Ray Powell Ltd garage scene.
The fold-out poster shown below was one of a set produced for children's schools in the early 1970s, this one was simply titled "The Garage" and dates to October 1973. For the motoring enthusiast who remembers, or is interested in, cars of that period, there is a feast of information to take in.
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The Hillman/Chrysler garage.
The main focus of the image is the Ray Powell Ltd garage, situated on Ferry Lane in Tottenham Hale, London. Evidently at the time it was a dealer and spare parts supplier for Chrysler Group cars of the day, including Hillmans, Simcas and badge-engineered Humbers and Singers. The firm could trace its history back to pre-war days. A selection of papers relating to the sale of a new Wolseley by Ray Powell Ltd in 1935 can now be found here.
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Signs in this 1970's showroom window advertise the "low price" Hillman Avenger, an example of which can be seen behind glass. A bronze four-door Chrysler 180 is seen pulling out of the garage forecourt, avoiding the pile of rubbish dumped in the gutter (not an uncommon scene in the '70s). Outside the showroom is a Singer Vogue, a late type based on the Hillman Hunter. Raising the tone somewhat is a Jaguar E-Type Series III 2+2, its owner no doubt a regular visitor to the Shell petrol pumps outside Powell's establishment. The owner is nowhere to be seen (unless that's the lady stood near the Singer), perhaps he or she is paying for their fuel and picking up some Co-op stamps, or maybe they'd nipped into Denis's Cafe over the road for a quick brew and slice of fried bread. Several signs also promote an offer of free beakers for customers.
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The further area beyond the pumps was reserved for the sale of "dependable used cars", and unsurprisingly many are from the Rootes/Chrysler stable. However lurking within the ranks of Hillmans and related vehicles, are examples of Vauxhall Viva, Ford Cortina Mk3 & Mk2 Escort, and a lone American car of significant proportions (does anyone recognise it?).
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Below is a larger view of the garage only.
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The roads and buildings surrounding the garage.
There are plenty of interesting things to see in the roads around the garage too, all acting as a reminder of roads in the early 1970s. To the left of shot, in the distance close to a block of flats, a queue of cars waits patiently for the traffic lights to turn green. Heading the line is a big Farina saloon from the BMC stable, fitted with a roof rack, while alongside it is a rare Anglia estate. A Mini can just be seen behind the Ford, while a cream/beige Austin Cambridge draws up behind them. Also note the old-style traffic lights.
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A red Routemaster bus heads from left to right, while beyond it the front of a Hillman Super Minx can just be made out, peeking out from around the corner of the White Hart pub in, I think, Station Road. A Morris 1800 is stopped outside the pub's front door. It must have been a reasonable warm and/or breezy day, as the pub owner's washing can be seen hanging on a line, stretching out of an upstairs window.
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Several industrial buildings can be seen to the righthand side of this picture, one proudly advertising The National Glass Industry (Tottenham) Limited, an emporium from which chemicals and laboratory equipment could be purchased.
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Although I'm not that fanatical about most '70s cars myself, as an era that I grew up in, I found this moment in time captured on film, presumably shared in schools up and down the land in the 1970s, to be really interesting to pore over. The reverse of the poster features drawings of several interesting, apparently random, vehicles. These are: MGB Roadster, 1912 Austin, Mini Clubman, VW Beetle and the Land Rover Carawaggon.
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If anyone has similar photos of 1970's cars and/or garages, I'd be interested to see them please.
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Return to the Motoring Collectables section for more items relating to pre-war cars and garages.
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