Arthur Elvin

The son of a Norwich policeman, he was born in Magpie Road, Norwich. Elvin left school at the age of fourteen. After a few different jobs, including as a soap salesman in Aldgate, he joined the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) during the First World War, aged 17. Between 1976 and 2006, his name was commemorated through the naming of Elvin House, a futuristic triangular office block in Wembley. == Wembley Stadium ==

After working in a British Empire Exhibition cigarette kiosk in 1924, in 1925 Elvin decided to buy his own shops within the grounds. He procured eight for a total of £100. By the end of the Exhibition he had made over £1000 profit from his shops. He also met his future wife at the Exhibition. She was Jennie Harding, who was managing the jewellery section of the Palace of Industry. The original plan was to demolish the stadium at the end of the Exhibition, but it was saved at the suggestion of Sir James Stevenson, a Scot who was chairman of the organising committee for the Empire Exhibition. In 1927 Elvin offered White £122,500 for the Stadium, using a £12,000 downpayment and the balance plus interest payable over ten years. White accepted, taking payment in ten yearly instalments, but he was on the verge of bankruptcy and committed suicide on 29 June. Elvin had to raise £150,000 within two weeks for the sale to go ahead. To do this he relied on greyhound racing, a recent import from the United States that was doing well in Manchester and at the White City. Elvin retained the stadium's connection with the Football Association, giving English football a permanent home. The FA Cup Final was played every year, and home internationals (the first had been England v. Scotland on 12 April 1924, a 1 – 1 draw as well. England would not play a true international at Wembley until 1945, when they drew 2 – 2 with France. The saving of the Stadium by Elvin ensured that Wembley Park would remain a visitor attraction, as it had been since Sir Edward Watkin had set up a pleasure ground there in the 1890s. Had the Stadium been demolished there is no certainty that the district would not have become permanently light industrial, or become wholly residential. == Wembley Arena ==

Elvin claimed that he wanted to build a public swimming pool because his inability to swim having hindered his escape while a prisoner of war. As with the Stadium, construction was supervised by R.J. Fowler, Wembley's chief building inspector. The Empire Pool could hold 4,500 spectators, with the possibility of up to 12,500 using temporary seating. Elvin's aim was for it to become "London's greatest pleasure resort," hosting a wide variety of events. It also provided two year-round covered public swimming pools (the main pool and a 40-foot paddling pool), making it, as one publication called it, "The World's Largest Covered Bath." During the day natural light poured into the building through enormous windows at the east and west ends and in the roof. Elvin introduced ice hockey to the new Empire Pool in October 1934. On 1 February 1978 the Empire Pool was renamed Wembley Arena. In 2013 the US live music company AEG took over Wembley Arena and a year later they signed a 10-year naming-rights and sponsorship deal with the energy company SSE (formerly Scottish Southern Electric) to help fund this. Wembley Arena was renamed The SSE Arena, Wembley, on 1 June 2014. ==Greyhound racing==

The first sport Elvin introduced to the stadium was greyhound racing. Elvin had noted the popularity and success of greyhound racing at the Bellevue race track in Manchester and recognised the sport as a good business proposition. The opening meeting was in 1927 and 50,000 people attended to watch the first race won by a greyhound named Spin. The dog racing provided the stadium with its main source of regular income, especially in the early days, and continued to attract crowds of several thousand up until the early 1960s. ==Speedway==

In 1929 Elvin decided he wanted to operate a speedway team from the stadium. With the help of speedway promoter Johnnie Hoskins, he constructed a speedway track at a cost of £250,000. Elvin announced that the Wembley Lions would enter the new Southern League. The Speedway World Championship was held at Wembley Stadium from 1936 until 1960 and then seven times more afterwards. only to return in 1970. The stadium saw a crowd of 85,000 for the first World Final in 1936 while the largest crowd was for the 1981 World Final on 5 September 1981, when some 92,500 saw the last final held at the great stadium. For many years after the war it was said that without the huge speedway crowds the stadium itself would have gone under. Speedway was Elvin's sporting love, and for one Lions' league meeting in 1948, against the West Ham Hammers, it witnessed a crowd of 85,000 inside and another 20,000 outside unable to get in. ==Ice hockey==

Elvin introduced ice hockey to the new Empire Pool in October 1934. There were two teams, the new Wembley Lions and the Wembley Canadians (later the Wembley Monarchs), who had previously, as the Grosvenor House Canadians, been connected with the rink at the Grosvenor House Hotel. The success of ice hockey at Wembley may have been helped by the fact that the season began just as the speedway season ended, encouraging speedway supporters to follow the new sport over the winter. Matches were played on Thursdays and Saturdays. 343,530 people watched ice hockey at Wembley in 1936. In 1990 Elvin was inducted into the British Ice Hockey Hall of Fame. == Rugby League ==

From 1929, Elvin began hosting the Rugby League Challenge Cup Final at Wembley. It had previously been played in the North. It continues to be played in the new stadium today. == Second World War ==

During the Second World War, Elvin offered free admission to servicemen and servicewomen, and helped war charities. He also encouraged mass PT events in the Empire Pool on Thursday evenings, Saturday afternoons and Sunday mornings, and opened a gymnasium for cadets of the Middlesex Regiment. == 1948 London Olympics ==

Arthur Elvin supplied the Wembley site free of charge for the 1948 London Olympics. Some of the old British Empire Exhibition buildings were used, notably the Palace of Engineering, so no new venues were needed, though Olympic Way was built at a cost of £120,000. ==Honours==

Arthur Elvin was made a Member of the Order of the British Empire in 1945 and received his knighthood from King George VI in 1947. == References ==