Tring Agricultural Show and the War - Lost £450 in 1914 - Cancelled 1915

Extracts from the Bucks Herald of 6th February, 1915

Edited from British Newspaper Archive
Previous week ~~~~ Tring News Index ~~~~ Latest Old News

The Annual General Meeting of the Tring Agricultural Society was fully reported in the Bucks Herald every year and 1915 was no exception. What was unusual is that the annual report started with a summary of how the 1914 show was disrupted by the outbreak of war only days before it opened, and that at the end of the meeting there was a discussion in which it was decided not to hold a show in 1915 because of the war.The report occupies a full page of the paper (apart from three adverts) and includes a very large number of names - most relating to prize winners in the different classes. It is far too long to transcribe fully here (visit the British Newspaper Archive to see if your ancestor was a prize winner) but I have selected the key sections relating to the running of the Show and some example classes:- List of members attending the AGM - mostly from near Tring - plus comments on membership - including the likely effect of the war. Annual Report (in part) List of members of the Society who have died in the last year, including Sir Walter Gilbey - who was a pupil on the Tring Park Estate - and Second Lieutenant Eric Dennys Murray, of the 19th Hussars, who was reported missing when fighting with the Expeditionary Force in October 1914. An account of the decision to hold the 1914 show, which was held only days after War had been declared. A list of prize winners who did not claim all their winnings to help the Society in minimising its losses. As can be seen from the addresses the show attracted entries from all over the country. The prize winners in the Shire Horses section of the show. (Many other classes are listed in a similar way.) Report on the Sheep Dog Trials and the Sheep Shearing Competition Prize winners for Best Stalls Mention of the role of the Tring Boy Scouts Part of the discussion and the vote when it was decided not to hold a show in 1915. It is clear that by this time it was clear that the war would not be over quickly.