THE president of a Bridgwater carnival club has provided us with another insight into the early days of the annual spectacular.

In September, the Mercury featured a postcard from historian Dave Williams dating from December 1909 depicting a man next to a horse-drawn cart.

British Flag CC president Roger Brown has managed to reveal the identity of the horse-drawn cart as a carnival entry from a Mr H Bowyer of West Quay on Thursday, November 4, 1909.

A Mercury report on November 10, 1909 says: “A trade exhibit of neat arrangement was that designed by Mr H Bowyer who set out in attractive fashion a fine array of phonographs and gramophones.

“Voices from Home was the subject of the scene, and it represented bearded colonials gathered around a gramophone from which was being emitted songs of the old home across the seas.”

Roger said: “Taking part in the cart included W Miles, G Thomas, A Baker, H Price and J Durrant and many of the families of these 1909 carnivalites are still active in today's carnival 100 years later.”

Roger has provided us with a picture of J Durant dressed in his colonial Carnival costume and the large gramophone in the photo could possibly be the same machine in the postcard Dave Williams shared with us.

DO you have a picture of Bridgwater's past you would like to share with us? Send them to newsdesk@bridgwatermercury.co.uk or to Bridgwater Mercury, Royal Clarence House, York Buildings, Bridgwater TA6 3AT.