Saturday, August 31, 2013

Suspenders and stripes


In 1954, only the three youngest Pilgrim brothers remained;
My Great Grand Uncles - Mark (72), Perce (70) and Ned Pilgrim (67)
About 50 years earlier the seven brothers were all wearing suspenders (and moustaches).  
Cricket was their game of choice and the team was very well known and feared in the area. Cricket was a family event with seven brothers and their brother-in-law in the one team.  Many of you would have seen this photo previously but I feel that it is worthy of another appearance.
Pilgrim Seven
Circa 1908
A few years later, Mark and Ned wore stripes, while brother Bob was the trainer.   
Maybe Perce was on his honeymoon?  
Australian Football Finals are in September and Perce was married Wednesday 6th September 1911.



This post was inspired by Sepia Saturday; 3 men, suspenders and stripes!

Click to see more posts

39 comments:

  1. I love the Pilgrim brothers! In 1909, Ned was the only one without a mustache; by 1911, he'd certainly caught up with his brothers!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. There is a family story that in later years Ned shaved off his moustache and his daughters cried and said "You are not my Dad any more"

      Delete
  2. Awesome photo but we call them braces not suspenders thats what you keep your stockings up with

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes they are braces in Australia too. I followed the American prompt.

      Delete
    2. And "Braces and Stripes" doesn't flow like "Suspenders and Stripes"

      Delete
  3. That cricket photo is pure gold. Seven brothers on the one team...great stuff.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. And from all accounts, they were all very good cricketers too. My Great Grandfather was a bowler.

      Delete
  4. Marvellous old team photographs, and great that you have all the names to go with them. Herb in the 3rd row of the Aussie Rules photo isn't wearing the same guernsey though, perhaps he was a ring-in?

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maybe the wives knitted the jumpers and Herb's wife mucked up? lol.

      Delete
  5. History is not forgotten. Suspenders today look different, very colourful.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I think it would be good if they came back into fashion. Then I wouldn't see so many boxer shorts!

      Delete
  6. The stripes make a lively composition and their variations are intriguing.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes I wonder what colour the jumpers were. I haven't been able to locate the answer online.

      Delete
  7. The marvellous 'Pilgim 7" photo made me laugh. All those braces!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They are dressed pretty smartly for a game of cricket

      Delete
  8. A very impressive group of suspenders there! They look like they were fearsome.

    ReplyDelete
  9. That's an interesting comparison. I do like the dapper cricketers though.

    ReplyDelete
  10. their stern faces could spark fear in their opponents!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. They certainly were serious about their cricket!

      Delete
  11. I liked your title and the picture that caught my attention most was the crickets club one with all seven brothers - and it was such a good match for the "braces" prompt.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you Sue. The brothers all look alike but no one has commented on the twins.

      Delete
  12. This is my kind of post -- one where we can see people at different ages. Those mustaches are quite something! They look very serious about their game. I wonder if you've found any newspaper articles about the matches they played and who won. Would be interesting.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. The newspapers for the area are being scanned for the National Library of Australia so should be available online soon. I am looking forward to perusing them :)

      Delete
  13. It just occurred to me -- with such an active sport I suppose the braces let them forget about their pants sliding down and concentrate on the game?

    ReplyDelete
  14. So many of those surnames are of families around Horsham where I grew up - Pilgrim, Rasmussen, McDonald, Meagher, Rintoule, Lehmann - where was the team based? If it is the Horsham / Wimmera league Imperials they were yellow and black and are still going I think.
    So many suspenders / braces and I could barely find one!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Well Done Jackie and thank you. I had the feeling that it could be black and gold.

      All those pictured in the cricket photo lived at Winiam, which today isn't far from Horsham but back then it would have been quite a ride.

      The Imperials seems to have a bit more of a mixture (I don't think that they are all from Winiam). I am of course related to the Pilgrims and Mullers.

      My Great Great Grandmother, Edith Geyer, was a well known nurse (midwife) in Horsham :)

      Delete
  15. Oh by golly what great photos! Those were interesting times for sports fashion!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. My family were keen sports players. I have some interesting tennis fashion too :)

      Delete
  16. It is so grand that you have photographs of your ancestors like this. And what a bonus sidelight, discovering why Perce wasn’t in the 1911 photograph! A fine post!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Maybe? I was only guessing. Maybe Perce wasn't a good footballer?

      Delete
  17. Judging by their stance,
    yeah, I bet they must have look intimidating.
    Great post!!
    :)~
    HUGZ

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you :)

      I am looking forward to seeing the local papers of the area to see their performance.

      Delete
  18. I agree -- that is a photo worth repeating. Other men may have feared them, but I bet women admired them. Some good-lookers in the bunch!

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I hadn't really thought of it that way but yes I suppose that the women would have admired them. All but Bob married.

      Delete
  19. "Strong Foundations" has been included in the Sites To See for this week. Be assured that I hope this helps to point many new visitors in your direction.

    http://asthecrackerheadcrumbles.blogspot.com/2013/09/sites-to-see_13.html

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Thank you. Yes I had a lot of views yesterday. Thank you.

      Delete