1972 was the year that the soap opera "Crossroads" started (for the first time!)
It was also the year of Donny Osmond singing "Puppy Love", of velvet loon pants, platform clogs and the year "The Joy of Sex" was first published.
Perhaps more in keeping with Preston's strong working tradition it was also the year of national miners strikes and power cuts, and later in the year Preston Dock was severely affected by a dockers strike.
In the United States of America five men burgled a building called Watergate, but at the time this meant nothing to a nation who went on to re-elect Nixon.

It was against this backdrop that the 1972 Guild celebrations took place.
The egalitarian trend of the 1952 Guild continued, and although there are many more 1972 commemorative pieces available in comparison to 1952 most of the designs of this period are similar, and many are made by the same manufacturer.

The plate and cake slice above are pale blue surround with a gold design.
The white centre depicts the Preston coat of arms with "Preston Guild 1972" in the gold scroll.
The cake slice has the same design as the plate and they are manufactured by Old Foley, James Kent Ltd, Staffordshire, England.

Also manufactured by Old Foley is the bon bon dish (above right).
It has the same blue surround with gold design and coat of arms and scroll.

The sandwich tray (above left) is again of the same design and manufacturer.

The 1972 Guild Mayor and Mayoress do not appear to be commemorated on any of the pottery of the time, but their images do appear on the medal.
The words round the edge of the medal are "F.G. Gray and E. Gray Mayor and Mayoress."
On the reverse of the medal is the Preston coat of arms and "Borough of Preston Guild Merchant 1972".
Alderman Fred Grey and his sister, Evelyn Gray are probably the only brother and sister to have held the Mayoral office in a Guild year,although they previously served in 1954-1955.
Fred Gray had been in the cotton trade, and worked in the RAF during the war and later worked in the family jewel business.
He had been involved in local politics since 1939.
Sadly Fred died in April 1973, with 37 days to go before the end of his Guild Mayoral year of office.
The 1972 Guild was unfortunately noteworthy for the Guild officials who died in office.
As well as Alderman Gray, the Town Clerk and Clerk of the Guild died in January 1973, and the Deputy Guild Mayor died very soon after the celebrations in October 1972.

The two mugs (above) were both manufactured by RWL London, and this is marked on the base.
Both depict the Preston coat of arms on the front, with "Preston Guild 1972".
On the back they both have a picture of the Old Town Hall.
The difference between the two mugs is that the one on the right has two gilt lines round the base, whereas the one on the left only has one.
They also have slightly different shaped handles.

Also manufactured by RWL London is the white wall plate (below).
It has the Preston coat of arms in the middle, with "Preston Guild 1179-1972" in the gilt scroll surround.

The 1972 Guild was without a major venue such as a Town Hall or Guild Hall.
The "New" Town Hall, which is depicted on the back of many of the 1972 pieces, was demolished in 1963, following a serious fire in 1947 which destroyed part of it - the fire occurred after a Policeman's Ball!
The now nationally famous - mainly for concerts and snooker competitions - Guild Hall was not finished in time for the 1972

celebrations.

The bone china mugs (above left and right) both have the Preston coat of arms on the front and "Preston Guild 1972."
The mug on the left also has "PP" on the rear.
Both have a gilt rim around the lip and base.
The mug on the left has "manufactured by Royal Grafton, fine bone china, Made in England" on the base.
The mug on the right has "Pall Mall Ware, English Bone China" on the base.

The cup and saucer (left) are also bone china.
They are both white with "Preston Guild 1972" on the front of the cup and on the saucer, and "PP" on the saucer and the rear of the cup.
The small bone china dish (above right) is gilt edged with the Preston coat of arms and "Preston Guild 1972".

The words "Bone China, Made in England" are on the base of both the saucer and the teacup.

It was manufactured by Pall Mall Ware.

The two tumblers (left) have different designs.
The large one has gilt edging with a blue Preston coat of arms and "Preston Guild 1972" in yellow below.
The smaller tumbler is made of plain glass with a white print of the coat of arms and again "Preston Guild 1972" underneath.

The cup sitting on the large saucer is a lovely piece, kindly sent to me for inclusion in this website. It was designed to be used instead of a plate for a biscuit or cake, and is an unusual addition to 1972 items.

Two of the more interesting pieces from 1972 are the mugs (below) both showing a print of the Harris Museum on the front under the words "Preston Guild 1972."
They are both manufactured by R.W.L.London, and this is marked on the base.
The only differences between the mugs are the with the shape of the handles and the two gilt lines round the base of the mug on the right.
They both have this long quotation on the reverse:
The Harris Public Libary, Museum and Art Gallery owes its inception to the munificent bequest of Edmund Robert Harris.
The building was designed by local architect, Alderman James Hibbert.
He was thoroughly imbuded with the spirit of ancient Greece.
Influenced by the style of Ionian Art, the chief features of the building are simplicity, symmetry of plan and great refinement of detail."
The Museum has a large collection of art and a fine collection of commemorative pottery and porcelain.

The round badge (left) shows the Preston coat of arms in blue.
The surround is white with "Preston Guild 1972" in gold round the base.

The tea caddy spoon (above right) has "Preston Guild 1972" and the Preston coat of arms on the handle. The scene in the bowl of the spoon appears to show a group of five people in an Inn.

The shield (left) has the Preston coat of arms with "Preston Guild 1972" on the scroll at the base.
The coat of arms sits proud on the background. The shield is unmarked.

The pendant ( below right) is made of material and plastic.
Plastic became a cheap and cheerful resource in the 1970's and 1980's, and so could be used for reasonably priced commemorative ware.

1972 was the beginning of a prevalence of commemorative ware other than china or pottery.
Nowadays we are used to commemorative keepsakes of all kinds, but in 1972 an item like this pack of cards would have been quite novel.
Although we do not have a bottle in our collection there was also commemorative beer brewed in 1972.
Someone has kindly sent me a picture of their three bottles of Preston Guild 1972 strong ale
(It was very similar to the one we have for 1992.

The items to the left and to the right are on this website with the very kind permission of a Preston Guild memorabilia collector who sent me the pictures to include on this website.
To the right is a 1972 mug, similar to others on the page. There is also an interesting pate and pot stand, showing both the Old Town Hall and the Harris Museum, and some glass coasters which are very evocative of 1970's home furnishing fashion, shows the New Town Hall and is one of the few pieces of Guild memorabilia to do so.

To the left is a 1972 key-ring and a rare 1972 red bus. Although there are a number of reproduction vans for 1972 and 1992, the red bus is quite rare.

If you have any items for me to include on this, or any of the other pages of this website, please

Contact me

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1822 1842	1862 1882	1902	1922	1952	1972	1992

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