Out Of The Blue Artifacts A Library of a lifetime of collecting
Mr Horace Farquhar Evelyn Coles.
Mr Horace Farquhar Evelyn Coles was born in 1896 at Cardiff, the son of Mr William German Coles and Mrs Edith Haysom Gillett Coles nee Cox of Cardiff, the licensees of the Avondale Hotel, Cardiff.
The Bush Hotel, Abertillery.
In 1911 the family moved to Abertillery to take the licence of the Bush Hotel, Abertillery. Mr Horace F. E. Coles joined the Liberal Club later in that year as member 308 and soon became a most valuable member of the billiard team and a great asset to the club, he worked as a bank clerk at Abertillery and lived at the Bush Hotel with his parents. At this time the Bush Hotel had a billiard table in the games room, which Horace used and had much practice. Mr William Coles, the landlord employed Mr Tom Williams of Cardiff as a billiard marker at the Bush Hotel, Abertillery.
The Great War Years.
In 1916 Mr Horace F. E. Coles joined the forces and was a driver in the Royal Field Artillery.
On Saturday 1st of April 1916, a presentation was held at the Liberal Club, Abertillery for Mr Coles upon him leaving to join the forces. He was presented with a gold mounted stick by the members of the Liberal Club billiard team. The occasion was presided over by Mr Edgar Williams (Captain) and Mr T. Meyrick performed the presentation.
On Friday 14th of April 1916, a function was held at the Bush Hotel, Abertillery. Members of the Liberal Club’s first and second teams and friends were entertained at dinner through the generous hospitality of Mr and Mrs Coles the licensees to bid farewell to their son Horace who was leaving to join the army.
The Departure of William and Edith Coles.
In 1916 William and Edith Coles left the Bush Hotel, Abertillery to reside at Weston-super-Mare and later took the license of the Royal Pier Hotel (The Rock) at Clevedon. I’m unsure what date Mr Horace Coles left Abertillery, though he went to live in Cardiff and worked as a bank clerk at that place. Even though he no longer had ties with this area he was often reported as “Mr Horace Coles of Cardiff, formerly of Abertillery”.
Mr Horace Coles Marriage.
In mid to late 1916 Mr Horace Coles married Miss Gwendoline A. Blennerhassett at Kensington, London. Their children were – Miss Doreen Isobel. S. Coles, born 1919. Master Maurice Alexander Coles, born 1921and Miss Jaqueline Coles, born 1928.
Mrs Gwendoline Alleyne Blennerhassett.
Mrs Gwendoline Alleyne Coles nee Blennerhassett was born in 1891 at Crickhowell, Brecknockshire, the daughter of Irvine and Sarah Blennerhassett, licensees of the Greyhound Hotel, Abergavenny.
The Welsh Amateur Billiards Championship 1923.
In February 1923 the Welsh Amateur Billiards Championship was taking place at Cardiff. Four Abertillery Liberal Club members were through to the last stages of the tournament, Mr Horace Coles, Mr Sam Parr, Mr Edgar Thomas and Mr Jack Cable. Mr Parr beat Mr E. Thomas and had to play Mr Coles in the semi-final. Mr Horace Coles was beaten by Mr S. Parr in the semi-final though lost to Mr Jack Cable in the final.
The Welsh Amateur Billiards Championship 1924.
On Tuesday 25th and Wednesday 26th of March 1924, the final of the Welsh Amateur Billiards Championship took place at Billiard Hall, Castle Street, Cardiff. Mr Jack Cable of Oakdale, formally of Abertillery played Mr Horace Coles of Cardiff, also formally of Abertillery. Both players were former members of the Liberal Club, Abertillery. Mr Horace Coles won the title with the score 2,000 to 933. Mr Coles made breaks of 104, 100, 96, 63 and 60. Mr Cable made breaks of 50, 44 and 40. This contest ended Mr Jack Cable’s run of nine titles of champion of the Welsh Amateur Billiards Championship 1915-1923.
The Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship 1925.
On Wednesday 18th and Thursday 19th of March 1925, Mr Horace Coles contended and won the Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship held at Cardiff. Mr Horace Coles played Mr Samuel Parr a fellow member of the Liberal Club, Abertillery. Mr S. Parr beat Mr C. P. Warriner of Cardiff in the semi-final to meet Mr Coles in the final. Mr Coles did some heavy scoring in the final session with a break of 168 and other breaks of 93, 39 and 28. Mr Parr’s best breaks were 71, 41 and 36. Mr Coles won with the scores 2,000 to 1,099.
The Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship 1926.
On Saturday 6th and Monday the 8th of February 1926, Mr Horace Coles won the Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship at Billiard House, Cardiff. Mr Coles defeated Mr G. P. Moore in the final. Mr Coles best breaks were 111, 106, 81 and 67. In the final session his breaks were 93, 77, 73 and 61.
The English Amateur Billiards Championship 1926.
On Thursday 18th of February 1926, Mr Horace Coles was knocked out of the English Amateur Billiards Championship held at Burroughes Hall, London by Mr T. E. Booth of Manchester. Mr Thomas Edward Booth was the then ex-footballer who had played for Blackburn Rovers 1896-1900, Everton 1900-1908, Preston North End 1908 and Carlisle United 1908-1909. Mr Booth also played international level for England between 1898-1903.
The Amateur Billiards Championship of Great Britain 1927.
On Saturday 19th of February 1927, Mr Horace Coles of Cardiff lost to Mr Lawrence (Laurie) Steeples the eighteen year old billiard player of Yorkshire, England in the final of the Amateur Billiards Championship of Great Britain. The scores were 3,000 to 2,449. It was stated that Mr Steeples was the youngest player to have won the title.
The Empire Billiards Championship 1927.
In March 1927 Mr Horace Coles contested the Empire Billiards Championship at at Burroughes Hall, London, and represented Wales in the tournament. Mr Coles came second and the championship seemed as though it was played in a group style, containing four players as follows – Mr A. Prior (South Africa) played 3 won 3 lost 0: Mr H. F. E. Coles (Wales) played 3 won 2 lost 1: Mr Lawrence Steeples (England) played 3 won 1 lost 2: M. Smith (Scotland) played 3 won 0 lost 3: The competition was decided by the number of games won. Each game was 2,000 up and crystalate balls were to be used. A new challenge trophy named the Arthur Walker Cup was presented to the winner.
The Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship 1927.
On Thursday 31st of March 1927, Mr Horace Coles retained the Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship held at Cardiff. Mr Coles beat Mr Thomas Jones of Crumlin with the score 2,000 to 1,349.
The English Amateur Billiard Championship 1928.
In February 1928 the Amateur Billiard Championship took place at Thurstons Hall, London. Mr Horace Coles narrowly lost in the semi-final to Mr A. Wardle of Manchester by 2,000 to 1,753.
The Welsh Amateur Billiard Championship 1929.
Mr Horace Coles did not compete in this tournament.
The English Amateur Billiard Championship 1929.
On Saturday 16th of February 1929, Mr Horace Coles won the English Amateur Billiard Championship held at Thurstons Hall, London. Mr Cable beat 19 year old Mr S. Lee in the final with the scores 3,000 to 2,215. The cup was presented to Mr Coles by Sir Emsley Carr, who then invited Mr Coles to represent England in the forthcoming British Empire Amateur Championship to be held at South Africa.
The British Empire Billiard Championship 1929.
On Saturday 2nd of March 1929, the Aberdeen Press and Journal paper reported on the departure of Mr Horace Coles of Cardiff to Johannesburg, South Africa on the Friday 15th of March 1929 in readiness for the Empire Billiard Championship which Mr Coles will represent England in the tournament.
Mr Coles sailed out to Johannesburg, South Africa on the S.S. Arundel Castle. The passenger list shows his address as being 196 Whitchurch Road, Cardiff and his occupation was a bank accountant.
The British Empire Billiard Championship 1929.
On Saturday 4th of May 1929 Mr Horace Coles lost in the semi-final of the British Empire Billiard Championship at Johannesburg, South Africa. Mr Horace Coles got through to the simi-final although lost out to Mr Allan Prior, he competed with the other losing semi-finalist and finished 3rd in the championships.
The South Wales Gazette Report 1929.
On Friday 14th of June 1929, the South Wales Gazette reported – Mr Horace F. E. Coles formerly of Abertillery who represented England in the British Empire Amateur Billiards Championships held in South Africa, returned to Cardiff on Wednesday 5th of June 1929. It stated that Mr Coles had played and lost to Mr L. W. Hayes of Australia (Champion) and Mr A. Prior of South Africa (Runner-up) although had defeated Mr P. W. Routledge of South Africa to finish third.
The report also mentioned that Mr Coles was made an honorary member of all their clubs and before his departure the South African Billiards Association presented him with a fitted dressing case as a memento and a native war dance was given in his honour. Whilst out there he played the winner of the championship in an exhibition matches at Kimberley and at Cape Town and beat him in some exciting play. At Cape Town the association presented Mr Coles with a mystery “Karess”, a beautiful rug. This was the first time that the Empire Championship was held outside of England and that Mr Coles was the first Englishman to travel abroad in its quest. He is the only man who has represented two countries in the Empire Championship. Mr Coles arrived at Southampton on Monday 3rd of June and on the following Tuesday was entertained by the English Billiards Association at London.
The English Amateur Billiard Championship 1930.
On Wednesday 19th of March 1930, Mr Horace Coles, lost in the final of the English Amateur Billiard Championship held at Thurstons Hall, London. Mr Coles was beaten by Mr L. Steeples of Yorkshire, England with the score 3,000 to 2,462.
Record Break.
On Wednesday 4th April 1933, Mr Horace Coles achieved a record by scoring 2,989 points over three sessions.
The English Amateur Billiard Championship 1935.
On Friday 22nd of March 1935, the final of the English Amateur Billiard Championship took place at Burroughes Hall, London. Mr Coles beat Mr Maurice Boggin of Burnley by 3,707 to 3,272 points.
Record Aggregate Score.
In 1935 Mr Horace Coles set an English amateur billiards (two session – four hour period) aggregate record of 2,164 points. This was unbeaten until Thursday 4th of October 1951 when the Australian Mr Robert Marshall amassed a score of 2,580 points.
The Empire Amateur Billiard Championship 1935.
In May 1935 Mr Horace Coles competed at the Empire Amateur Billiard Championship.
Mr Horace Coles Sets a Record at the Empire Amateur Billiard Championship 1935.
On Tuesday 14th of May 1935, Mr Horace Coles set a record at the Empire Billiard Amateur Championship held at Burroughes Hall, London. Mr Coles played Mr H. McGhie of Scotland in the first match. Mr Coles established a record under the baulkline rule for the Empire Championship by making a break of 273, he went on to win the match with a score of 2,979 to 2,123.
The Final of the Empire Amateur Billiard Championship 1935.
On Monday 3rd and Tuesday 4th of June 1935, Mr Horace Coles won the Empire Amateur Billiard Championship held at Burroughes Hall, London. Horace Coles beat Pratyush Krishna Deb of India in the tenth and final round of the competition with a score of 4,155 to 1,562.
Mr Horace Coles Retirement.
On Saturday 15th of February 1936, the Western Mail newspaper reported on the announcement that Mr Horace Coles, aged 39, was to retire from competitive billiard play.
In 1939 the family were living at 43 Richmond Road, Cardiff.
Master John Coles.
On Thursday 4th of January 1951, the Bristol Evening Post ran a story – “Billiards Prodigy” , Not yet eight years of age. “John Coles, son of Mr Jack Coles of the Royal Pier Hotel, Clevedon, is a promising cueist. He has made a snooker break of 22 and one of 16 at billiards, his great-uncle Horace Coles won the English Billiards Championship. John who plays center-half for the school’s soccer team is seen at the snooker table (as seen in the image left). He potted the black in the Joe Davis style”.
The Death of Mr Horace Farquhar Evelyn Coles.
Mr Horace Coles passed away in 1976 while living in South Glamorgan.
Points of Interest – In May 1935, the Belfast Telegraph run a story on Mr Horace Coles, titled “Champion Without Practice”. It states that Mr Coles, Great Britain’s representative in the Empire Billiards Championships which is to take place at London is a Welshman and fully deserves his place in this such important championships for the consistent way in which he played in recent years during the amateur championships. In 1929 he became the first Welshman to win the title having been runner-up two years earlier. He had been runner-up twice and champion once since then.
Mr Coles played extraordinary billiards for an amateur whilst winning the title in 1929, making six century breaks, including two of over 200 in a heat of 2,000 up and averaging 83 for a session of 500 up. This young bank clerk from Cardiff, who looks like the film actor Ronald Colman and has a style at billiards like Walter Lindrum will probably have played less billiards in the last year than any of his rivals. He estimates that he does not play more than 50 hours of billiards a year and have admitted that he has only watched six professional games in his life. The delightful finish to his strokes, however, has the graceful ease of the accomplished professional. His biggest break to date is 355.
The Western Valley’s Welsh Amateur Billiards Championship.
There was also a divisional championship connected to the Western Valley’s Billiards Association and was contested on a local scale. In 1929 the championship final was held at the Lymes Club, Abertillery. Mr W. Withers of Abertillery beat Mr ?, it was stated that Mr W. Withers had retained the title after winning it the previous year 1928.
The Retirement of Mr Coles.
On Saturday 15th February 1936, the Western Mail newspaper printed a report on the retirement of Mr Horace Coles – “Loss to Billiards”. Sportsmen will regret the announcement that Horace Coles, one of the finest amateur players of all time is to retire from competitive billiards. During his career, Coles has won almost every honour open to an amateur cueist. Yet, unlike so many of his contemporaries, he has never made the game a burden. A charming sportsman and a delightful player to watch, Coles always put the pleasure of the game before the result. Except for possibly Sydney Lee and Sydney Fry, no amateur player has ever been such an accomplished top of the table performer.
The Royal Pier Hotel (The Rock) Clevedon.
On Saturday 6th of October 1951 the Clevedon Mercury run a story of the history of the Royal Pier Hotel at Clevedon. It states – William and Edith Coles took the license of the hotel in 1918, in 1923 their son, Mr Beaumont Vivian Coles took over as landlord, at present their daughter-in-law Mrs E. Coles is the landlady assisted by her son Jack Coles. During the second world war the U.S. Department of Psychological Warfare established offices in Clevedon and during that time the Royal Pier Hotel became the unofficial headquarters of American Publicists and correspondents of the leading American Newspapers and nearly all their copy was written in the hotel office. The report went on to say that many famous names were found in the visitors book, among them being – Pavlova, Ivor Novello, Betty Balfour, Ralph Lynn, Billy Cotton, Tessie O’Shea, Cary Grant and Harry Welchman. Joe Davis, Walter Lindrum and the (recently deceased) Melbourne Inman, the world renowned billiards player had played billiards there and Mr Horace Coles (the landlady’s brother-in-law) often played billiards at the hotel.
Mr Beaumont Vivian Coles (Mr Horace Coles’ brother) was born in 1882 at Axbridge, Somerset. In 1907 he married Miss Fanny Elizabeth E. Hill at Newport, Monmouthshire. As mentioned above, Mr Beaumont Coles took over the licence of the Royal Pier Hotel at Clevedon in 1923 from his parents William and Edith Coles. Mr Beaumont Coles died in 1932 at Long Ashton, Somerset. Papers at the time stated he had died after an operation. Later, his widow Mrs F. E. E. Coles and son Mr Vivian Jack Coles ran the Royal Pier Hotel at Clevedon.