Sidney Marcus Ltd - Armitage Walker Ltd - Triumph car dealer 87

Sidney Marcus Ltd later known as Armitage Walker Ltd of Marylebone London are the feature business of this blog post in my continuing series about Standard Triumph car dealers.

Sidney Marcus Ltd dealer advert Motor 21 October 1978

The company Sidney Marcus Limited started 30 April 1948 and continued in business until its closure in 1992 and eventually winding up by August 1997.  At the year end 1978 it changed its name to Armitage Walker Limited. 

Armitage Walker Ltd (Sidney Marcus Ltd) dealer advert Motor 20 October 1979

Armitage Walker Ltd dealer advert Motor 24 October 1981

Not just Triumphs

Sidney Marcus Ltd advert from Autocar 20 March 1969

Sidney Marcus Ltd sold Amphicar, BMC, Ford, Jaguar Daimler, Rover and Triumph cars.

Several locations

Sidney Marcus Ltd  had branches at: 24-28 Boston Place, Dorset Square, London, NW1 adjacent to Marylebone Station and at 31 Sloane Street, London SW1.

Armitage Walker Ltd also had premises at 9 Harewood Avenue NW1 and later at Dorset House, 128 Gloucester Place, London, NW1 5HA.

Listed as a Triumph dealer at 24-28 Boston Place in September 1968, March 1970, March 1972 and March 1974.

Jaguar Key Fob

Thought to be from 1981.  This key ring with a leather fob shows the Armitage Walker Ltd name and address.

Amphicar

Amphicar a sensation on land and water. Strictly speaking not a Standard Triumph product but of interest here the Amphicar used a Herald engine. Sidney Marcus Ltd, 33 Sloane Street, London SW1 were an  Amphicar dealer in 1959.

Barlett v Sidney Marcus

Ever wondered what condition a used car has to be in to be saleable.  In the legal case of Bartlett v Sidney Marcus, Lord Denning said that "merchantable" means of some use though not entirely efficient use for the purpose but that at some point, caveat emptor applies and there is no requirement of perfection. Before him was the issue of the merchantibilioty of a second hand-car which, he held, was reasonably fit for the purpose if in a roadworthy condition, fit to be driven along the road in safety, even though it was not as perfect as a new car:

"A buyer should realize that when he buys a secondhand car. defects may appear sooner or later; and. in the absence of an express warranty. he has no redress."

Plea for information

If you have any more information or recollections about Sidney Marcus Ltd or Armitage Walker Ltd of London such as photos of window stickers, dealer badges or sill plates etc please let me know. I can be contacted via the comments to this post or on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stephen.weblin

Further information and sources

Link to the other articles in this series.

Link to facebook page: Triumph Car Dealers.

Link to my Triumph Car Dealers Flickr group which includes many photos of Standard Triumph garages etc from my collection and many other contributors .

I have a collection of Standard Triumph car dealer directories: http://vitessesteve.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/triumph-car-dealer-directories.html

Picture credits:

The Westgate Motor House Co Ltd of Gloucester - Triumph Car dealers 86

Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd is the feature business of this article number 86 in my series about Triumph car dealers.

Westgate Garage, Gloucester_advert from Gloucestshire Countryside

Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street, Gloucester sold both cars and aircraft.  They were founded in 1923. In the 1930's they were selling Standard and Triumph cars in addition to cars from  Armstrong-Siddeley, Morris, Austin, MG and Dodge.  The company,  Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, has been dissolved.

Gloucester & Cheltenham Airport

Westgate Garage_Gloucester Airport opening 1936

Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd established, operated and owned Down Hatherley airfield in 1931.  They also set up a dealership for de Havilland Moth aircraft and demonstrated them from the site.

16 July 1936 saw the opening of Gloucester and Cheltenham Airport over on the other side Cheltenham road

Some old adverts

Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd - Gloucester Citizen, 17 October 1933. Triumph dealer

Westgate Motors of Gloucester Christmas advert, Gloucester Citizen, 23-12-1949

Westgate Standard Vanguard. Gloucester Citizen, 22-09-1949

Westgate Standard Triumph. Gloucester Citizen, 23-10-1950

Sixty for Saro

During 1968 Gloster Saro Ltd, a manufacturer of automatic vending machines, purchased a fleet of Triumph Herald 13/60 estate cars.  The cars were all fitted with radio telephones and maintenance equipment for the service engineer drivers.

New Stag for collection

This photo is said to show a Triumph Stag ready for collection from Westgate Garage in February 1978.

Show and Service Week promotion 

Staff from Standard Triumph HQ visited the business and assisted the firm with week long Show and Service promotions. These were held by the firm at their Westgate Street premises: 7 to 11 November 1959, 7 to 12 July 1963, 13 to 17 September 1965 and 6 to 10 May 1968.

Westgate Motorhouse rear window sticker

Gloucester - Triumph car dealers

A list of Standard Triumph car dealers in the Gloucester area compiled from my collection of dealer directories.

April 1938 Triumph
F W Chambers & Co, Barnwood Garage.
J E Gibbs, Berkeley Road Garage, Berkeley Road

April 1951 Triumph:
Hickie & Hickie Ltd, 52-54 Southgate Street
Taylors Crypt House Motors Ltd, London Road
Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street

October 1955:
Distributor
Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street - 'Phone 20294 and 20295
Dealer
Brunswick Motors (C. & E. P. Brough), St. Mchael's Square - 'Phone 22976
Chambers Motors Ltd, Barnwood Garage. 'Phone 66621
Kingscote & Stephens Ltd, Standard House, 122 London Road - 'Phone 21278

August 1961, Feb 1965:
Distributor
Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street - 'Phone 20294 and 20295
Dealer
Blackfriars Garage (Gloucester) Ltd, Commercial Road - 'Phone 25666
Brunswick Motors (C. & E. P. Brough),  Barton Street - 'Phone 23456
Chambers Motors Ltd, Barnwood Garage. 'Phone 66621
P & H Motors, St Oswalds Bridge Garage, Priory Road - 'Phone 24912

September 1968:
Distributor
Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street - 'Phone 20294 and 20295
Dealer
Blackfriars Garage (Gloucester) Ltd, Commercial Road - 'Phone 25666
Brunswick Motors (C. & E. P. Brough),  Barton Street - 'Phone 23456
Chambers Motors Ltd, Barnwood Garage. 'Phone 66621

March 1970:
Distributor
Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street - 'Phone 20294 and 20295
Dealer
Chambers Motors Ltd, Barnwood Garage. 'Phone 66621

March 1972, March 1974:
Distributor
Westgate Motor House Co (Gloucester) Ltd, Westgate Street GL1 2RS - 'Phone 20294/5

June 1984, March 1988 AustinRover:
Wicliffe Motor Co Ltd, Mercia Road, GL1 2SQ  

Plea for information

If you have any more information or recollections about Westgate Motor House of Gloucester such as  photos of window stickers, dealer badges or sill plates etc please let me know. I can be contacted via the comments to this post or on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stephen.weblin

Further information and sources

Link to post about Wicliffe Motor Co Ltd of Stroud, Gloucester and Tewkesbury

Link to the other articles in this series.

Link to facebook page: Triumph Car Dealers.

Link to my Triumph Car Dealers Flickr group which includes many photos of Standard Triumph garages etc from my collection and many other contributors .

I have a collection of Standard Triumph car dealer directories: http://vitessesteve.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/triumph-car-dealer-directories.html

Picture credits: Westgate Garage, Gloucester_advert from Gloucestshire Countryside posted to facebook by Stroud Area Photos & Cotswold Picture Postcards; Westgate Garage_Gloucester Airport opening 1936 posted to facebook by Beemer328i ; New Stag for collection photo posted to facebook by Jane Rowley;

Huxhams of Parkstone - Triumph car dealers 21B

Huxham Ltd of Parkstone feature in this short post about a Standard Triumph car dealer in the Bournemouth area

Huxhams advert 30 April 1955

In 1955 Huxhams, Pen Hill Garage, Parkstone, Dorset were agents for AC, Morgan, Morris, Riley, Rover, Standard and Triumph cars in 1955.

By 1959 Sherwood's Car Sales, 6 Rosemary Road, Parkstone were the Triumph franchise holder in Parkstone.

In 1961 I have a reference to Huxhams as having been a Land Rover dealer.  In 1963 they were still Morgan dealers.

In 1965 Huxhams are again mentioned as Standard Triumph dealers.  When did they lose the franchise?

Motorbike dealer

Huxhams advert from Blandford race program 1 August 1949

 Huxhams Ltd also known for being a motorbike dealer.

Huxhams Ltd advert from Ibsley race program 12 May 1951

Graces Guide

Graces Guide website has digitised a copy of Who's Who in the Motor Industry 1953 from which we can see.

Huxham's Limited. Car and Motor Cycle Sales and Repair Service. Penn Hill Garage, Parkstone, Dorset. Telephone: 2. And at 149,155 Ashley Road, Parkstone, Dorset. Telephone: 532. Directors: E. P. Huxham (Governing). T. Bryant (Managing). Manager: B. Ingle-Finch (Motor Cycles). 

Rob Walkers

At some later time the Pen Hill Garage building was used by Rob Walkers sports cars business.

Rob Walkers, Huxhams Garage advert from Car August 1969

Plea for information

If you have any more information or recollections about Huxhams Ltd, photos of window stickers, dealer badges or sill plates etc please let me know. I can be contacted via the comments to this post or on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stephen.weblin

Further information and sources

Link to the other articles in this series.

Link to  Stanbourne Motor Co Ltd of Bournemouth blog post

Link to Motor Macs Ltd and Tice & Son Ltd - Bournemouth - Triumph Car Dealers 21a

Link to face book page: Triumph Car Dealers.

Link to my Triumph Car Dealers Flickr group which includes many photos of Standard Triumph garages etc from my collection and many other contributors .

I have a collection of Standard Triumph car dealer directories: http://vitessesteve.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/triumph-car-dealer-directories.html

Picture credits: Huxhams advert from a race program at Ibsley dated 30 April 1955 and Huxhams advert from Blandford race program 1 August 1949  found on  https://daveriley.weebly.com/;

Swain & Jones of Farnham - Triumph Car Dealers 84A

Swain & Jones feature in this short post about a Standard Triumph car dealers in Farnham.

Swain & Jones original 1908 premises

Swain & Jones car dealership, closed its showroom in East Street, Farnham in November 2015 after  more than 100 years of trading.

Quoting from the Farnham Herald: 

Frank Swain and Jack Lewis-Jones opened the original Swain & Jones workshop at 38 East Street, on the opposite side of the road to the modern showroom, in 1908, just a decade after Farnham’s John Henry Knight invented one of Britain’s first ever motor cars.

However, after 107 years selling brands including Austin, Morris, Wolseley, Riley and most recently Jaguar, the family-run dealership will leave Farnham for good on November 20 after its 33-year relationship with Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) came to an abrupt end.

Swain & Jones’ current chairman Peter Lewis-Jones, the third generation of his family to run the business, condemned JLR’s decision not to renew its fixed-term agreement at the cost of one of the UK’s longest-running car dealerships and 34 jobs as “extraordinary and disappointing”.

He said: “Only a few years ago the company was the top performing independent Jaguar retailer in the country. Sadly this has counted for nothing and the Jaguar and Land Rover franchises ceased on October 19.

The site has now been redeveloped

I have a record of  Swain & Jones being listed as a Triumph car dealer directory dated October 1955.

Plea for information

If you have any more information or recollections about Swain & Jones or any other Farnham area Standard Triumph dealer such as photos of window stickers, dealer badges or sill plates etc please let me know. I can be contacted via the comments to this post or on facebook at https://www.facebook.com/stephen.weblin

Further information and sources

Link to the other articles in this series.

Link to post about the Tourist Trophy Garage Farnham

Link to facebook page: Triumph Car Dealers.

Link to my Triumph Car Dealers Flickr group which includes many photos of Standard Triumph garages etc from my collection and many other contributors .

I have a collection of Standard Triumph car dealer directories: http://vitessesteve.blogspot.co.uk/2016/03/triumph-car-dealer-directories.html

Picture credits:Swain & Jones original 1908 premises photo from Farnham Herald article 9 November 2015