It all began when the Arbroath Golf club was granted a licence for a bar. Rechabite members and staunch abstainer registered their disaproval by withdrawing their membership. The idea of forming a seperate club appealed to the younger working class members appealed to younger working class members who found membership of the Arbroath Club beyond their means and it was no great surprise to find such an encouraging attendance ayt the first meeting.
Mr J R Aitken a well known figure in the town at the time took the chair and among those present were Watson Baird, Alf and Tom Hay, Sandy Millar, Arthur Millar, Bob Guthrie, Alex Lawson, R D Neilson, Jim Sparks, Harry Kaighan and William Rae and it soon became obvious that there was sufficient support and enthusiasm to merit the launching of another club.
In 1903 Arbroath Artisans came into existance with the following conmmittee in place, J R Aitken, President, Robert Guthrie, Vice President, Alf Hay, Hon. Sectretary, A H Mann, Hon. Treasurer, J W Brown, Captain and Watson Baird as Vice-Captain.
The beginning was modest. What the Arbroath Club had just given up in favour of their commodious premises at the "Top of the Hill" provided the Artisans comfort for a few years. The building went by the name of the club-house. The first section held a combustion, to the left of which were the coatracks and pegs forming a passage to the famous "little pump" fixed on the end of a fire-clay sink. In the next room were over 60 boxes for members' clubs and behind this was a rat-infested stable.
In 1907 the question of setting up quarters that would be a credit to the club was takled in a thoroughly practical way. At a general meeting of members, a committee consisting of Messrs G C D Morrison,.James W Brown, William Whyte, William Kinnear, David R Hunter and S B Colville as convener, was set up to investigate ways and means of the errection of another building. A report was presented to the committee and received approval of a majority that a clubhouse should be errected at a cost of no more than £650.
On September 11, 1911 members enetered the new club premises at Elliot.