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THE BEAVER CLUB. SIX YEARS AND A DAY The Story of the Beaver Club, 1940-1946 With a Foreword by The Rt. Hon. Vincent Massey, C.H. SPRING GARDENS, LONDON, S.W.1 KELLY & KELLY LIMITED PRINTERS 5, 6 & 7, SINGER ST, LONDON, E.C.2 FOREWORD THIS little book tells the story of the Beaver Club from its establishment in February, 1940, till its close just six years and a day later. It was thought that the story was worth telling because the Club l-Yas unlike any other institution ministering to our Canadian Service-men. It was unique both in the measure and in the character of its services. Much of what it achieved was due to the fine teamwork of the hundreds of workers who staffed it. To their devotion and fortitude I would like to pay sincere tribute. The Beaver Club is no more but it will long be remembered. Above all we shall never forget the life that surged within its walls-the hundreds of thousands of soldiers and sailors and airmen who gave the Club its meaning and its workers their impulse to serve. The photograph " The Broadcast Bridge " is reproduced by permission of " The Associated Press of Great Britain, Ltd." and the greater number of the other illustrations are photographs by Mr. A. Louis Jarche. SIX YEARS AND A DAY THE STORY OF THE BEAVER CLUB, 1940-1946 O arrive in London from a muddy camp, perhaps T on a first visit, in the black-out-an effective curtain of darkness - after a tedious rail journey, encumbered with kit and without plans for spending a welcome leave-such might have been the lot of many a Canadian service-man had not a group of Canadians in London, having in mind experiences of the 1914-18 War, determined to meet the plain needs of the man on leave. In that War, the Beaver Hut, in the Strand where the Tivoli Cinema now stands, provided a social centre for Canadian troops. What it meant to them to find Canadian atmosphere and fellowship so far from their home towns had been retained in their memory through the years that had passed. When, therefore, Mr. Vincent Massey, the High Commissioner for Canada, in December, 1939 con sulted a number of Canadians in London about the provision of amenities for Canadian service-men on leave, he found not only enthusiasm for the idea but donations for such a purpose readily provided. Under his Chairmanship, a Committee was formed consisting of Sir Edward Peacock, Mr. (later Sir) Ernest Cooper, Lt.-Col. Hamilton Gault, Mr. C. B. Cowley, Mr. Stan]ey Long and Mr. W. N. Mcllwraith. Mr. Edward Pope joined the Committee in June, 1940, and Mr. C. A. Banks and Mr. R. 0. McMurtry in August and September of the same year. 1 SIX YEARS AND A DAY The prime question was the location of the Club. Of necessity, it had to be centrally situated, accessible from main railway termini. More than ever would it be satisfactory if the site were in that neigh bourhood of Westminster which has become identified with Canadian Government and other services around Trafalgar Square and Cockspur Street. Addi tionally restricting the selection, the building had to be commodious and adaptable for use as a club. Old County Hall, Spring Gardens Happily, Mr. and Mrs. Massey, when driving one day along The Mall, were impressed by vacant premises at hand which, with no· basic alterations, appeared to meet the Committee's requirements. Across the road from Canada House and the Headquarters of the Canadian Military Forces, there runs from Cockspur Street to The Mall a short thoroughfare, almost in part no more than a passageway, named Spring Gardens. On the right where it joins The Mall is a building then known as Old County Hall, which had been erected by the Metropolitan Board of Works in 1860. Bearing a "To Let" notice board,£ the building, obviously unused for some years, had been the offices of the London County Council from 1889 until that body moved to its new premises on the south bank of the Thames. The Metropolitan Board of Works had leased the site from the Crown in 1858 and had demolished the existing building, the town house since 1726 of the Earls of Berkeley. That house, erected before 1726, was the first building on the land, the lease of which had been granted to George Loudon, master gardener of the Royal Gardens. At that early period, it formed part of the Wildernesse-later Upper Spring Garden -a portion of St. James's Park surrounding Prince Rupert's Lodgings, where he died in 1682. The 2 THE STORY OF THE BEA VER CLUB enclosure, divided from the Park by a low fence, continued for a few years to be a covert for deer, the public being forbidden to disturb them. Earlier, in the time of Henry VIII, the King, exchanging properties with the then owners, took over " felds new Soyn With Wheit," of which cornfields the land covered by the Beaver Club formed a portion. Thus, the Beaver Club stands on what was, from 1668 until his death, part of the grounds of Prince Rupert, principal promoter of the Hudson's Bay Company. Occupying the corner site, facing, on one side, The Mall-a small pleasant balustraded garden plot lying between the building and the roadway-with wide views across St. James's Park to Westminster Abbey and Palace, the exterior of the premises presents an attractive appearance. When the building was inspected, the Committee was favourably impressed with its possibilities as a Club. It found a well-proportioned entrance hall, with small offices on either side. Opposite the entrance, through a large doorway of pleasing design, access was had to the main part of the building, the principal feature being an imposing elliptical staircase leading to the first floor. An outstanding feature of that floor was the large Council Chamber, the use of which for Club purposes was at once apparent to the Com mittee. In addition, well-proportioned, commodious rooms offered ample accommodation for the many amenities which it was proposed to install for the benefit and entertainment of Service personnel making use of the Club. Negotiations with the London County Council were not protracted. At a rent of £2,000 a year, the premises were obtained by the Committee as the club house for the Beaver Club. 3 SIX YEARS AND A DAY Finance, Decoration, Equipment, Staff But a club house is no more than the shell of a club. To bring a club to life much more is required finance, equipment, furnishing, staff, members ; in this instance also structural alterations, complete cleansing and re-decorating from floor to ceiling, for every room and corridor bore evidence of years of disuse. All requirements were quickly met. In the first few months there were substantial donations-£10,000 from Gillette Industries, Ltd., through its Chairman, Mr. (now Sir) Ernest Cooper; £10,000 from Mr. C. A. Banks on behalf of his Companies, Bulolo Gold Dredging Ltd., Pato Consolidated Gold Dredging Ltd., Placer Development, Ltd. ; £5,000 from Lord Beaverbrook ; and numerous smaller contributions. From these funds, expenditure on equipment, furniture, decorations and alterations was provided. A guar antee up to fifty thousand dollars towards the cost of establishing the Club was given by the Canadian Red Cross. Thanks to gifts from other sources, the whole amount was not called for, the actual cash donation being £3,748. The Canadian Y.M.C.A., agreed to make a liberal grant of $50,000 annually towards the cost of the Club's operations. In many ways, the Canadian Y.M.C.A. also co-operated with the Board of Manage ment in carrying on the Club's services. Some forms of the help which it gave may well be mentioned as they will indicate the nature of the obligation which the Board is under to the Canadian Y.M.C.A. For example, it provided from among its personnel the four successive managers of the Club : it purchased, shipped and warehoused the Canadian supplies used by the Club, the import clearances being made on its licences in the United Kingdom: through its good offices, the 4 The Supervisors. The King and Queen visit the Club, 23rd February 1940. The Council Chamber after the Air Raid of the night of 8th March, 1941. THE STORY OF THE BEA VER CLUB Club was able to secure sweets, chocolate, tobacco, and other commodities which were not generally available : and it placed orders for the Club's " Tuck Shop " : it also supplied games equipment for the recreation rooms, and-a greatly appreciated feature -two or three films weekly for the cinema perform ances. The position of the Canadian Y.M.C.A. in relation to the Club is indicated on the Club's letter paper-" The Beaver Club associated with the Canadian Y.M.C.A." The Club, however, remained an entirely independent institution, administered by its own governing body. Alterations were carried out in accordance with plans prepared by the late Major Harvey Dawson, F.R.I.B.A., a Canadian architect who had remained in London after the 1914-18 War. Structural alter ations, cleansing and renovating were put in hand by the Committee, and the decorating and furnishing were under the personal direction of Mrs. Massey, who, in the task of finding the furniture and equipment, had the active and able collaboration of Mr. Tommy McKinnon, a Canadian veteran of the First World War.