Francis Elliston Erwood (1824–78) was designated in the Guinness Book of RecordsThe pre-glossy covered, old-style Guinness Book of Records. the first closed court Rackets world champion. The title, together with a £400 prize, was gained following two matches in 1860, the first at the

Royal Artillery The Royal Regiment of Artillery, commonly referred to as the Royal Artillery (RA) and colloquially known as "The Gunners", is one of two regiments that make up the artillery arm of the British Army. The Royal Regiment of Artillery comprises t ...

Court,

Woolwich Woolwich () is a district in southeast London, England, within the Royal Borough of Greenwich. The district's location on the River Thames led to its status as an important naval, military and industrial area; a role that was maintained thr ...

and the second at the Eglintoun Arms, Maudlin Street,

Bristol Bristol () is a city, ceremonial county and unitary authority in England. Situated on the River Avon, it is bordered by the ceremonial counties of Gloucestershire to the north and Somerset to the south. Bristol is the most populous city in ...

when Erwood twice defeated open court champion professional John Charles Mitchell (1823–61). The title passed to amateur/gentleman player William Hart-Dyke in 1862 after another two-match duel, when the

prize money Prize money refers in particular to naval prize money, usually arising in naval warfare, but also in other circumstances. It was a monetary reward paid in accordance with the prize law of a belligerent state to the crew of a ship belonging to ...

was only £100.

Life

Frank Erwood was born on 17 March 1824 at

Doctors' Commons Doctors' Commons, also called the College of Civilians, was a society of lawyers practising civil (as opposed to common) law in London, namely ecclesiastical and admiralty law. Like the Inns of Court of the common lawyers, the society had buildi ...

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, the son of George Erwood, a baker and biscuit maker, and his wife Frances (born Elliston). He was a

racquet A racket, or racquet, is a sports implement used for striking a ball or shuttlecock in games such as squash, tennis, racquetball, badminton and padel. In the strictest sense a racket consists of a handled frame with an open hoop across which a ...

and ball maker as well as professional player and instructor to army officers in Woolwich. His older brother, George Erwood, was of a similar mould and in 1860 was the new racket master at Hampstead. About 1863 Frank's left eye was damaged whilst playing and was he obliged to end his career. Marrying in 1855, Frank had four children, the daughters of whom emigrated to Canada and the USA; his son followed him into the business of racquet and ball making. His wife dying in 1870, Frank followed her on 7 October 1878 at

. Frank's winning racquet was for many years kept by one of his descendants, but it is now believed to reside at one of the squash clubs in

Bromley Bromley is a large town in Greater London, England, within the London Borough of Bromley. It is south-east of Charing Cross, and had an estimated population of 87,889 as of 2011. Originally part of Kent, Bromley became a market town, c ...

Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...

References & Notes

;Notes ;References * * '' Guinness Book of Records'' (old editions) * *

UK Census Coincident full censuses have taken place in the different jurisdictions of the United Kingdom every ten years since 1801, with the exceptions of 1941 (during the Second World War), Ireland in 1921/Northern Ireland in 1931,https://www.nisra.gov. ...

returns * Records of the Registrar of Births, Deaths, & Marriages. {{DEFAULTSORT:Erwood, Francis 1824 births 1878 deaths World rackets champion