Harringay, Haringey - So Good they Spelt it Twice!

Hornsey Chrysanthemum Cup, 1894

A late Victorian silver prize cup from The Hornsey and District Chrysanthemum Society, made by by Henry Aitkin Sheffield 1894

The reason I include images like this is for the tiny insights they give onto local society in times gone by.

0 members like this

View Full Size

Comment by Richard Woods on July 27, 2019 at 11:04: I have a strong recollection that this was still being competed for the 50s and 60s. The Chrysanthemum Show was a major event in Hornsey which the dear old HJ covered in excruciating detail. The winners names were written out in longhand by someone (Society seceratary probably) and we hacks were "required to right down every single one and they would be published.

The big prizes were OK since we would interview the winner and get their whole name and correct spelling. But the rest were a Friday morning nightmare - the phone would ring time and again with another one:" For heaven's sake can't the Journal get anything right. My name is Horne with an E and my initials are EJD not BLD!" and so on. I was once seen by the editor to pacify an outraged reader down in front hall and he thereafter made sure I was desk bound every Friday so that I could deal with all the complaints. To be fair there were not so many despite the size and detail of the newspaper content.

Comment by Hugh on July 27, 2019 at 12:48: There's a book to be written from your memories of life as an HJ hack, Richard.

Advertising