Annual Dinner programmes, various sections of the CTC and dates from 1930 to 1986: 25 programmes, with some typescripts of speeches by Will Townsend .

London: Cyclists' Touring Club , 1930-86 Original club publications, with printed card wrappers and the CTC winged wheel logo on the front. Annual CTC dinners, with speeches often with guest speakers; sometimes prizes were presented. The publications usually include printed details of the speakers, menu, and sometimes club history and prizes. This material came from the archives of Will Townsend, who was a long-standing CTC member and a leading figure in British club cycle racing, head of the Road Time Trials Council in the 1950s and of Westerley Road Club. He had an important role in the post-war reconciliation between time trialists and road racers in Britain. He was often a guest speaker at other cycling club annual dinners, as here. The material here: 1. West Middlesex Section Second Annual Dinner. 1930. White folded card, lettered in blue; on the back is the menu with various pencil signatures of guests. 2. W. Middx Section Dinner 1939. White folded card. Will Townsend is listed a speaker. 3. Western Section 35th Anniversary Dinner, Feb. 1946. White folded card lettered in brown. Again Will Townsend is listed as a speaker, and enclosed loosely is a typescript of his speech, 3pp, in which he recalls his early days in the CTC and involvement with the Western Section. 4.W. MIddx section Re-union and welcome home Dinner, Feb. 1947. White folded card. This some pencil autographs to the back. Townsend was again a speaker and a TS of his speech is enclosed loosely. 5. Western Section Annual Dinner 1955. White card printed in blue to front only. A few pencil notes by Townsend to back. 6. Same as No.5, but for 1956, again with pencil notes on back. 7. Western section Annual dinner 1957, folded cream textured card with CTC logo in blue and gold to front, lettered in blue. 8. Same as no. 7 but for 1958. 9. Western Section Annual Dinner 1960. Cream card wrappers printed in blue again with blue and gold CTC logo. Townsend was again a speaker and a TS of his speech is enclosed- a longer speech in which he recalls his cycling life and muses on the changes and challenges faced by touring cyclists today. 10. Western Section Golden Jubilee Dinner. 1961, lettered in blue and gold to front on blue and white card wrappers with gold edges. Enclosed is a xeroxed 6pp typed history of the club. 11. West Metropolitan DA 25th anniversary Dinner 1963. Folded white card. 12. Western Section Annual dinner 1964, folded white and blue card. 13. Same as 12, for 1965. 14. CTC and Alliance Internationale de Tourisme Anniversary Dinner at the 21st York Rally, August 1965. Folded white card. 15. CTC First Prize Presentation Dinner, London, Jan. 1966. Folded white card, prize winners printed on back. Will Townsend was a speaker, as chair of the RTTC, and typescript of his speech is enclosed loosely, in which he talks of the CTC's relationship with the racing scene and recalls that he joined the CTC in 1921. 16. CTC National Prize Presentation Dinner 1967. Folded white card. Denis Howell, Minister of SPort, was a guest speaker and he has signed the front of the card. 17. West London DA Annual Dinner 1967. Folded white card. Will Townsend was again a speaker, and TS of his speech is enclosed loosely. In this he talks of the early history of cycling, and an early tour of the Lake District that he made. 18. CTC National Prize Presentation dinner 1968. White folded card, with some pencil notes by Townsend on the back. 19. West London DA Annual dinner 1968. White folded card. 20. CTC South Bucks DA Annual Dinner and CTC National Prize Presentaion, 1969, white folded card. 21. CTC Ealing Section Annual Dinner 1971. Folded white card, lettered in blue with blue and gold CTC logo to front. Townsend is listed as a speaker, and again a TSof his speech is enclosed; there is a pencil note on the back that this was originally the Western Section. 22. CTC West London DA Annual Dinner 1971, blue folded card, lettered in black. 23 & 24. The Centenary Dinner of the CTC, London, Jan. 1978, yellow pictorial folded card lettered in black. Enclosed are xeroxed TS sheets of the guest list. There are 2 copies of this, at which Will Townsend and his wife Beatrice were guests. One has 12 autographs on the back. 25. CTC Ealing Section 75th Annual Dinner 1986, white card wrappers with 9pp stapled inside of text on the history of the club. Condition details: Mostly Very Good. Occasional light spotting or browning. (Note: Many other cycling club items from Townsend's collection are also available from David Ford Books under cycling club name, and Will Townsend)