Luton Town Football Club historian makes plea to ensure legacy is saved for future generations

Luton Town Football Club’s historian has made an appeal to help save the club’s history for future generations and keep its website running.

Roger Wash has been LTFC’s historian for over 40 years and launched the Hatters’ Heritage website in 2020 after years of planning. The site is dedicated to all things Luton Town, with every match recorded since 1885. The volunteer-run website has player profiles, 100 seasons of programmes and details of memorabilia of Luton’s football history.

Hatters’ Heritage chairman, Roger, explained: “It costs us about £8,000 pounds a year – that’s the cost of hosting, licences, insurance of our memorabilia. So that's what we need to raise.”

Hatters’ Heritage committee is now looking for both businesses and individuals to help keep the history of the club alive for years to come by donating and sponsoring the charity.

The 71-year-old said: “We're trying to get more members to join for £10 a year. And we're also now looking at sponsorship as well.”

Businesses wanting to sponsor could see their logo on the website, which gets around 30,000 visitors per month. This is something Roger thinks is attractive for any company wanting to reach people in the town and further afield. When asked why businesses should support the charity, he said: “It’s helping preserve the heritage of Luton Town Football Club for the future and keeping it going really. It’s a legacy.”

Thanks to previous donations from Luton Town FC directors, the committee was able to buy England caps won by former Town goalkeeper Ron Baynham and reunite them with him. According to Roger, loaned vintage shirts, players’ caps and other memorabilia items could be on display at the new Power Court stadium.

Roger said: “When we get to the new ground, we've been allocated space for a museum, an archive room and also storage space. So that's the next step.” Hatters’ Heritage has urged businesses and LTFC supporters to donate to ensure the history of the club is protected. Roger added: “History is important and remembering things from the past is important.”

Anyone interested in supporting Hatters’ Heritage can do so via this link or contact the charity here.