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Tom Ritchie

Scottish footballer (born 1952)

Correspondence, annotated notebooks and portrait silhouettes prepared for research
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Record originEnglish Wikipedia
Text licenseCC BY-SA 4.0
Source revisionJul 3, 2026
Entity authorityQ7817390
Source-derived summary

Thomas Gibb Ritchie (born 2 January 1952) is a Scottish former footballer who made over 440 appearances in the Football League scoring 110 league goals playing as a striker, most notably for Bristol City.

Career

Born in Edinburgh, Tom Ritchie played locally for Bridgend Thistle in Scotland. Bristol City manager Alan Dicks signed Ritchie in July 1969. Ritchie established himself in the Bristol City attack, playing a key role in the club's rise to the First Division by 1976. He stayed with Bristol City until January 1981 when, following City's relegation, he transferred to Sunderland for £180,000. Then followed a loan spell at Carlisle United. Ritchie returned to Bristol City when manager Terry Cooper signed him on a free transfer in June 1982 following the club's relegation to the Fourth Division. Ritchie would become one of the few players to play for Bristol City in all four divisions along with Chris Garland. Ritchie left Bristol City for the second time in December 1984 when signed by former colleague Gerry Gow for Yeovil Town in the Southern League.

Editorial summary

The public source identifies “Tom Ritchie” as scottish footballer (born 1952). This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Ritchie, Scottish and footballer.

Editorial reviewA useful biographical orientation record, particularly for establishing names, roles and a first chronology. The current lead gives the account dated anchors—1952, 1969, 1976, 1981—that can be checked directly. The linked authority record independently contributes the date 1952-01-02. Its value is orientation rather than verdict, with Ritchie, Scottish and footballer providing the first useful test.
Editorial analysis

Why this record matters

A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Tom Ritchie”, the useful work is to connect “scottish footballer (born 1952)” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.

Evidence profile

Biographical claims are most persuasive when dates, appointments and relationships can be traced to records created close to the events described. The source revision retrieved here is dated Jul 3, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q7817390. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1952, 1969, 1976 and 1981.

Critical limits

A concise life account rarely captures disputed attribution, private networks or the changing language used to describe a career. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.

How to read it

Read biographical claims against dates, named institutions and the cited references. Distinguish a subject’s later reputation from evidence produced during their lifetime.

Best used for
  • Establishing names and roles
  • Building a first chronology
  • Locating cited institutions
Verify next

Personal papers, civil or court records, institutional files and the scholarship cited by the source.

Three-step research path

  1. Establish the record: confirm the title “Tom Ritchie”, its source revision and the description used here.
  2. Expand the search: follow Tom Ritchie primary sources, Tom Ritchie archive and Ritchie research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
  3. Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.

Questions for further research

  1. Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Tom Ritchie”?
  2. Which claims depend on a single source or contested interpretation?
  3. How has the subject’s reputation changed across later accounts?
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Source & attribution

This entry incorporates text from Tom Ritchie” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.