Map of the week – Lord’s Cricket Ground

Map: Stanford’s London Street Map – 1891

The home of cricket.
Lord’s Cricket Ground, is in St John’s Wood, London. Rather than referring to any connection with the peerage, Lord’s is actually named after its founder, Thomas Lord  (1755 – 1832), an English professional cricketer who played first-class cricket from 1787 to 1802. It is owned by Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) and is the home of Middlesex County Cricket Club. Lord’s is also widely referred to as the “home of cricket” and is home to the world’s oldest sporting museum.

Lord’s today is not on its original site, being the third of three grounds that Lord established between 1787 and 1814. His first ground, now referred to as Lord’s Old Ground, was where Dorset Square now stands next to Marylebone Station. His second ground, Lord’s Middle Ground, was used from 1811 to 1813 before being abandoned to make way for the construction of the Regent’s Canal. The present Lord’s ground is about 250 yards north-west of the site of the Middle Ground. Next door to the ground can be seen the Nursery still referred to in cricketing circles as the Nursery End of the ground.

Some facts about Lord’s:
The earliest known match played on the current Lord’s Cricket Ground was Marylebone Cricket Club v Hertfordshire on 22 June 1814.
1866-67 Freehold of the Ground purchased for £18,333 6s 8d.
1868 Aboriginal cricketers become the first Australian team to play cricket at Lord’s
The main survivor of the Victorian era is The Pavilion with its famous Long Room.
Lord’s is also the home of the MCC Museum, which is the oldest sports museum in the world, and contains the world’s most celebrated collection of cricket memorabilia, including The Ashes, which again will be the centre of this summers anticipated clash with the current Australian side.

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