George Woodhouse
Encyclopedia
George Edward Sealy Woodhouse DL
, born at Blandford Forum, Dorset
, on 15 February 1924 and died also at Blandford on 19 January 1988, had two careers: one as a cricketer
for Somerset
and Dorset
, the second as the chairman from 1962 to his death of the family brewing company Hall and Woodhouse. As a cricketer, he was known as George Woodhouse; as a businessman, he was known as Edward Woodhouse.
which proved to be his only first-class
century.
In 1948, Somerset struggled to find a full-time captain, and Woodhouse officially shared the job with Mandy Mitchell-Innes
and Jake Seamer
, though at least two other players captained the side for occasional matches. In 1949, Woodhouse took over the captaincy full-time and played his only full season of cricket: he made 849 runs, though his highest score was only 59, at an average just below 20 runs an innings. He led the team to equal ninth in the County Championship
table, and only three matches all season were drawn. But at the end of the season he stepped down to go into the family business, and he played only a few more times in first-class cricket, finally finishing in 1953.
Instead, he became a fairly regular player in Minor Counties cricket for Dorset, not retiring from second-class cricket until 1964.
Woodhouse was also a Deputy Lieutenant
and High Sheriff
of Dorset.
He died suddenly from a heart attack.
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
, born at Blandford Forum, Dorset
Dorset
Dorset , is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The county town is Dorchester which is situated in the south. The Hampshire towns of Bournemouth and Christchurch joined the county with the reorganisation of local government in 1974...
, on 15 February 1924 and died also at Blandford on 19 January 1988, had two careers: one as a cricketer
Cricketer
A cricketer is a person who plays the sport of cricket. Official and long-established cricket publications prefer the traditional word "cricketer" over the rarely used term "cricket player"....
for Somerset
Somerset County Cricket Club
Somerset County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Somerset...
and Dorset
Dorset County Cricket Club
Dorset County Cricket Club is one of the county clubs which make up the Minor Counties in the English domestic cricket structure, representing the historic county of Dorset and playing in the Minor Counties Championship and the MCCA Knockout Trophy...
, the second as the chairman from 1962 to his death of the family brewing company Hall and Woodhouse. As a cricketer, he was known as George Woodhouse; as a businessman, he was known as Edward Woodhouse.
Cricket career
Woodhouse was a right-handed middle-order batsman, a very occasional medium-pace bowler and, once in his first-class career, a wicketkeeper. He played a couple of times for Somerset in 1946, and then fairly regularly in both 1947 and 1948, winning his county cap in 1947 after an innings of 109 against LeicestershireLeicestershire County Cricket Club
Leicestershire County Cricket Club is one of the 18 major county clubs which make up the English and Welsh national cricket structure, representing the historic county of Leicestershire. It has also been representative of the county of Rutland....
which proved to be his only first-class
First-class cricket
First-class cricket is a class of cricket that consists of matches of three or more days' scheduled duration, that are between two sides of eleven players and are officially adjudged first-class by virtue of the standard of the competing teams...
century.
In 1948, Somerset struggled to find a full-time captain, and Woodhouse officially shared the job with Mandy Mitchell-Innes
Mandy Mitchell-Innes
Norman Stewart Mitchell-Innes, known as Mandy Mitchell-Innes was an English cricketer who played in one Test in May 1935. He became England's oldest surviving Test cricketer on 7 October 2001, on the death of Alf Gover. Following his own death, that distinction passed to Ken Cranston, who...
and Jake Seamer
Jake Seamer
John Wemyss "Jake" Seamer was an amateur cricketer who played for Oxford University and Somerset either side of the Second World War. A bespectacled cricketer, Seamer was a right-handed batsman who played with a defensive streak to his game which was rarely seen among amateur batsmen of his time...
, though at least two other players captained the side for occasional matches. In 1949, Woodhouse took over the captaincy full-time and played his only full season of cricket: he made 849 runs, though his highest score was only 59, at an average just below 20 runs an innings. He led the team to equal ninth in the County Championship
County Championship
The County Championship is the domestic first-class cricket competition in England and Wales...
table, and only three matches all season were drawn. But at the end of the season he stepped down to go into the family business, and he played only a few more times in first-class cricket, finally finishing in 1953.
Instead, he became a fairly regular player in Minor Counties cricket for Dorset, not retiring from second-class cricket until 1964.
Business career
Hall and Woodhouse is a family owned brewery in Blandford Forum, and Edward Woodhouse was the fourth generation of his family to become chairman when he took over in 1962. His own sons David and Anthony are now in charge of the company, which has expanded significantly in the past 25 years.Woodhouse was also a Deputy Lieutenant
Deputy Lieutenant
In the United Kingdom, a Deputy Lieutenant is one of several deputies to the Lord Lieutenant of a lieutenancy area; an English ceremonial county, Welsh preserved county, Scottish lieutenancy area, or Northern Irish county borough or county....
and High Sheriff
High Sheriff
A high sheriff is, or was, a law enforcement officer in the United Kingdom, Canada and the United States.In England and Wales, the office is unpaid and partly ceremonial, appointed by the Crown through a warrant from the Privy Council. In Cornwall, the High Sheriff is appointed by the Duke of...
of Dorset.
He died suddenly from a heart attack.