Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Loading...
Loading...
Loading...
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Longwood House, where Napoleon Bonaparte spent his final years.
The Longwood House: Napoleon Bonaparte’s Beautiful Prison
 Fenway Park at night
How Was Your First Trip With Your Significant Other?
Ivan the Terra Bus
The Bus, the Myth, the Legend: Ivan the Terra Bus
Pigeons were included in a series of 1891 illustrations entitled “Household Pets.”
What Makes a Pest a Pest?

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United Kingdom England London Tottenham Hotspur Lamppost

Tottenham Hotspur Lamppost

A replica of the gaslit streetlamp under which three teenagers founded a football club.

London, England

Added By
AdOYo
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
CAPTION
The Lamppost and Clock (With permission of Tottenham Hotspur Press Office)   Tottenham Hotspur Football & Athletic Co Ltd
1884-1885 Spurs team - R.Buckle is bottom row, 2nd from left .   The Tottenham & Edmonton Herald (1921)
The Tottenham Hotspur Clock prior to its reinstallation   Hzh
  AdOYo / Atlas Obscura User
  AdOYo / Atlas Obscura User
  AdOYo / Atlas Obscura User
  AdOYo / Atlas Obscura User
  AdOYo / Atlas Obscura User
  AdOYo / Atlas Obscura User
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Tottenham Hotspur F.C. holds a place in the hearts of football fans worldwide. The prestigious football team competes in the Premier League, the highest echelon of English football. This has not always been the case however, and in 2023 the club restored a piece of its history that shines a light on Spurs’ humble beginnings.

Legend has it that a group of schoolboys, Robert "Bobby" Buckle, Hamilton Casey, and John Anderson, huddled under a gaslit lamppost on Tottenham High Road one evening in 1882. Having played cricket at the Hotspurs Cricket Club, the boys, aged 13 and 14, pondered how to while away their time during the impending cricket off-season over winter. After some consideration, they decided that football would be the best solution. Their plans were soon put into action when Casey's older brother gave them their first ball, and his father constructed a set of blue and white goalposts.

The exact date of the historic gathering is not certain, but officially Hotspur F.C. is said to have been established on September 5, 1882, when 11 boys paid their initial yearly subscription. The club had 18 members by the close of 1882, paying sixpence for the year. By this time, Buckle, still only 14, was Spurs first ever captain, and within the year he became the club's first recorded, and youngest ever, goalscorer.

Spurs achieved a remarkable feat within their first 20 years by winning the FA Cup championship, becoming the very first, and thus far only, non-professional club to have done so. Ever since, the same dare-to-do spirit that was displayed by those initial schoolboys, who were filled with energy and enthusiasm while gathered around the gaslamp, has continued to captivate the hearts of countless fans.

Even though the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium has undergone significant modernization and expansion since the days when Bobby Buckle and his team played on more modest turf, the club has managed to maintain its rich heritage. Interestingly, the stadium is situated close to the very location where the memorable gaslit gathering took place nearly 130 years ago.

Even though the legendary lantern is no longer, Tottenham Hotspur honored their history and humble origins in 2023 when they installed a replica of the lantern directly outside the stadium on Tottenham High Road. The replica prominently displays the Tottenham Hotspur Clock, which held a significant position at the club's former HQ for over seven decades, from 1934 to 2007.

Related Tags

Local History Soccer Sports

Community Contributors

Added By

AdOYo

Edited By

Snowdrop68

  • Snowdrop68

Published

July 7, 2023

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Tottenham_Hotspur_F.C.
  • http://www.indiaspurs.com/blog/hotspur-by-gaslight
  • https://www.tottenhamhotspur.com/news/2023/june/a-special-piece-of-club-history-returns-to-tottenham-high-road/
Tottenham Hotspur Lamppost
782 High Rd
London, England, N17 0BX
United Kingdom
51.604278, -0.066242
Get Directions

Nearby Places

Walthamstow Market

London, England

miles away

Supper Club Tube

London, England

miles away

Chingford Mount Cemetery

London, England

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of London

London

England

Places 549
Stories 110

Nearby Places

Walthamstow Market

London, England

miles away

Supper Club Tube

London, England

miles away

Chingford Mount Cemetery

London, England

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of London

London

England

Places 549
Stories 110

Related Places

  • Entrance gates to The Mount

    London, England

    The Mount

    The remains of a historic football stadium that once hosted 50,000 spectators.

  • Elf Freunde Kreisel

    Kaiserslautern, Germany

    Elf Freunde Kreisel

    A team of concrete athletes stands in the middle of a traffic circle.

  • The Lacrosse Players, by Elmer P. Petersen, was dedicated in 1981.

    La Crosse, Wisconsin

    'The Lacrosse Players'

    This downtown statue pays tribute to the Native American game that gave the city of La Crosse its name.

  • This shrine allegedly contains a real lock of the soccer star’s hair.

    Naples, Italy

    Bar Nilo

    Locals pay their respects at a shrine to soccer player Diego Maradona—which claims to contain a real lock of his hair.

  • Front view of the statue

    Ipswich, England

    Bobby Robson Statue

    A life-sized statue commemorating the former manager of Ipswich's football team.

  • Igralište Batarija

    Trogir, Croatia

    Igralište Batarija

    The local club's soccer field is practically surrounded by UNESCO-protected monuments.

  • Kvareli, Georgia

    Kvareli Fortress Football Pitch

    This medieval fortress is (or was till 2017) the home stadium of the football club FC Duruji Kvareli.

  • Plymouth, England

    Jack Leslie Statue

    A statue of a pioneering Black footballer outside his former home stadium.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.