In July 2023 avid Town fan, researcher and historian Lee Morris contacted me with photographs of a collection of documents pertaining to the Town career of James Proctor. Much as I would have preferred scans, beggars simply can’t be choosers and these photographs are the best that I am going to get, so there we are.
James Frederick “Jack” Proctor was born in London in 1892. A striker, he was on the books of Huddersfield Town for the 1911-12 season in Division Two, making just four appearances and failing to register a single goal. Released in April 1913 he joined Leicester Fosse although it would seem that he did not make any appearances for them at all.
The first document that we have is James’ contract, dated 18th April 1911 and signed by both him and Town Secretary-Manager Dick Pudan. Proctor, of Custom House in Essex, was to be paid £4 per week from 1st May 1911 to 30th April 1913, “the said player to travel to Huddersfield every Thursday morning unless there should be a midweek match & to be allowed to work at his trade.”
Next we have a letter on official headed notepaper addressed to Proctor from Pudan on 27th February 1912 which states “Dear James, See James Harrold* & ask him to come up to Huddersfield for Saturday next. He can come up Friday evening & go back Sunday as before. Let me know by wire. Yours Sincerely, R. Pudan” and written diagonally across the top left is the note ” You are playing in 1st Team at Gainsborough on Sat. Inside Left”.
The next document is a letter addressed to Proctor at his home in Custom House, London, and is from T. Herbert Kaye, & Co. of 31a New Street, Huddersfield. Dated 11th May 1912, it is confirmation that Proctor was to be granted a ‘free transfer’ from Town, and he would subsequently move on to Leicester Fosse, although the move would not prove to be particularly fruitful as he would fail to break into their first team.
The final document relates to Proctor’s application to return to the amateur game and is, perhaps, a final acceptance that he really wasn’t good enough for the professional game. Dated 16th July 1914 it would appear that Proctor intended to start afresh – and possibly closer to home – in the coming season. However, I think that the Kaiser had other ideas…
I have no idea what became of James Proctor the footballer, but Lee’s research shows that he worked as a plastic welder in Barking, Essex, before his death there in January 1976.
* James George William “Jimmy” Harrold (26 March 1892 – 7 October 1950) was an English amateur centre-half who made more than 200 appearances in the Football League for Leicester City. He won two England Amateur caps. He also played cricket and made eleven first-class appearances for Essex between 1923 and 1928. Although on Town’s books in 1911 he made no first team appearances.
All photographs in this section are © Lee Morris and must not be reproduced without permission.
The Huddersfield Town Collection 