Mexborough and Swinton Times March 30, 1928
Loaded With Honours.
Swinton Fancier’s 66 Medals and 30 Cups.
In Temperance Street, Swinton, lives a man whose hobbies have won for him more prizes than he can recollect, but certainly 2000. Those in cash lie has devoted to his hobbies, those in kind adorn himself, his friends, and his home.
This local champion is Mr. Ben Lockwood, a familiar figure at the pigeon cotes near the bottom of Cliffe Field Road. Though he has long been regarded as an expert pigeon and canary fancier, it seemed incredible to me for a man to have such a huge list of successes with mere birds. To confirm his claims, I paid a visit to his h eadquarters, and soon became less sceptic. His office-cum-hospital walls were decorated with hundreds of fancy coloured cards, each representing an award at shows near and far. Specials and firsts predominated.
His winged friends are housed in neat and hygienic, huts of adequate size to allow for inspection of the nests.
They range in age from a few days to ten years. For the babies a golden future is prophesied, those in their prime represent great value, and the veterans have a past worthy of description.
There was Champion Peter, a handsome racer, who can pass an express train. He is a cross-bred—Barker and Metcalfe’s Lusitania and Dreadnought—and his prowess and beauty have accounted for 127 of his owner’s prizes.
But even his record pales in the light of that of a predecessor, Champion Swank, who was at his zenith when the war came along. This bird won trophies and prizes innumerable. He had a velocity of 1898 yards per minute in his flight of 31 miles from Ambergate, and in under 131 hours he returned from Rennes in France, a distance of 372 miles. A mealy hen-bird, now with a young family to care for, has captivated the judges on fifty occasions.
Others of her forty-odd mates have similar records, in fact, all are champions or potential champions. Their strains are Lusitania and Dreadnought, Hayres, Kendall Blue, Carlin’s, and, of course, Mr. Lockwood’s own breed.
Mr. Lockwood is naturally very proud of his successes.
His haul consists of cash prizes, domestic articles, nine silver medals, 57 gold medals, 30 silver cups, and a shield. The shield and three silver cups he has won outright. On nine occasions he has timed the first bird, and been “placed” seventeen times in the Yorkshire Federation Races. Locally’ he is “nonpareil,” but from Birmingham to Bridlington, Lincoln to Leeds, he and his stock are well known.
To substantiate his statements he produced a complete record of races entered, fliers and results. time and velocity, and only seldom was Mr. B. Lockwood not in the first three names.
Canaries won for Mr. Lockwood many of his host of prizes, but though a fondness for his little- yellow friends lingers he now concentrates on the sturdier birds.
His one regret is that he cannot pursue his hobby as he would like because of lack of pocket money—he is a collier and times are bad.