If memory serves me correctly I think that in the 1960’s/70’s Rhyl “Toc H” was on Vale Road. Was it the building which became the Operatic Centre? Readers will confirm which building. The name Toc H meant nothing to me at the time, but the story of Toc H is fascinating, poignant, sad and life affirming all at the same time.
Toc H is an abbreviation of “Talbot House”, Toc signifying the letter T in British Army signallers’ code. Talbot House is located in Poperinge, (or “Pops” as the first world war soldiers called it ), Belgium, a few miles from Ypres. It was a busy transfer station where troops, on their way to and from the battlefields of Flanders, were billeted.
English: A postcard of troops arriving in Poperinge at the start of World War I (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
In 1915, an army chaplain called Reverend Phillip Byard (Tubby) Clayton was instructed by his senior chaplain, Neville Talbot, to set up some sort of rest house for the troops. A suitable property was found which was named Talbot House in memory of Neville Talbot’s brother Lieutenant Gilbert W L Talbot who was killed on the Ypres Salient in 1915.
English: Talbot House in the town of Poperinge (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
English: Philip ‘Tubby’ Clayton founder of Talbot House at Poperinge. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
Here is a quote from the Toc H website:
“For most of the Great War Talbot House offered an oasis of sanity to the men passing through Poperinge. Not only could they socialise but Tubby also organised debates and concerts. Men could post messages for their missing comrades and hope they too might stop at Talbot House and see them. What was clear though was that the Talbot House promoted a special feeling of fellowship with those who rested there awhile.”
Talbot House was a soldiers’ club for all, regardless of rank. A notice was hung by the front door which read “All rank abandon, ye who enter here”. Talbot house had lovely gardens, there was a chapel and a library. Eventually a neighbouring storehouse was also used, which became known as “The Concert Hall” where concerts, movies, debates and lectures were held.
In 1920, Clayton founded a Christian youth centre in London, also called Toc H, which developed into an interdenominational association for Christian social service. Toc H members seek to ease the burden of others through acts of service.
The photograph below shows Rhyl Toc H members in 1931. Units were initially set up as groups and granted a rushlight as their symbol, They could only petition for a lamp when they had enough members and were doing enough work in the community to justify it. If they were successful they would be given a lamp. Rhyl’s was lit at the special 21st Birthday Festival at Crystal Palace in June 1936.
The booklet below is for 1936/7 – immediately after being granted their lamp.
The following quote is from the Great War 1914-1918 website:
“The World Chain of Light”
“Every year on Tubby Clayton’s birthday the Lamp of Maintenance is lit in the Upper Room at Talbot House in Poperinge for 24 hours. It is lit from 9pm on the night of 11th December until 9pm on 12th December. The lighting at Toc H Poperinge is the start of a series of lamp lightings in all the Toc H branches around the world.”
More information:
http://www.greatwar.co.uk/ypres-salient/museum-talbot-house.htm
For details of those remembered on the War Memorial in the Garden of Remembrance in Rhyl:
Rhyl History Club 
I have a memory of the meeting room to be in Marsh road
In the early 60’s Toc H held some of their meetings at the back of 78 Wellington Road. There is a small cottage between Wellington Rd and Crescent Road. My father had the hairdressers on Wellington Road and he allowed the Toc H people to use this as a meeting place.
I was project a project leader at toch ryhl well in to the late 90 s doing many project with young people on rest bite weeks of fun .i come from winsford cheshire .
Karen
My great uncle John Robert Brookes Davies b 1880s was a member of Toc H in Southampton after WW1. He had been brought up in Rose Hill Terrace, Millbank Lane. Rhyl then 48 Ernest street, Rhyl. Incidentally does anyone know where Rose Hill terrace was as it is no longer there?
Back in the 1960’s I knew Mr Bert Craddock (named in this article) and his wife (Hetty?) who lived in 19 Victoria Road. He used to work in the railway and I understood that the Toc-H place in Marsh Road was opposite the old “Derbyshire Miners” holiday camp / Stamp Factory (by “Williams & Watson” builders yard. I remember being told they did use the operatic hall. Mr & Mrs Craddock were also involved with a “Friendship Club” upstairs at the top of Sussex Street and Sundays they attended services at the “PSA” (Pleasant Sunday Afernoon) in Albert Street opposite the Jehovah Witness building.
Does anyone have photographs of the original Morfa Bach chapel by Rifkins / Dairy or the replacement built at Kingsley Avenue?
Did the Craddocks have a daughter called Betty? I remember a Betty Craddock, who was one of the prettiest girls in the Class at Clwyd Street Primary school in 1950/51.
The Toc H is just left opposite the Stamp Factory, built mid or late 60s.
Dave and I built the Office and Workshop on our Builders yard( Williams and Watson)
Thank you for helping record the history of Toc H particularly that of your local branch. Anyone interested can read more about Toc H on my blog
https://tochcentenary.com/
My great uncle ( sadly I never met him) was a member of Toc H. His name was John Robert Brookes Davies and he was born in Rhyl. He went to Oxford to study theology, fought in WW1 after which he joined Toc H and became a teacher then a vicar. He died in Tadley Hampshire. I have researched Toc H since finding out he was a member. I wonder if he ever went to the Rhyl branch?
There is a Toc H group on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/tochpeople
I was a Toc H staff member in North Wales between late 1991 and mid 1993, when I moved to work at the then Toc H HQ in Wendover, Buckinghamshire. The Rhyl children’s camp was well known locally and there were still a few brances of Toc H scattered around north Wales, mainly with elderly membership. There was an adventure centre at Porth Penrhyn, Bangor, that was still open and we staff met there from time to time. Dei Hughes, from Croesor, and Cliff Newman, from Anglesey, were my local staff colleagues.
You may be pleased to hear that I am currently sorting through some boxes of archive material that came out of a recently closed Toc H office in Birmingham. Amongst the goodies is the original photograph of the Rhyl Toc H group, framed and with the signatures of those people who appear in it underneath. The date is given as August 30th 1931. Its quite large so I’ll have to try and scan it in sections and it may be a few days before I get around to it. It’s final destination is undecided but it will of course be preserved.
I can easily be reached at the Toc H facebook group Timothy mentions above as I am a Moderator there
I have been told that my great uncle, John Robert Brookes Davies of Ernest Street, Rhyl was a member of Toc H. He was born in 1880s I think and was in RWF in WW1. He went on to become a vicar in Tadley Hampshire. Can anyone tell me how I could find out more about his time in TOC H please? Thank you. Glenys Brown
The minute books of Toc H Rhyl branch would be a good starting point but I’m not sure where they are. I’ll try and find out. In the meantime you could tray searching the Journal/Point 3 which is the Toc H monthly magazine. I have scanned them (nearly) all and they are available here https://archive.org/details/toc-h-literature . Bear in mind though there thousands of members in hundreds of branches so not all got mentioned in the magazine. I’ll have a look in my notes too.
Thank you for your help. It is appreciated.
Wow what a great find! It would be good if we could see the scan. I could look in the local paper of the time to see if there is a report or if there was some sort of occasion. Thank you for getting in touch.
I’ll keep you posted
In the early 60’s Toc H was at the back of 78 Wellington Road. My Father had a café and hairdressing business there. The building was between Wellington Road and Crescent Road and we were told it was a farmhouse going back to the 19th century.
Copied this from Google Maps https://www.google.com/maps/@53.3176671,-3.4954125,3a,36.3y,50.64h,91.42t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sKFfOkfncr_J_ZqrLx09uug!2e0!7i16384!8i8192
That’s good to know. I’ll add that to my notes. Thanks Tony.
https://www.newa.wales/ may be able to assist re. the minute books
There are some records in the Toc H archive at Birmingham University but it doesn’t specify exactly what https://calmview.bham.ac.uk/Record.aspx?src=CalmView.Catalog&id=XTOCH%2fB%2f4%2f83&pos=1
I have emailed a scan of the full photo to the group
Toc H Manchester Children’s Camp from ? 1950 /52 was held at St.Annes and then Fleetwood . It moved to a Rhyl church Hall ifor many years until the new build in the late 60s. As well as being a helper, I was Secretary for several years. John.pantall661@gmail.com