Motor Transport Volunteers

Cars on the forecourt of the Swan Hotel, Bedford, 1907 [Z50/9/299]

Thursday 13th June 1918: A half section of the Motor Transport Volunteers is to be formed in Leighton Buzzard, with Second Lieutenant Pannell of the Chalet, Dunstable, in charge. The Volunteers will be men over military age who are exempted by Tribunals or who hold protection certificates. They will be required to enrol both themselves and their vehicles, either a car if they possess one, or a motorcycle. Between 15 and 20 volunteers will be required. It is expected that they will mostly be men who already know each other and meet in other work. Membership of the corps will allow them to use their cars for authorised military duties.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 18th June 1918 

Bedfordshire Motor Volunteer Corps

Officers of the Bedfordshire Motor Volunteer Corps

Sunday 7th April 1918: This weekend has seen the Bedfordshire Motor Volunteer Corps taking part in a highly successful camp. The Corps was formed about three months ago, and this is the first time they have paraded as a whole. The Corps is divided into four local sections under the overall command of Captain Frederick Ray: Bedford; Luton; Biggleswade and Sandy; Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard.

The camp has been held in the west end of Kempston at Rushey Ford Farm, which was purchased by Captain Ray last September. The units reached the camp on Friday evening and enjoyed a fine, but cold, night sheltering in either covered vans or a large barn. In the morning hot cocoa and a biscuit were served at 6 a.m. before the Corps paraded for a short march and physical exercise. After a day of parades an excellent evening concert was held in a barn. A toast was given to “The Officer Commanding” who congratulated the Corps on their excellent attendance, despite the camp causing many of them to give up their most profitable day’s work of the week. He particularly commended the Biggleswade section, from which 43 out of 45 members were present.

After settling down for the night a successful emergency mobilisation was staged. Within three minutes of the alarm sounding the men were on parade, and in a few more minutes the transport vehicles were on the move through the darkness. This morning the Corps attended a church parade in front of the house. Training carried on over the weekend has included mechanical training and lectures in map reading for dispatch readers.

Source: Bedfordshire Times, 12th April 1918

Cows in the Road

Cattle on the road at Riseley, c.1910-25 [Z1306/96/6/3]

Tuesday 22nd February 1916: A Silsoe farmer has appeared at the County Court to defend himself against a claim for damages brought by Lieutenant Stanley Lambert, Army Service Corps, of Stockwood Crescent, Luton. At about 6pm last Wednesday Lt. Lambert was on military duty driving a motorcycle with a side car from Bedford to Luton, with his sergeant as passenger. Just before they reached the bridge between Silsoe and Barton he slowed, but it was very dark and he ran into a cow, seriously damaging his motorcycle. Ronald Harris of Silsoe has land on both sides of the road, and at the time of the accident two cows were crossing from the farm to the field opposite. However, the gate was shut and the animals were straggling across the road, and Lt. Lambert alleged that nobody was in charge of them. He went to the farm and complained to Mr. Harris who replied "I have had many complaints from motor drivers, but I have always beat them". He then produced a little boy who he said was supposed to have been in control of the cows.

Lt. Lambert said he had met cattle in the same spot before. On this occasion he saw what he thought was a cart loom out of the darkness, but this turned out to be two cows; unable to stop in time, he had struck one of them in the "softest" place. He also claimed that Harris had said "I have always succeeded in making the motorists pay". The judge reluctantly gave judgment for the farmer, as legal precedent held that there was no duty on the owner of cattle occupying premises adjoining a highway to prevent his cattle straying onto the road.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 22nd February 1916

Narrow Escapes for Military Motorcyclists

Premier 500cc 4.5 Hp motorcycle from 1916 [Wikimedia]

Monday 7th February 1916: Two military motorcyclists had narrow escapes today when they were involved in accidents in which they came off rather better than their machines. Dispatch Rider Potter, who is billeted in Shortmead Street, Biggleswade, met with an accident near Henlow. The fork of his motorcycle broke in half, and he fell heavily with his machine on top of him. He has been examined by a doctor and no bones are broken, although one shoulder is badly bruised. In the second incident a motor belonging to Mr Howe, a farmer from Marston Moretaine, collided with a motorcycle ridden by one of the Royal Engineers dispatch riders outside the Biggleswade Town Hall. Although the motorcycle was rather damaged and a lamp on the car smashed the rider was not hurt.

Source: Biggleswade Chronicle, 11th February 1916

New Vehicle Lighting Regulations

Marquis of Northampton's Car after accident at Dunstable, 1908 [Z1306/36/18/2]

Tuesday 11th January 1916: New regulations relating to lights on vehicles came into force in Bedfordshire yesterday. Under these rules the use of headlights on motor cars is prohibited. All vehicles must carry a lamp displaying a white light at the front. Unless the vehicle is a bicycle this must be displayed at the extreme right hand side of the vehicle; if a second lamp is carried this must be at the extreme left hand side. At the rear a red lamp must be displayed, again at the extreme right hand side of the vehicle. If electric lamps are used the bulb must not exceed 12 watts and the longer side or diameter of the front glass must not exceed six inches; other restrictions are in place for acetylene and oil lamps.

The difficulties likely to arise from the new regulations have already been demonstrated by Ronald Guy Larking, an officer of the Royal Engineers who appeared today at the Borough Court charged with assaulting a special constable in an argument over motor car headlamps. After being convicted and fined £1 he told the magistrates that the previous night four members of the mobile corps of signallers to which he belonged had been sent out from Baldock. There were seven accidents that night, two involving dispatch riders and the others civilians. He himself had travelled to Cambridge and estimated that even though he had a fairly bright light he had run on to the grass verge nearly fifty times. He suggested an exception should be made for officers and dispatch riders on duty; they could not possibly carry out their work safely, and it seemed ridiculous that men should be injured by falling off their bicycles in the dark. The police superintendent pointed out that Mr. Larking had not properly read his instructions. An order had been made some weeks ago that military motor cars on duty could use headlights, on condition that while doing so they must carry a green light on each side.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 28th December 1915 and 18th January 1916

Fatal Accident to Dispatch Rider

Swan Hotel, Leighton Buzzard c.1885 [Z1130/72]

Friday 17th September 1915: An inquest at Houghton Regis heard today of the death of Acting Sergeant Thomas J. W. Hubbard of the Royal Engineers following an accident at Leedon on Wednesday night. Sergeant Hubbard had attended a party at the Swan Hotel, Leighton Buzzard at which the Signals Section had been the guests of their commanding officer Captain Howe and his wife. As he returned to Houghton Regis a tyre came off his motorcycle and he was thrown onto his head, receiving fatal injuries. Dr. Kenneth John Aveling of the Royal Army Medical Corps said he was called to the V.A.D. Hospital at about 10.30pm on Wednesday and found Sergeant Hubbard in bed suffering from pressure on the brain resulting from a haemorrhage caused by a skull fracture. It was a hopeless case and the patient died the next morning.

Quartermaster Sergeant Instructor James Finmore, R.E. described how dinner at the Swan had been followed by a concert at which Sergeant Hubbard had sung “Cheery-O”. The men had been taken to and from the party on motor lorries, with the exception of those who had their own machines and the Sergeants. As he returned to Houghton Regis about a mile from Leighton he saw Sergeant Lefevre off his machine; he stopped and found Sergeant Hubbard lying unconscious beside the road. The injured man was placed on the second lorry which was standing by and taken to Houghton. Sergeant Hubbard knew the road quite well and was perfectly sober. Sergeant John Lefevre said Sergeant Hubbard had passed him on the way from Leighton; some way further on he came across the man and his bicycle in the road. He spoke to Hubbard and shook him gently but got no response, so he made him as comfortable as possible. He believed Sergeant Hubbard’s light went out as he was approaching the corner and with the thick dust of the road and the tyre coming off it was impossible to control the machine.

Police Inspector W. G. Purser had examined the road at the accident spot. In the thick dust he could see the track of a motor cycle which had lost a tyre. The bends in the road were not dangerous and Sergeant Hubbard had passed both. A verdict of “Accidental Death” was returned. The dead man was 31 years old and had previously  ridden professionally for the B.S.A. Co. He leaves a widow and three children at West Ham.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer, 21 September 1915

Inquest into Motorcycle Death at Houghton Regis

Army lorries at Houghton Regis, 1915 [Z1130/63/39]

Tuesday 27th July 1915: The adjourned inquest into the death of Second-Lieutenant Hugh Anthony Bertlin at Houghton Regis resumed today. It had been hoped Lieutenant Smith, who was also injured in the motorcycle accident which killed his fellow officer, would be able to attend but the court heard that he could not do so as he was in London to undergo an operation. Lieutenant John Aveling of the Royal Army Medical Corps stationed at the Dunstable Signalling Depot, Houghton Regis, said that he was called to attend Lieutenant Berlin after the accident. He found him unconscious and seriously injured and took him by ambulance to the military hospital at Luton. The resident medical officer at Warden Military Hospital stated the Berlin never rallied or recovered consciousness before he died at 2 a.m. on Monday 12th July. A post-mortem examination showed extensive head injuries. A motor horn battered beyond recognition was produced and the witness stated that these injuries could have been caused by coming into contact with the motor horn.

Frederick Percival Jones, an automobile engineer of Montserrat House, High Street North, Dunstable, said he was driving a 16-20 h.p. Sunbeam car from Luton to Houghton Regis. He knew the road well and was fully aware of the dangerous turning at Houghton. He sounded the horn several times and also used a siren. On rounding the corner he saw the motorcycle about 2 feet 6 inches from the path on the wrong side of the road. He immediately turned his car off the road onto the gravel frontage of the Chequers Inn on the near side of the road, hitting the palings in front of the inn. The motorcyclist appeared to lose control and ran straight into the off side of the car. The horn was at Mr. Jones’ right shoulder, which was where the dead man collided with the car, and he assumed this caused the injury. With the help of some soldiers he took the injured officer to Houghton Hall. Mr Jones said he was travelling at about 10 or 12 mph but eased his pace at the bend, a necessity for a car of that size. He had owned the car for five years and it was in good order. Measurements of the road showed that the car was half on the road and half on the gravel in front of the inn, leaving plenty of space for the motorcycle to pass through.

William Hamson, the landlord of the Chequers was in the taproom when the accident occurred. Going outside he saw two men and a motor bicycle lying in the road. He called out three soldiers who had been playing bagatelle in the public house; they helped him to get Lieutenant Berlin into a car to be taken to Houghton Hall. He took the other injured man into his house. The road was very wide at that point and the car was on its proper side, but he had not heard a hooter or horn. Lieutenant George Harold Williamson of the 2/5th Sherwood Foresters told the Court that the car had passed him going towards Houghton Regis and was travelling very fast round the bend. He estimated the speed at 30mph. After the accident he examined the car’s tracks and said they were in the centre of the road as they came round the bend and continued there for some way before swerving into the near side. He also heard no horn or hooter. Lance-Corporal George Linstead of the Royal Engineers saw the accident from the Chequers and said both the motorcycle and the car were travelling very fast, with the car in the centre of the road. In his opinion anything over 10mph was too fast for that bend.

Police Inspector Frederick Janes went to Houghton Regis on 14th July and saw William Hamson who pointed out three large bloodstains in the centre of the road. The road was 77 feet wide at that point between the fence of Chancery Farm and the Chequers Inn. It was an extremely dangerous corner as drivers of vehicles could not see each other until almost “on top of each other” due to the bends in the road. There was no warning post at the bend. He believed safety would be much improved if a 9 foot tall hedge was cut down to improve visibility. The municipal engineer and borough surveyor of Dunstable, William Fawcett Wilkins, had also taken measurements. Opposite the Chequers outbuilding there were 11 feet clear between the marks of the car’s offside wheel and the grass at the side of the road and 13 feet 9 inches of roadway. Mr. Jones’ counsel pointed out that there was no doubt that the motorcycle was on the wrong side of the road, and that Mr Jones could not have been driving at a very fast speed or the accident would have been even worse and would probably have killed both the motorcycle passenger and the car driver. After considering the matter for quarter of an hour the jury returned a verdict of “accidental death”. The jurors also noted that the hedge which impeded visibility should be cut and a warning post erected.

Source: Luton News 29th July 1915

Excitement at Ridgmont and Lidlington

The Lane, Lidlington, 1912 [Z1130/73/23]

Thursday 6th May 1915: The villagers of Ridgmont and Lidlington have enjoyed great excitement this week. The Engineers Signalling Company established their headquarters at the Parish Room in Lidlington on Monday and about sixty men were billeted in the village overnight. Ridgmont has been turned into a signalling station, with motorists coming and going all day and through the night. Yesterday evening nearly forty motor transport wagons passed through the village and were given tea by the inhabitants. An unfortunate collision took place between an officer’s car and Mr L. Humphreys’ motor cycle but there were no injuries, although the motorcycle was a casualty.

Source: Leighton Buzzard Observer and Linslade Gazette, 11th May 1915

Arlesey Officer Killed in Motorcycle Accident

Arlesey Bury, 1931 
[from On The Button, used with permission]

Saturday 20th February 1915: An inquest was held yesterday afternoon into a fatal accident in which Second Lieutenant Joseph C. J. R. Waterton of the 5th Bedfordshire Regiment was killed. Twenty-three year old Lt Waterton was  the eldest of three Arlesey brothers, the sons of Mrs Waterton of The Bury, Arlesey, who joined the Forces at the beginning of the war and were all commissioned as Second Lieutenants.[1] The fatal accident took place on Thursday as when Lt Waterton’s motorcycle collided with a motor car as he was riding from Cambridge to Newmarket.

At the inquest yesterday afternoon the car driver, William Henry Miles, stated that he was driving from Luton to Newmarket with Mr Ernest Gibbs, who had a son in the Beds Territorials. They had tea at the White Hart Hotel in Newmarket then started their journey back to Luton. They saw something travelling fast towards them in the middle of the road. Mr Miles drew to the left and pressed the hooter, but the motor cyclist ignored the hooter and came right onto the wrong side of the road. Mr Miles pulled his car to the right to avoid a collision. He told the jury that he was driving at about 18 miles an hour and that Lt Waterton had plenty of room to avoid him. Mr Gibbs corroborated Mr Miles’ evidence and added that the cyclist only seemed to notice them as Mr Miles tried to get out of his way, whereupon he tried to return to the proper side of the road, coming right into the path of the car. The motorcycle crashed into the bonnet of the car and Mr Gibbs though the cyclist had gone underneath. The car spun round with the motorcycle still wedged into the bonnet. He found Lt Waterton lying on the opposite side of the road.

Miss Constance Queenie Golding said that she and her sister Miss Eileen Golding were walking on the Cambridge Road. A motor car overtook them at a moderate speed travelling on the correct side of the road. About 100 yards on it seemed to swerve suddenly. There was “an awful noise like breaking glass or a gun report” and sparks seemed to come from under the car. After the crash a gentleman (Mr Gibbs) stopped them and told them there had been a terrible accident. They found a man lying on his face and turned him over to see where the bleeding came from. She wiped his face with her handkerchief to see where the blood came from. At this point Lt Waterton was still alive. She undid his collar and belt and found he had a broken leg. She covered him with a rug to keep him as warm as possible but could do nothing else for him. Her sister went to the golf links for help. She explained that she had been trained in Red Cross work and nursing in Newmarket and was complimented by the Coroner on the able service she rendered and the good work done by the Red Cross Society.

Doctor Norman Gray of Newmarket was called to the scene of the accident where he found a man lying on his back on the grass practically dead. He had several fractures of the skull, a compound fracture of the left thigh and broken bones in the left leg. He stated that the fractured skull would cause almost immediate death. He also treated the driver of the car who was walking about in a dazed condition. The jury gave a verdict of accidental death, exonerating the car driver from all blame. As a mark of their appreciation of her conduct they decided to give their jury fees to the Red Cross Society. The witnesses asked to do the same.

Source: Bedfordshire Standard, 26th February 1915

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[1] A fourth brother, Jack, was still at school 

Suspected Spies at Streatley

Students of Hythe School of Musketry on parade [Z524/10]

Monday 15th February 1915: Two soldiers were summoned to Luton Divisional Sessions this morning for failing to produce proof that they were licensed to drive motors when challenged to do so by the police. The authorities were keeping a careful eye on motorists during the few days before the Kaiser’s birthday for fear that they may act as guides to raiding Zeppelins. It was believed that this had been the case during a previous Zeppelin raid on the east coast.

Captain Edwin Ashley Dodd of St. Loyes, Bedford had been driving at Streatley on January 24th. Captain Dodd, an officer in the 2nd Beds Yeomanry, wrote from the Hythe School of Musketry that he regretted he was unable to attend the Court due to his military duties. He stated that he had neither driven nor travelled in a motor car on January 24th, and that even if he had it would have been reasonable to overlook an offence of that type because of his military status. The police superintendent argued that as the Captain was summoned in respect of driving a motor cycle, and a motor cycle was a motor car, the case should be continued. The Clerk of the Court admitted that this was the case in law and it was decided to adjourn the case for a month.

Corporal Albert Walker of the Royal Engineers was stationed at Houghton Regis and was also riding a motor cycle at Streatley when he was challenged on January 27th, the Kaiser’s birthday. He told the police constable he had left his licence in camp at Houghton Regis. Corporal Walker admitted the offence, but said he was on Government duty, had been sent out at short notice, and could not disobey orders. The Court had received a letter from Captain Leslie Wright of the corporal’s battalion, stating he had been called up for urgent night duty and due to pressure of work no application for a license had been made, although one was made immediately afterwards. Due to a clerical error the license had to be returned and was not finally received until February 8th. As Corporal Walker only took up his duties at Houghton Regis on January 27th, the Bench decided to dismiss the case but warned him that if it happened again he would have to take the consequences - even government motorists could not be allowed to “run about the country without licenses” as there were spies about, and it would be very easy for a spy to get into khaki uniform.

Source: Luton News 18th February 1915

German Arrested At Biggleswade

North Bridge Street, Shefford, c.1910 [Z50/101/37]

1st September 1914, Biggleswade: A German musician named Erich Borchardt was fined £2 at a special police court held at Biggleswade Town Hall today. Borchardt had registered as an alien but admitted travelling outside the permitted five mile limit without permission. It appears he had left his motor cycle for repair at a shop in Shefford in July and had come from London to collect it. Borchardt’s wife paid the fine and they caught the train back to London.

Source: Beds Times 4/9/1914

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Note: Borchardt was subsequently fined £20 with the alternative of two months imprisonment at Marlborough Street Police Court on Wednesday 2nd September for failing to notify his possession of a motor cycle.

Motorcycle Volunteers

The Manton family with a motorcycle in the backyard of the Hop Pole,Cauldwell Street, Bedford.[1]  [Z50/142/809]
Saturday 8th August 1914 (Luton): A group of motor cyclists left Luton this morning to attend a rally at Wimbledon Common in response to a Government appeal for volunteers. An enthusiastic crowd gathered to see them off from the Town Hall at midday. Some have been sent on patrol work, and others have been distributing Police proclamations from Scotland Yard to various parts of the country. 

Source: Luton News 13th August 1914

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[1]The man on the motorcycle in this picture, Henry Hector Manton, became a sergeant in the Army Veterinary Corps. He was killed on 12th January 1917 aged 22 and is buried at the Heilly Station Cemetery, Mericourt-L'Abbe. He was the son of Henry and Kate Manton of the Hop Pole, Cauldwell Street, Bedford.