Historic Buxton tennis trophy rescued from waste tip

The large silver trophy, hallmarked and inscribed with the words ‘Buxton Lawn Tennis Tournament Men’s Singles Champion of Derbyshire, presented by the Duke of Devonshire’, was discovered at a Nottinghamshire waste recycling centre last month.

Site recycling supervisor Tony Hoy, of East Midlands resource management and recycling specialists Wastecycle, was taken aback when he spotted the metallic object poking out of a pile of rubbish.

Since then, he has been on a mission to reunite the discovered item with its rightful owner.

After freeing the trophy from the waste, it was transferred to Wastecycle’s headquarters in Nottingham, cleaned and securely stored while investigations were made with Buxton Tennis Club as to its origins.

“It was an amazing find,” said Paul Clements, of Wastecycle.

“We’re really looking forward to returning this magnificent trophy to its rightful place and solving the mystery of how it ended up in a tip in the first place!”

It is understood the trophy was created for an annual open gentlemen’s tournament in 1884 – a tournament which was played up until the 1950s.

“We are intrigued with the discovery,” said Allan Ramsay, chairman of Buxton Tennis Club.

“It’s fascinating having an item steeped in such history resurface after all this time and we are looking forward to welcoming the trophy back to the club.”