Wednesday 15 October 2014

A visit to the Imperial War Museum





A visit to the IWM.

Another busy week with being out and about with being at the Museum on Monday and off to Bristol on Tuesday, back Wednesday, Thursday at the Imperial War Museum London. Only a couple of bikes there. Family stuff over the weekend and Monday back at the Museum for another international day with visitors from Spain, Australia, America and South Africa. Tuesday I was out to visit Wycombe MAG in the evening to see if they wanted to have a special visit to the Museum during the winter months when it is not so pleasant to ride. It is being posted on their Facebook page.






While in Bristol I happened to be having a casual read about Jowett Cars and the side valve flat twin engine they used in their early cars. Jowett was one of the early car manufacturers and like many of the ones in the 1900's people had associations that seem odd. This is a reference to the early Scott motorcycles. Alfred Scott had one of these associations with the Jowett Car company who assisted him greatly to get his first motorcycles made. They put much effort into sorting out the first models in 1908 and when produced were badged as the Scott-Jowett. Only 6 were made and remained with Jowett to dispose of as Alfred went into partnership with Eric Myers and Adolphus Philip to form Scott Engineering.






The 1908 Scott-Jowett with a 333cc water cooled two stroke twin.



On to Thursday and a visit to the Imperial War Museum. I spent all day there with my nephew and felt a bit traumatised by the Holocaust display and the inhumanity of it all. Moving on I did find some bikey bits and had a close look at the Brockhouse WW1, the Corgi in its civilian form. The military version is a bit primitive compared to the one on display at the Museum. The other motorcycle on display is a BMW outfit that has the sidecar wheel driving from shaft final drive. It has a proportioned differential to get it around corners otherwise it would just keep going straight on!



We went around the World War One display and much centred around how the casualties at the Front were treated and found a reference to Elsie Knocker's diary and Mairie Chisholm who was also a keen motorcyclist. They set up a Front Line First Aid and were known as the “Women of Pervyse”. Elsie earned the name "Gypsy" because of her love of the open road and membership of the Gypsy Motorcycle Club. She possessed a number of motorbikes including a Scott, a Douglas solo, and a Chater-Lea with a sidecar which travelled with her to the Western Front. (We have a 1922 Chater-Lea outfit at the Museum) I think I will now have to read the diary. This is a very interesting lady.


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