The Moonlighter

Our first manager Mr. William Wilton

Spring is almost upon us and we will once again commence our restoration work on the next batch of final resting places. Over the last three years we’ve restored 31 plots of those who formed and built our club we’ve also tended to those of our fellow supporters. If you’d like to donate and assist the Restoration Project please do so via the link here on our website. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/the-restoration-of-Rangers-graves Every penny counts. Thank you.

Would all who are booked on tomorrow’s Tour please note that there will be a Founders Trail welcome desk available within the Ibrox Megastore from 11.15am prior to our 12pm departure directly across from the Megastore This will give us an opportunity to greet you, check you from our loading chart and distribute our travel packs. Parking is available throughout the day around Ibrox Stadium. If you have any questions before the tour please don't hesitate in contacting us on 0790 2855536.

On the 16th February 1935 Rangers legend Tom Vallance died at the family home at 83 Pitt Street Glasgow aged 78. Tom is buried in Hillfoot Cemetery in Bearsden and his funeral was attended by Mr. Struth, Chairman James Bowie and his old team-mate James McIntyre who both took a cord. Incredibly, players from the Vale of Leven team whom Tom had faced 60 years earlier in 1877 were also in attendance. That will give you an indication as to how highly regarded Tom Vallance was. Tom’s gravestone, as part of the Restoration of Rangers Graves project, will be re-lettered in the spring of this year. Tom was paid the ultimate accolade by the Club in May 1898 when he was made a life member of the Rangers. In 2012 we had Tom put on to canvas by way of a painting by artist Helen Runciman which was unveiled at Ibrox Stadium at the end of our Founders Trail. Tom Vallance took his rightful place at the top of the Marble Staircase alongside his friends and fellow Founders. Some facts on Tom Vallance: Tom had an incredible 60 year association with the Club. He was a master oarsman, a champion athlete (he set a Scottish long jump record of over 21 feet), he studied at the Glasgow School of Art, had paintings accepted by the Royal Scottish Academy and was Rangers Club Captain and President for many years. While President of the Club it was not uncommon to find Tom Vallance working the turnstiles on match day at First Ibrox. In 1890 he owned the Club Restaurant at 22 Paisley Road Toll which today is the Viceroy Bar. We have recorded details of Tom Vallance being present at the ceremony held on 1st January 1929 which saw the opening of the Main Stand at Ibrox and also at a Dinner held in the old St.Enoch’s Hotel after a Rangers match in 1933, he was also a guest of the Club that year for the New Year’s day game against celtic. So, the lad who was present at Fleshers Haugh in 1872 was still attending Ibrox some 60 years later where the Club that he’d helped form and nurture were now playing in front of crowds touching 100,000. Today we remember Tom Vallance. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/to

This Saturday night folks.

It'll be a pleasure to take the Founders Story to the north east of the country for the first time.

Last Saturday evening we presented the Founders Story at the Holytown Community Centre . At the end of the night our Restoration donations bucket was sent around the hall and the wonderful amount of £55.03 was raised. We'd like to thank everyone who attended for their generosity as this will help to ensure that our Restoration work continues over the coming months Thank you.

Treat the Bluenose in your life to a Founders Trail and Ibrox Stadium Tour Gift Voucher. The Gift Vouchers are without limit of time and reserve a seat on any Founders Trail and Ibrox Stadium Tour of your choice(allowing for availability). Adults £25 Senior Bluenoses and Wee Bears ( under 16) £18 +£1 P+P per order Gift Vouchers, which can be purchased here on our website, are posted out on the day of purchase. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/shop

Join us and hear the incredible life story of Tom Vallance

Would all who are booked on tomorrow’s Tour please note that there will be a Founders Trail welcome desk available within the Ibrox Megastore from 11.15am prior to our 12pm departure directly across from the Megastore This will give us an opportunity to greet you, check you from our loading chart and distribute our travel packs. Parking is available throughout the day around Ibrox Stadium. If you have any questions before the tour please don't hesitate in contacting us on 0790 2855536.

Two seats have just become available on this Sunday’s Founders Trail and Ibrox Stadium Tour. Adults £25 Child/Concession £18. If you'd like to join us please call 0790 2855536.

We still have plenty of scarves left in stock. They are only £12.00 (+ £3.00 P&P) and can be purchased directly here on our website https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/shop

Shaping up to be a cracking evening.

Would all who are booked on tomorrow’s Tour please note that there will be a Founders Trail welcome desk available within the Ibrox Megastore from 11.15am prior to our 12pm departure directly across from the Megastore This will give us an opportunity to greet you, check you from our loading chart and distribute our travel packs. Parking is available throughout the day around Ibrox Stadium. If you have any questions before the tour please don't hesitate in contacting us on 0790 2855536.

Two seats have just become available on tomorrow's Founders Trail and Ibrox Stadium Tour. Adults £25 Child/Concession £18. If you'd like to join us please call 0790 2855536.

It gave us a great sense of satisfaction at the Restoration Project when we restored the final resting place of Rangers player Sandy Marshall, this completed our quest to locate and restore the graves of every player from the legendary 1877 team who competed in our first ever Scottish Cup Final, except of course Peter Campbell who died at sea, however we placed a memorial plaque to Peter last year in Penarth South Wales. The next step for the project is to locate and restore the final resting place of the Rangers team who won our first ever trophy, The Glasgow Merchants Charity Cup in 1879. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/the-Rangers-first-trophy These men gave us everything that we still cherish today and we the Rangers support will give them back a bit of dignity and respect. If you’d like to donate to the project please use the link here on our website. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/the-restoration-of-Rangers-graves

Seats still available on all of these Tours although they are selling fast. Reserve your seat here https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/book-online

Hope to see you there.

With winter now biting get yourself wrapped up in one of popular scarves and in turn support the Founders Trail. They are only £12.00 (+ £3.00 P&P) and can be purchased directly here on our website https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/shop

It will be an honour for us to present the Founders Story at Kincardine Masonic Hall Kilbagie Street FK10 4QX on Saturday 17th February at 7pm. Tickets are £10 from scottcrawford01@hotmail.co.uk The evening will also provide an insight into The Rangers Graves Restoration Project and The Founders Trail. Following the Presentation entertainment will be provided by a flute band and singer. We hope to see a few of you along.

Last Friday evening we presented the Founders Story at the Burgh Bar Rutherglen. At the end of the evening our Restoration donations bucket was sent around the pub and the incredible amount of £251.80 was raised. We'd like to thank everyone who attended for their overwhelming generosity,this will help to ensure that our Restoration work continues over the coming months Thank you.

Would all who are booked on tomorrow’s Tour please note that there will be a Founders Trail welcome desk available within the Ibrox Megastore from 11.15am prior to our 12pm departure directly across from the Megastore This will give us an opportunity to greet you, check you from our loading chart and distribute our travel packs. Parking is available throughout the day around Ibrox Stadium. If you have any questions before the tour please don't hesitate in contacting us on 0790 2855536.

As our way of supporting Rangers Youth Development and putting your money back into the Club the Founders Trail plays the Rangers Lotto. Yesterday morning a winner’s cheque for £190.92 came through our door. This week we will also be purchasing a further 10 Stadium Bricks which we use as raffle prizes during the Founders Trail. Get signed up folks and help the next Ross McCrorie realise his dream of playing for the greatest Club in the world. http://www.rangerslotto.co.uk/

Once again due to overwhelming demand we're delighted to add yet another batch of dates to the Founders Trail and Ibrox Stadium Tour programme 2018. More dates will be added throughout the year. SUNDAY 22ND APRIL SATURDAY 5TH MAY SATURDAY 26TH MAY SUNDAY 3RD JUNE SUNDAY 24TH JUNE SUNDAY 1ST JULY Our first seven tours of 2018 are completely sold out so please reserve your seat as soon as possible to avoid disappointment. Adults : £25 Children (under 16) and Senior Citizens £18. Group discounts are available upon request. Reserve your seat here https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/book-online For further information please call 0790 2855536.

The Founders Trail was formed in the summer of 2009 when we took a group on a walking tour of Glasgow visiting a few sites relating to our Founders that our research had unearthed….this was to crumble in spectacular fashion when a refreshment break was had at a West End Pub! We then took the logical step forward and the first Trail by bus took to the streets of Glasgow in the November of 2009,we then approached the Club in early 2010 and had the Stadium Tour added to our day. In 2010 we operated a total of three Founders Trails , 2017 saw this escalate to an incredible 27! Our first seven Tours of 2018 are sold out and March will see us celebrate our 100th Founders Trail. Since 2010 we’ve taken almost 7,000 people around on the Trail and through the front doors of Ibrox for the Stadium Tour,many for the first time. We’ve met an incredible array of characters and become friends with people all over the country, the Rangers Family is spread far and wide! An increasing amount of our Supporters Clubs are booking the Founders Trail which is extremely important as it’s vital that the education process behind the project reaches as many people as possible.It’s today’s youngsters who will take our story forward. Many Charities have benefitted from the Founders Trail including The Beatson, Yorkhill, Erskine Hospital and Poppy Scotland. Our Board of Directors took the Founders Trail with us in November 2016 as did 32 Ibrox office staff in January of 2017. We have a close relationship with the Rangers Youth Development Company which we support by buying Stadium Bricks, these are used as prizes for our now legendary raffle which we hold during our Trail food and refreshment break. Match tickets are also purchased for this purpose which again is our way of putting your money back into the Club. Since 2009 the Founders Trail has generated for the Club almost £60,000 in revenue from our sales of Stadium Tours. The media team at the Club have assisted the project greatly by regularly posting updates on the Club website, the Founders Trail advert is a feature on the screens at Ibrox. The Founders Trail Roadshow was launched in 2014 which has seen us take our wonderful story out to supporters clubs, lodges and organisations all around the country from Harthill to Belfast and Campbeltown to Thringstone.These events let us deliver our story to those who perhaps can’t come to Glasgow due to time constraint and cost. Many Clubs use the Presentation evenings as a fund-raising event. We have many presentation events booked for 2018 that include Plymouth and Fraserburgh. We have also made great progress with the Restoration of Rangers Graves Project. It gave us a great sense of satisfaction as just last month the final touch was put to the 30th plot that we’ve restored over the last three years with many more to attend to. 2017 saw the Restoration Project extend into helping those bereaved by the Ibrox Disasters. As the curtain draws on 2017 we’d like to thank ev As the curtain draws on 2017 we'd like to thank everyone who has helped and supported the Founders Project over the last seven years and wish each and every one of you good health and a prosperous 2018. Iain and Gordon. https://www.thefounderstrail.co.uk/