The Farewell Boleyn auction takes place next month and the club say: “Supporters will be invited to bid on many of the ground’s most iconic fixtures and fittings, as well as the more obscure keepsakes dotted around the Hammers’ home.
“A comprehensive range of memorabilia representing the very best of the Boleyn, including the shirts of household West Ham names, will also be made available to the Hammers faithful.”
The Boleyn Ground, West Ham’s home since 1904 which is often referred to simply as ‘Upton Park’ (the area in London borough of Newham where it is located), will be the venue for the first day of the sale on Saturday, June 4, with the auction held live on the pitch.
Online bidding will be available but to attend the auction at the stadium, entry is by printed catalogue only (the club are charging £20 per catalogue which admits two people into the stadium on the day) and the buyer’s premium will be 16%. The catalogue can be viewed at auctions.whufc.com.
The organisers appointed to run the auction, Hilco Global, say two extra online auctions will also be held following the live sale.
Hammers’ History
West Ham’s history started with the demise of Old Castle Swifts, the first professional football team in Essex. That opened up an opportunity for a new club to be formed in what was then the County Borough of West Ham.
That club started out life as Thames Ironworks FC in 1895 and they became known as West Ham United in 1904, retaining the nickname of the Hammers or the Irons in homage to their origins.
After 112 years, they are now about to make probably the most significant move in their long history as they relocate to the Olympic Stadium, a (rather long) goal kick away from the Ironworks FC first ground in Canning Town.
Steam Train Nameplate
Among the lots will be the locomotive nameplate ‘West Ham United’ pictured here. It comes from No 61672 of the Class B17s designed by Sir Nigel Gresley for the London and North Eastern Railway in 1927.
No 61672 was one of a total of 73 B17s built in a 10-year period from 1927, dating from July 1937. It served the railway lines between London and Cambridge, Ipswich and Norwich for 13 years.
Up to September 1950, most of the surviving members of the class were rebuilt with boilers that had increased pressure and were designated Class B17/6. Twenty-five of them were then also named after football clubs such as West Ham United.
By March, 1960 none of the class had survived into preservation. A few football clubs were presented with the nameplates after the locomotives were scrapped.
The locomotive nameplate will be offered in the first live and webcast auction, with hopes of about £40,000. It has a £40,000 estimate at the Farewell Boleyn auction.
