John Lamb Dunn

[Poet of the Macabre]

My mum enjoys looking into our family tree and found a man by the name of John Lamb Dunn. He put down his profession in the 1920s as 'Professional Footballer' but I can't find any record of the guy whatsoever. He born in Carnwath in Lanarkshire  and died in Midlothian in 1971. That's all I've got...

Would be cool to find out more about this fella if at all possible.

[Dindeleux]

He pumped your gran I heard.

[HibeeJibee]

I'm presuming his name was John Dunn with the middle name Lamb (likely his grandmother or mother's surname). Not a member of the upper class with surname Lamb-Dunn.

If so John Litster's superb CD "Record of Pre-War Scottish League Players" gives 3 John Dunn's in the 1920s. It seems possible two of them are the same chap, so you're looking at:


John Dunn - signed for Raith Rovers from Leith Benburb for 1919-20. Played in about half their league games that season and a quarter the next season - may also be a John Dunn shown only as having played for King's Park in short-lived but spectacular Central League in 1920-21. Signed for Broxburn Athletic for 1921-22 and spent two seasons there as well - virtually an ever-present in his first season, went on loan to Leith Athletic early in 1922-23 and placed on transfer list. Signed for St Bernards in October of 1923-24, then Leith Athletic a month later. After his first season at Broxburn he doesn't appear to have played another first-class match, except for 4 league games with St Bernards. There is a note beside his second stint at Leith indicating he played for their Scottish Alliance team - this was the name of the reserve league in those days - so it may be that after 3 seasons of promise he had slid towards obscurity. He was an Outside Left.

John Dunn - signed for Wigan Borough from Cambuslang for 1925-26. Next season at Coventry City, next season at Crewe Alexandra as a trialist then signed for King's Park just after Christmas and played 2 games for them. He was an Inside Right.


Dates and locations where he is signing himself as a professional footballer may help your mother distinguish the likelier - and obviously if he is appearing in Scottish birth/marriage/death registrations or valuation rolls when the second bloke is down south.

[HibeeJibee]

If it's the first gent - in theory they could be the same man, btw, if he changed position - then I can add these tit-bits from the Raith Rovers and St Bernards statistical histories and the Broxburn United narrative history:

* in and out of the Raith first-team over the whole course of 1919-20. They finished 19th from 22 and he only scored twice, a home league win over Clyde and a Scottish Cup R2 third replay win over East Stirlingshire at Tynecastle. Nothing much else of note - they won a few other league games with him in the team. He played in a Fife Cup tie and a Wemyss Cup tie. Raith did play Dunfermline Athletic in a Fife Cup SF but he wasn't selected.

* in and out of the Raith team until about Christmas in 1920-21. They went on to finish 16th from 22, he scored thrice in the league - away wins at Third Lanark and Queen's Park and home to Morton. He played against Dunfermline in a 1-0 away defeat in Penman Cup R1.

* he played in Broxburn United's first-ever Scottish League match at the beginning of 1921-22 - at home to Dunfermline Athletic winning 3-2. He also played in a 1-1 draw with Hearts at Tynecastle in Scottish Cup R2, the replay also at Tynecastle which again finished 2-2, and the second replay once more at Tynecastle! in which he scored but they lost 3-1. Across the 3 ties an attendance of 65,000 was accumulated and the tie "is still regularly talked about in the town to this day".

* his spell with St Bernards was 4 consecutive and fairly innocuous league games in October and early November of 1923-24. They didn't have any reserve team so he was probably just signed as cover during an injury or similar. Didn't play Dunfermline.

There isn't a history of Leith Athletic but there is a chap who pops-up in here and Scottishleague.net who is researching one. If he sees this he may have some info on his spell there.