Origins : The RI School Tie

Origin of the RI School Tie

Written by Moh Teck

I presented my uncle’s RI school tie to the Raffles Archives & Museum. Being from humble origins, I could not to buy a new one. I had to use his old tie throughout my secondary school days from 1972 to 1975. I found the tie after rampaging through a giant chest of drawers in the kitchen. Those were the days, when I still lived in a zinc-roof wooden house at Teng Tong Road.

I spoke to Cheryl Yap, who is the curator and manages the Raffles Archives & Museum. She said that our old boys donated ties. They came in different shades of green, black and white and of different dimensions, but there were no mark verifying their origins.

My tie shows a label Jack Hobbs Ltd, 59 Fleet Street, EC, Club Colour Specialist. The tie had came from Jack Hobbs Sports Shop in the United Kingdom. The following video shows Jack Hobbs Sports Shop 1949.

Sir John Berry Hobbs (16 December 1882 to 21 December 1963), always known a Jack Hobbs, was an English professional cricketer who played for Surrey from 1905 to 1934 and for England in 61 test matches between 1908 and 1930. Known as the “Master”, he is regarded by critics as one of the greatest batsman in the history of cricket. He is the leading run-scorer and century-maker in first-class cricket, with 61, 760 runs and 199 centuries. A right-handed batsman and an occasional right-arm medium pace bowler, Hobbs also excelled as a fielder, particularly in the position of cover point.

(Source of photo and write-ups on Jack Hobbs from Wikipedia)

The following video shows the life of Jack Hobbs