Classic cars forum & vehicle restoration.

[Leather Seats]

My grandfather, his brother and two of my uncles were chauffeurs (Rolls and other large cars). I have come across some photos and hope that it might be possible to identify some of them. In at least two of the photos, the registration number is visible. I know the names of their employers and wonder whether it will be possible, from the registrations, to ascertain the name of the owners. The photos are mostly during the 1920s/30s but one or two may be pre-WW1.

[Penman]

1911 census may help with the pre-WWI ones
1921 census is currently available behind a pay wall though it might become available for free through Find My Past later this year.
The 1939 register on F M P might help with anything close to WWII.
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Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

[Rick]

[Rootes75]

Can you scan any of the photos?
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Various Rootes Vehicles.

[Leather Seats]

Many thanks for the helpful replies.
This is my g/f at the wheel of his employer’s car after WW1. It was taken at Three Bridges. His employer at that time was Mr Matthew Megaw. My late uncle once said that my g/f drove a Delaunay – is the car in the pic indeed a Delaunay? Can one get confirmation of the owner from the registration number? I will post the other pix one by one.
(Cannot fathom out how to upload the pic ... I have it on "Postimages" but cannot get it onto this site.)
https://i.postimg.cc/02BhvPP1/DGM-Three-Bridges.jpg
Hopefully the pic is now on the site ...

[Leather Seats]

This is a later shot of my g/f in what I was told was a Buick. Is this correct? Here, he is standing with the car in front of the house in Eastbourne that belonged to Mrs Megaw (her husband had died by then). The house, ‘Bydown’, stood in Chesterfield Road but was demolished in the 1960s for a redevelopment of 2 new houses. When her husband died, Mrs Megaw moved to this house. After the Buick, she had a Rolls but I have no picture of this. However, when the war got underway, she moved back to the Three Bridges area, leaving ‘Bydown’ empty with my g/f as the caretaker/gardener. When she died, she left her Rolls to him. But what was he to do with it? No petrol and nowhere to park it. He sold the Rolls (for a song!) to Mr Midson, another private hire man in Eastbourne. The house was requisitioned by the War Office and became an officers’ mess for the Canadian army.
https://i.postimg.cc/NFxLJXf6/DGM-Bydown.jpg

[Leather Seats]

My g/f served in WW1 as an ambulance driver (will post a pic of his ambulance later). There were 7 brothers ... all of them went off to war ... and all 7 came safely home. My uncles told me that being a Rolls chauffeur in the early days carried a lot of 'cred' ... almost like being an airline pilot today. One of my uncles, claimed to have been the youngest Rolls chauffeur in the land ... at the age of 17. When his 'guvnor' got a new Rolls, he was sent to the coach builder because in those days the front seats were not adjustable. The driver's seat was made to fit the chauffeur. His family had 2 Rolls ... he drove the smaller one that was used to ferry the children around Eastbourne. Below is a pic of that coupé. I did manage to trace this car and got in touch with the owners ... they were hoping to drive down to Eastbourne so that he could see it again. Alas he died before this could be arranged.
https://i.postimg.cc/prcjr5hJ/HC8815-Holland-s-Rolls-jpg.jpg

[Leather Seats]

Here is a pic of my g/f somewhere on the western front in WW1. Wonder whether the ambulance can be identified.
https://i.postimg.cc/HW889nyR/DGM-France.jpg

[Leather Seats]

This is a pic of a private-hire man, a friend of my g/f. This Mr Peacock drove my grandmother, my mother and me (as an infant) from Eastbourne to Three Bridges in June 1940. It was feared there would be an invasion. Can we identify his car?
https://i.postimg.cc/Pqf0m4bT/G-Peacock-Matlock-Road.jpg

[Penman]

Something to bear in mind, McGrath could be heard as Megaw depending on who is saying it, because it is often said as McGraw.
_________________
Bristols should always come in pairs.

Any 2 from:-
Straight 6
V8 V10

[Leather Seats]

Thanks for the comment about the pronunciation of 'Megaw' ... but I know it was indeed 'Megaw' because of street directories. Also, the name was part of my childhood and often referred to by my uncles and grandmother.

[Ray White]

The first car was undoubtedly a Delaunay Belleville. The last photo is of a vintage (mid 1920s) Standard.

I suggest the WW1 ambulance is a Daimler.

The 'Bydown' car is indeed a Buick. The scolloped rad and bonnet date the chassis to about 1930 but it has English limousine coachwork.

[mikeC]

If you want to upload the pics onto a forum, click on the 'Share' box just above the image, and then click on the 'Hotlink for Forums' line, then paste it into your post.
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in the garage: 1938 Talbot Ten Airline
Recently departed: 1953 Lancia Appia, 1931 Austin Seven, 1967 Singer Chamois, 1914 Saxon, 1930 Morris Cowley, 1936 BSA Scout, 1958 Lancia Appia coupe, 1922 Star 11.9 ... the list goes on!

[peter scott]

Looks like a Delaunay Belleville about 1912.



Peter
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http://www.nostalgiatech.co.uk
1939 SS Jaguar 2 1/2 litre saloon

[Rick]