Henley Royal Regatta arm badge, probably used to identify an official.
Henley Regatta was established by a group of prominent local residents in 1839 to attract visitors to the town. They remembered the crowds of spectators who had gathered to see the first Oxford and Cambridge Boat Race at Henley in 1829 and were concerned that other riverside towns had already established regattas.
When Prince Albert became patron of the regatta in 1851, it was renamed the Henley Royal Regatta. The new railway station opened in 1857, bringing even larger crowds of visitors.
To this day Henley Royal Regatta remains a stronghold of tradition and etiquette. At the same time, modern organisation ensures that world class rowers from many nations compete annually at Henley-on-Thames.
Blazer badge - University College School Boat Club (2nd VIII 1949)
Belonged to Kerry Hennessy, who rowed with University College London Boat Club when they won the Wyfold Cup at Henley Royal Regatta in 1956.
Fabric badge worn on the blouse of Eileen McNally at the first FISA sponsored women's regatta at Macon, France, attended by the Women's 1951 Eight from England.
Eileen and seven other crew members made history as they were thought to be the first British woman's crew to compete abroad, although a England women's crew had competed in Australia in 1938. The crew finished third in all their races
Items include: newspaper clippings, photographs, a celebratory dinner menu and other ephemera.