The Stokes family was one of the most influential in Collingwood's early days - but one of the least well-remembered today.

Partly that's because so much of their influence came off the field. Walter Stokes was an early Club committeeman who was involved with the management of the Club for more than 20 years. He was at the first meetings that formed the Club, as he was a prominent local businessman, and the owner of a famous barber shop in Johnston Street that for a time proclaimed itself as the oldest ongoing business in Collingwood. The teams were often posted in his shop windows on Thursday nights, drawing huge crowds to gather out the front. He was known for many years as 'the father of the Committee' and was made a Life Member of Collingwood in 1918. 

One of Walter's sons, Horace, was the secretary of the Club's reserves team for many years in the 1920s/30s. Between them, Walter and Horace were hugely important figures in the Club's first 50 years.

The family connections continued. Another of Walter's sons, Arthur, was a superintendent at the Victoria Park ground. Three other family members - Rex, Keith and Lynnie - acted as scoreboard attendants. Another son, Clary, worked on the turnstiles, while Walter's brother-in-law, Thomas Langley, was said to have helped fund an early grandstand at Vic Park.

It's an extraordinary family contribution. But only one member of the family managed to play senior football with Collingwood, and that was one of Walter's brothers, Alfred Edward Stokes. 

Family history has it that Alfred played with Britannia, though that has not been confirmed. Either way it was Richmond where Collingwood recruited him from, having played a dozen or so games with that club in 1891. His clearance to the Magpies was initially held up by the VFA, but he eventually was given permission to play in time for him to make his debut in the Club's third ever game, against St Kilda in 1892.

Alf had been a follower with Richmond and filled a similar role with his new club. A family history described him as “an athletic type, being a good runner and reasonably good footballer”. He was only 23 at the time of his debut, but was recruited in part because of his experience.

Alf Stokes played 13 of the remaining 16 games of that 1892 season, but was then released, and his career after that is unknown. His last job was as a lamp-lighter for the Clifton Hill area (which was not converted to electricity until about 1923). But his family continued what would be a long and fruitful association with the Collingwood Football Club, through the tireless work of both Walter and Horace. And recent research has revealed that one of Alf's sons, Harry, played with our reserves team in the 1930s.

All in all it's a wonderful contribution from Alf, Walter and Horace Stokes and the rest of the Stokes' clan - one of Collingwood's most important early families.

- Michael Roberts