Celebrating Box Rec Centenary Claire Dimond-Mills June 2026
Display in Box Library foyer (courtesy Carol Payne)
How do we celebrate 100 years of Box Rec in 2026? This was the question Alan, Carol and I discussed last year. We already had lots of wonderful photos of events on the Rec such as the 1945 VE Day parade, 600 members of the Mothers' Union meeting in 1933, and early Box Revels. We also had articles on the formation of the Cricket and Bowls Clubs plus recollections from past Box residents which were already showcased on this website. We thought it would be nice to show these in a mini exhibition and that got me thinking – What other photos and memories of Box Rec were the people of Box holding?
Photo courtesy Carol Payne
Village Celebration
With funding from Box Parish Council and support from Box Revels that idea grew into Celebrating 100 Years of Box Rec – an exhibition of photos and memories of the people of Box having fun on the Rec. Emails went out to all the village clubs and organisations that might have used the Rec over the years as well as friends, Facebook pleas and shout-outs to anyone and everyone – give us your memories!
With funding from Box Parish Council and support from Box Revels that idea grew into Celebrating 100 Years of Box Rec – an exhibition of photos and memories of the people of Box having fun on the Rec. Emails went out to all the village clubs and organisations that might have used the Rec over the years as well as friends, Facebook pleas and shout-outs to anyone and everyone – give us your memories!
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Board displays around the village (courtesy Claire Dimond-Mills)
The first load of photos were used to make nine memory boards that went up round the village in May. They were themed:
- Early Rec 1926-1948;
- Formation of the Lower Rec;
- The Cricket Club;
- Box School and clubs;
- Box Revels;
- The Play Park;
- Rec through the seasons;
- Sitting on a bench and having fun.
Photo courtesy Carol Payne
Thank you to those who hosted a board – Chris Cuningham and the Birdhouse Café, Joy Thomas, the Beazer family, Team Breakthrough and Price of Bath. These boards were then featured at Box Revels, and are currently spread out around the Rec for the summer. Can you find them all?
Photo courtesy Carol Payne
I visited Box School and delivered an assembly on the history of Box Rec ending by setting a homework activity – hand in a photo or a drawing or a few sentences explaining your favourite thing to do on the Rec or your first memory of the Rec. To see some of the wonderful memories from the children see other articles.
Revels Day
We continued to collect photos and memories and these were added to posters, ready for our first showcase at Box Revels on Bank Holiday Monday. In the sweltering heat we set up our stand asking for visitors to write down their memories of the Rec. Many people came to the stall and one person finally gave the memory I was hoping for, "My first kiss on the Rec".
We continued to collect photos and memories and these were added to posters, ready for our first showcase at Box Revels on Bank Holiday Monday. In the sweltering heat we set up our stand asking for visitors to write down their memories of the Rec. Many people came to the stall and one person finally gave the memory I was hoping for, "My first kiss on the Rec".
Everything we collected was then showcased the following Saturday (30 May) in Box Library and will remain there throughout the summer. It is not too late to add your photos and memories – please do visit the library and add to the boards.
Above and below courtesy Carol Payne
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And boy, was it hot !! Photos courtesy Claire Dimond-Mills
Library Exhibition Day
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The whole event and the exhibition would not have been possible without your support so huge thanks go to everyone who gave photos – Jo Marsh, Carol Gale, Jane Kynaston, Liza Roos, Andrea Fox, Simon Bray, Leigh Perry, Mike Jacobs, Vicky Graham, Mariana Lewis, Kelley Townley, Paula Renouf, Kev Derby, Patty Baldwin.
Library Exhibition Day photos courtesy Carol Payne
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If you would like to see all the photos and memories that we have collected about the Rec, please download this pdf.
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