Harold Grocott (9 March 1876 – 11 February 1960) was a New Zealand
lawn bowls player who competed for his country at the
1934 British Empire Games.
Early life and family
Born in England, in the London district of
St Pancras, on 9 March 1876, Grocott was the son of Joseph Henry Grocott and Hannah Dryden.[1] He was baptised at
Holy Trinity Church, Marylebone on 4 June 1876.[2] In 1877, the family emigrated to New Zealand,[3] where Joseph and Hannah were married the same year.[4] Harold's younger brother,
Horace, was born in
Napier in 1880, and soon after, they moved to
Dunedin.[5][6]
By 1902, Grocott was in charge of Wilkinson and Sons' branch chemist shop in
George Street, Dunedin, and was living above the shop.[11] Two years later, he had his own chemist's shop in
Roxburgh, building a large new house and shop in Scotland Street,[12] and he took on
Sydney Smith, who would go on to become a renowned forensic scientist and pathologist, as an apprentice.[13] Grocott sold the business in 1907.[14]
In 1920, Grocott travelled to
London, where he passed the examinations set by the
Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers, gaining him Fellowship in Optometry of the Worshipful Company of Spectacle Makers (FSMC).[21] He was also admitted to the Freedom of the City of London by redemption, in the Company of Spectacle Makers, and was appointed as a Fellow of the British Institute of Opticians.[1][21] Grocott retired to
Auckland in the early 1930s.
Lawn bowls
A member of the Carlton Bowling Club in Auckland, Grocott was selected to represent New Zealand in the men's fours at the
1934 British Empire Games in London, alongside two other bowlers from Carlton, namely
George Pollard, and
George Carter (skip), and
Billy Dillicar from Hamilton's Whitiora Bowling Club.[22][23][24][25][26] At the Games, they won four of their nine round-robin matches to finish in fifth place.[27]
Other activities
Grocott was an active
Rotarian in Hamilton. He attended the Rotary International Convention in
Denver,
Colorado, in 1926,[28] where he was appointed as a member of the elections committee for the convention.[29]
Death
Grocott died in Auckland on 11 February 1960, and he was buried at Purewa Cemetery.[30][31] He had been predeceased by his wife, Elizabeth, in 1946.[32]