Celebrating our History
From the outset the Club has remained a lively centre in the community, providing companionship and multilevel croquet for its members and visitors. Epsom Remuera Croquet Club has been the venue for national and international tournaments throughout illustrious history, including the most recent NZ Secondary School Golf Croquet Championship tournament held in 2024.
Acknowledging the contribution from Club members Bruce Heasley & Patricia Ellis
1906
The Epsom Croquet Club came into existence as a part of the Epsom Bowling Club when the Club was formed at a meeting held in the Epsom Public Hall on September 3rd, 1906, to become the Epsom Bowling and Croquet Club. A lot of hard work followed to establish the greens and lawns on the corner of The Drive and Bowling Avenue. The opening day held on 26th November 1907, during which the Burke’s orchestra rendered a number of selections during the celebratory afternoon tea. Mrs Hill was the first President of the Croquet Club with an inaugural membership of twenty people.
1930’s
With a demand for the sport, without the ability to expand its lawns, the Croquet Club transferred to land secured at Melville Park. This land was a wilderness with enormous scoria boulders and large amounts of gorse, which in the past had been Māori fortifications. This was the time of the ‘Great Depression’ of the thirties and the government of the day had established a ‘Relief Scheme’ for the unemployed who were employed to level, terrace, build stone walls and lay the lawns that now form the park as we know it today. All this work was done by pick, shovel and wheelbarrow, with the odd horse and dray. In recognition the stone walls now have an historic classification. The Epsom Croquet Club moved to the lower level of the park on Gillies Avenue where two croquet lawns were developed
1960’s
During the 1950’s the Rocky Nook Croquet Club amalgamated with the Epsom Croquet Club, leaving their lawns alongside Fowlds Park in Morningside. In 1960 the original clubhouse was lost to a fire which also destroyed everything including records going back to 1906. The clubhouse was replaced by a building, built for convalescent servicemen by the American Forces as part of a hospital early in the Second World War. The veranda was enclosed and toilet facilities incorporated in the new building. A third lawn was added to the site in 1970.
1980’s
The Mount Hobson Croquet Club closed in 1980, and several members joined the Epsom club.
The beginning of the1981 season saw the Club celebrate the 75th Anniversary with an Opening luncheon. The Mayor and Mayoress were honoured guests, with Mayor Colin Kay running the ‘first hoop’. Several members dressed in costumes of the 1906 era, adding a charming vignette to the celebration.
1990’s
In 1994 the Remuera Croquet Club which had been tenants of the Remuera Bowling Club since 1897, did not have their lease renewed and after discussions, decided to amalgamate with the Epsom club and the Epsom Remuera Croquet Club came into being in 1995, with each member allocated a personal locker. The area of Melville Park which was leased from the Auckland City Council was increased and two new lawns were constructed on the other side of Melville Park entrance driveway, off Gillies Avenue, to cater for the increased membership. It was during the time when lawns 4 & 5 were under construction, that the ground collapsed into a large lava tunnel, used as a drainage/storage conduit, around a manhole about twenty feet deep that lay between lawns 4 & 5.
2000’s
Following a Special General Meeting in October 2002, authorising applications for grants and the engagement of an architect, calls of tenders for construction of a major revamp of the existing clubhouse adding 16% increase in space were made. In September 2003, the revamped clubhouse was opened. The amount for the revamp was met by a bequest from Aline Dawes, donations from members, grants (mainly from the ASB Charitable Trust) and pro bona professional services.
In December 2006, the Club celebrated its 100th year anniversary
In 2010 with the need for more space, the clubhouse was further revamped with the addition of an area that doubled the original 1960’s clubhouse.