first played for the Southgate Albert, a village side using Chapel Fields. The pitch was described as difficult and uneven until John Walker arranged its improvement and re-turfing in the early 1850s. This intervention provided the basis for a more reliable home ground and helped the family move from informal village participation toward organized club cricket. In 1855, the brothers founded Southgate Cricket Club. Four years later, in 1859, they helped establish a Middlesex team. The team’s first recorded match was played in Southgate against Kent, which Middlesex defeated by 78 runs. The family’s activities thus coincided with the broader nineteenth-century transition from local and itinerant cricket toward county representation and more formal sporting institutions. The Walkers also hosted prominent visiting teams. Before the creation of Test cricket in 1877, four brothers played for the United All-England Eleven. Both that team and the Marylebone Cricket Club visited Southgate to play against the brothers and their side. Attendance could reach around 10,000, a substantial audience that demonstrates the local ground’s importance in the cricketing network of the period. The Walker family’s home matches gave Southgate visibility beyond the immediate district and connected the village to nationally recognized cricket organizations. In 1864, the brothers were involved in establishing the official Middlesex County Cricket Club. Their contribution continued when they helped secure Lord’s as the county’s home in 1877, the same year that Test cricket began. This was a significant institutional achievement: the family’s role was not limited to playing matches, but included supporting the creation of a durable county structure and the selection of a prestigious permanent venue. The original Chapel Fields ground on Waterfall Road remained associated with the family. In 1907 it became known as the Walker Cricket Ground, and the Walker Trust maintained it thereafter. The ground served as a lasting local memorial to the family’s cricketing work. The family’s wider connections included their uncle Henry Walker, who was also a cricketer, and their uncle Francis Walker, an entomologist. The brothers were great-grandchildren of the merchant Isaac Walker, indicating that their sporting identity formed part of a longer family history. The seven brothers died between 1870 and 1922 and were buried in the family vault at Christ Church, Southgate. Their collective legacy rests on the founding of Southgate Cricket Club, the creation of a Middlesex team, participation in leading pre-Test cricket, support for the establishment of Middlesex County Cricket Club, and the development of Lord’s as the county’s home. The family is consequently remembered as an important force in the organization and public profile of nineteenth-century Middlesex cricket.

• 1907

  Chapel Fields renamed Walker Cricket Ground

  [1]The Walkers of Southgateen.wikipedia.org

  The family’s former cricket ground on Waterfall Road became known as the Walker Cricket Ground and was maintained by the Walker Trust.

• 1877

  Middlesex established at Lord’s

  [1]The Walkers of Southgateen.wikipedia.org

  The Walkers helped establish Lord’s as the home of Middlesex county cricket.

• 1864

  Official Middlesex County Cricket Club established

  [1]The Walkers of Southgateen.wikipedia.org

  The family was instrumental in the formation of the official Middlesex County Cricket Club.

• 1859

  Middlesex team established

  [1]The Walkers of Southgateen.wikipedia.org

  The brothers helped establish a Middlesex team, whose first match was played in Southgate against Kent and ended in a 78-run victory.

• 1855

  Southgate Cricket Club founded

  [1]The Walkers of Southgateen.wikipedia.org

  The Walker brothers founded Southgate Cricket Club after improving the local Chapel Fields ground.

Historical cricketing family and sporting institution-builder

1. 1The Walkers of Southgateen.wikipedia.org