Amherst Centennial: Croquet was popular

Weekly croquet games in an empty lot just off Main Street between the Hanger and Wood houses provided a decades-long pleasure for many Amherst men who gathered there with handmade croquet mallets, balls, wickets, and posts.

“It was the most fun for the least amount of money anybody could imagine,” said Harold Higgins, 92.

It wasn’t, though, the aimless knocking of a wooden ball through wickets –– the games usually were played on Saturday and Sunday afternoons, and the competition could be serious and intense at times.

A men’s croquet league also played at Miller Park in Lynchburg on a dirt surface surrounded by “bang boards” for boundaries. The Amherst men played on a grass surface, the dimensions of which were recently approximated at 150 feet by 85 feet. The boundary was delineated by a heavy-gauge wire buried a couple of inches beneath the surface around the perimeter. It could be found by a player slipping a pocketknife blade into the ground to find the boundary if a ball went out-of-bounds.

The mallets were handmade, many by regular players Harold Higgins and Stewart Floyd, both talented woodworkers in Amherst. Mallets generally were made of red oak, with a few made of walnut. One end of the striking surface of the mallet was wood with a leather cap. The other end was covered by a hard rubber pad about an inch thick, made from stoppers from containers used at the American Cyanamid plant in Piney River. These rubber additions were glued on and held in place by a metal band around the mallet head. A similar band encircled the wooden end, as well, to secure the leather cover and to help prevent splitting of the wood.

Players used the rubber or hard end to strike the ball for specific reasons. When a player’s ball struck another ball, the player could use his bonus strokes to move both his ball and the other, which were placed next to each other, with the striker’s ball being the one he would hit. The wooden end of the mallet would “roquet” the balls in such a way that the lead ball would go considerably farther than the struck ball. The rubber end of the mallet would cause an effect wherein both balls would travel similar distances. Players could position the striking ball in such a way that the balls could travel a similar route, or go in different directions, depending upon strategy.

Another option upon hitting another’s ball was to secure the player’s own ball against the other, holding it in place with his hand while striking both to send the other’s ball in a particular direction, while keeping his own ball in place for the next bonus stroke. “Backyard” play generally has one securing his ball with his foot rather than his hand.

Most games involved four players, either “every man for himself” or, playing as partners, two against two. Games could involve intricate strategy and last for as long as two hours.

The wickets were made of heavy-gauge wire and were situated in a more spread configuration than most backyard setups and included a “cage” for the middle wicket. This cage consisted of two crossing wickets and the players had to make the wicket in a diagonal direction.

Players, by rule, had to use a one-handed stroke, in one of two styles: either sideways to the projected path of the ball (similar to a typical putt in golf), or squarely facing the direction of the ball, stroking the mallet beside the right leg (if right-handed). Most players used the sideways approach, but always one-handed (never the between-the-legs style of most backyard players).

These croquet games were played almost year-round. Other than materials for initial equipment, the only other expense was in maintaining the field. Players acquired a lawnmower and employed a local youth to mow the field regularly. The weekend competitions continued into winter weather, with one recollection of a player who worked in the construction business bringing in several large kerosene heaters, each about eight feet tall, and placing them strategically around the court. The players would take their turns, then return to the warmth of the nearest space heater.

Tommy Littrell, who lived nearby, found the croquet grounds and games to be a good source of revenue. He occasionally painted the wickets for the players, and in the summertime, he sold lemonade for their refreshment.

In the earliest days, the players would play in their regular business attire. Unfortunately, no photograph is known to exist of the day that James E. Bowman, in his dark trousers, starched white shirt, dark tie and bowler hat, played on a rainy day, with a croquet mallet in one hand and large black umbrella in the other.

Higgins’ recollections were that the best player in his era was Harry Faulconer Sr., whom he described as precise in his play but gentlemanly in every way. The second-best was Arthur Gates Ware, the Amherst postmaster who lived near the croquet field. Other players included as Harry Loftis, Buddy Shirmacher, Larry Littrell, Willie Bowles, Dr. Lyddane Miller, Dr. Edward Sandidge, Dick Faulconer, Bill Ellinger Sr. and Charlie Smith. Games often were discussed at length following the conclusion, with considerable analysis of each stroke and strategic maneuver.

The weekly Amherst croquet matches gradually drew to a close in the 1960s, after several decades of play. The ownership of the playing field changed hands and natural attrition prevailed, as the group failed to attract new players at a time when greater mobility allowed people to travel farther from town for entertainment. Youth sports also grew in popularity, necessitating parental leadership, and interests changed with the growing popularity of golf and tennis in the area.

But, for many a summer afternoon, Amherst had been enlivened by a simple game, played with style.