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 1900 A crowd of 20,104 attend the official opening on Monday 3rd September 1900 as Albion played out a 1-1 draw with Derby County. Derby's Steve Bloomer scored the first ever goal on the ground with 'Chippy' Simmons scoring the equaliser and so became the first ever Albion goalscorer on the ground.
Teamsheet from the first ever game at The Hawthorns 1904 The 'Noah's Ark' stand which had been transferred from Stoney Lane burnt down on Bonfire Night. 1905 A Half-time scoreboard was installed at the ground for the first time. 1906 A new stand was constructed at the Smethwick End. 1913 The freehold of The Hawthorns was purchased for £5,350.
Halfords Lane circa 1910 1920 The wooden fence surrounding the playing area is replaced with a concrete wall. 1922 England beat Ireland 2-0 in the first international match to be staged at The Hawthorns. 1924 In the second international game to be played at the ground England beat Belgium 4-0. 1931 The Hawthorns Halt railway station was opened. 1934 A new stand was built at the Smethwick End/Halfords Lane corner which increased the capacity by an extra 750 seats. 1937 The record attendance of 64,815 for the ground was set in an F.A Cup tie versus Arsenal on the 6th March. 1939 The wooden roof of the Halfords Lane stand was replaced by asbestos sheeting. 1940-1945 Very little work carried out at the ground owing to WW2. 1945 England lose to Wales 1-0 in a Victory International in front of a crowd of 54,610.
'Pirate' Programme for the Victory International Game 1947 A new block of turnstiles opened on the Handsworth side of ground. 1949 The first electronic turnstile aggregator to be used in a British football ground was installed at The Hawthorns. 1951 Eight new turnstiles opened at the Smethwick End. 1957 Floodlights were installed at a cost of £18,000. The first game under the lights saw Albion and Chelsea play out a 1-1 draw on the 18th September. The official opening of the lights took place on the 29th October when the Russian Red Army Team (CDSA) were beaten 6-5 in a friendly game held before a crowd of 52,805.
Albion v CDSA Moscow programme 1964 The Rainbow Stand was built at a cost of £40,000.The roof off the old stand was transferred to cover the Birmingham Road End. 1965 The first Throstle Club was officially opened by Graham Williams and Jesse Pennington. 1968 The Hawthorns Halt Railway Station was closed down. 1969 The club held it's first ever Open Day for the fans. Over 6,000 attended. 1970 Floodlighting upgraded for colour television. 1976 Fourteen executive boxes were installed into The Rainbow Stand. 1977 New crush barriers erected and terracing reconstructed at Smethwick and Birmingham Road ends of the ground. 1980 Work started on the new Halfords Lane stand. 1981 The Halfords Lane stand completed. 1983 An electronic scoreboard was added onto the front of the Smethwick End roof. The Hawthorns Throstle Club was closed down.
The Smethwick End electronic scoreboard 1985 The Smethwick End roof replaced. 1992 Smethwick End roof removed.
The Smethwick End, Open Day 1992 1994 The Birmingham Road End terrace is used for the last time on the 30th of April.
Postcard issued by Xtra Am radio station Work starts on turning The Hawthorns into an all-seater stadium, the new Smethwick End stand is completed first in September followed by the new Birmingham Road End stand in December. 1995 Terracing is used at the ground for the last ever time for the FA Cup tie with Coventry City on the 18th January. The Hawthorns railway station was reopened. The Albion museum was officially opened by then manager Alan Buckley. 2000 The Hawthorns celebrates it's centenary.
Programme from 3rd September 2000 vs Crystal Palace 2001 The Rainbow Stand is used for the last time on New Years Day for the visit of Barnsley. Work on the new East Stand starts soon after and the stand is used for the first time on the 1st August when the visitors are Athletic Bilbao in a Memorial Match for Albion legend Ronnie Allen. 2002 A second Hawthorns museum is opened in the East Stand. 2003 The Jeff Astle memorial gates were erected.
The Jeff Astle Memorial Gates 2004 The Woodman pub is demolished making way to enable the club to extend the ground. The Hawthorns plays host to a friendly international between Iraq and Trinidad and Tobago.
Programme from Iraq vs Trinidad & Tobago, 23rd May 2004 |
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