Convention 2025

The Leisure Centre, Park Road, Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire HP1 1JS

This year we made a return visit to Hemel Hempstead Leisure Centre, the venue of our 2022 Convention. 

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Now in the write up for that event we said that we did not know of a card showing Hemel Hempstead, but in the intervening year we have been sent a scan of one - and maybe there are more. This card also questions something else I said then, and that was that when cigarette cards were being circulated, Hemel Hempstead was not there. It was only decided to build a new town in the 1940s, and no work began until the 1950s.

Well this card proves that to be incorrect, for it is Pattrieouex`s `Senior Service` branded "Our Countryside", and it was issued in 1938, but straight away tells us that "Through Water End, two miles north of Hemel Hempstead, runs the Gade, one of the few rivers within an hours`s run of London where the trout fisherman can enjoy good sport..."

In fact the first mention of a name for the area comes in AD 705, when it is recorded as "Haemele" - that means the meeting of two rivers, namely the Gade, shown on our card, and the Bulbourne. But we know the area was settled in Roman times, and, to this day, looking at a map proves that the layout of what is now called the "Old Town" is medieval in origin. 

 For our commemorative card this year, we chose to show sights of the local area.

The front shows four cards :

• local landmark Hatfield House, from Wills "Beautiful Homes" (1930 -- card 13)Ge
• a still unidentified footballer (unless you know him?) from the closest professional team to Hemel Hempstead, Watford F.C. (though there is a non league home town side, Hemel Hempstead Town F.C.This is from Ogden`s "Football Club Colours" (1906 - card 19)
• The Late Pte Ed Warner V.C., a native of St Albans, from Gallaher`s "The Great War - Victoria Cross Heroes", second series (19 - card 47, on which it tells us he died of gas poisoning), and
• George Bernard Shaw from Mitchell`s "A Gallery of 1934" (1934 - card 14). 

Whilst the back shows two cards

• local company, Ovaltine, of King`s Langley`s "Do You Know?" (1960 - card 14, "Do You Know - why flags are flown at half mast) 
• Cassiobury Park, now the largest public park in Watford, extending over a hundred and ninety acres, but at the time of this card still part of the estate of the Earls of Essex. However, in 1909 the site was bought by Watford Borough Council, and the house on this card was demolished in 1927. This card comes from John Player "Country Seats and Arms" (1909 - card 27)

Here is a list of our stallholders, linked to their websites - 

One of the most spectacular stands at this year`s event was run by the Cigarette Packet Club.

Their three tables were full of wonderful discoveries, including huge self standing cut outs.

Their stall attracted much comment, plenty of reminiscing, and lots of browsers stopped to take photos. It was certainly an amazing display. 

The largest stand was operated by JS Cards, nine tables, heaving with all manner of cards from across the globe, a selection of which appear here.

They were especially strong on early American cards and printed albums, some dating from the nineteenth century.

Whilst at the other end of the scale we had several collectors who took a single table purely to clear things that they had picked up in mixed lots but did not really want.