The Egerton Park Indoor Bowls Club in Bexhill-on-Sea has a rich history that dates back to the early 20th century.
1903 is the first date Indoor Bowling is mentioned in local records, the mention came soon after the Shelter Hall (now the Bexhill museum) was built in Egerton Park in that year. The idea was that a Temporary Green to play Indoor Bowls would be laid down so that it could be removed when the hall was being used for meetings and Concerts.
We do not know if the Shelter Hall was ever used for Indoor Bowling at that time as no hard evidence is available but we do know that in 1907 the then Borough council put aside £15 for an Indoor Rink to be provided in the Hall.
The Egerton Park Pavilion Theatre was built in 1933. Its design allowed for the auditorium to be converted into indoor bowling rinks during the winter months, making it one of the earliest indoor bowling centres.
The Bexhill Bowling Club agreed to set up indoor bowling in the Egerton Park Pavilion during winter of 1941. The first indoor tournament was held in 1942, featuring triples and open to ladies and local clubs.
The club was incorporated as Egerton Park Indoor Bowls Club Ltd in 1967, this required the creation of a board with officers and directors.
The club continued to evolve, expanding its facilities and hosting successful tournaments over the decades.
The Theatre was demolished in 1991 and a new purpose built clubhouse was constructed on the site.
Starting with the Foundations.
Halfway there.
The new indoor green.
The new club was financed by the members at the time, plus a loan, that was quickly repaid. The new club was opened in 1992 by the Minister for Sport Mr Robert Atkins who delivered the ceremonial first bowl.
The Ceremonial first bowl.
The new club house with its modern facilities proved very popular and the membership grew to nearly a thousand playing members and the social membership was limited to two hundred.
With these numbers booked rinks were essential to guarantee getting a game.
With increased numbers came increased performance and the club enjoyed considerable success locally and at county level, with a number of lady members playing for EWIBA.
Unfortunately the Covid lock down badly affected Egerton Park and all other Indoor Bowls Clubs, causing a blow to the club finances and the loss of members.
Post Covid the Club is once again thriving, albeit with less members but with more of an emphasis on social bowling than top level competitive bowling.
