Middlesbrough Amateur Boating Club

1866
Middlesbrough Amateur Rowing Club appear on the River Tees, their boathouse being some 3 miles downstream in the Newport area of that town. At this time the lowest river crossing is at Stockton Bridge - now the site of the present Victoria Bridge at Stockton. Middlesbrough ARC and Tees ARC regularly race each other on the Tees. The Stockton course being from Thornaby Wood to the Tees Boathouse, a distance of about one mile whilst the Middlesbrough course is over a similar distance on Billingham Reach. Old programmes in the Tees archives indicate that these were well attended events.

1935
By 1935 the club had lost their boathouse due to the building of a new bridge across the Tees and the club had become fairly inactive. Three trophies owned by the club were 'loaned' to Tees ABC for open competition at their regatta. These trophies were the Ironmasters Cup, Middlesbrough Cup and Masons Cup.

1939
By 1939 a few MABC members were boating from the Tees ABC boathouse and it was felt that the end was near for the Middlesbrough ABC. Talks were underway about a merger but some members of the Middlesbrough Club were keen to keen to keep a separate indentity.

1946 - 1950
Middlesbrough add their cash assets to the assets of Tees ABC to form Tees Amateur Rowing Club. By then the Tees assets were only a site as their timber boathouse had collapsed during the war. Pre-war stalwarts such as Frank Hall and his business partner Alf Tomlinson lead the club's reformation.... An old army hut is acquired, equipment begged and borrowed and members recruited.