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L'autre attraction de Weybridge: les moteurs hétéroclites de R. J. Shanks
Nos lecteurs non anglophones n'ont peut-être pas entendu parler de la ville de Weybridge, dans le Surrey, mais tous nos lecteurs, quelle que soit leur situation géographique, connaissent son attraction la plus célèbre, le circuit de Brooklands. Comme chacun le sait, il a été inauguré en 1907 en tant que premier circuit automobile construit à cet effet en Grande-Bretagne et a continué à accueillir des courses jusqu'à ce que la guerre l'oblige à fermer ses portes en 1939, tout en étant l'un des principaux lieux de développement automobile en Angleterre.
La majorité des habitants de Weybridge n'étaient cependant pas des pilotes de course. Il s'agissait d'hommes et de femmes ordinaires qui avaient besoin de voitures ordinaires pour vaquer à leurs occupations. Outre les ateliers de Malcolm Campbell, Robin Jackson, Victor Derrington et autres sur le circuit, la ville comptait de nombreux autres garages qui répondaient mieux à leurs besoins.
L'un de ces garages était celui de R. J. Shanks, Baker Street, au centre de la ville. L'association locale avec Brooklands a peut-être rehaussé son prestige, car il semblait s'occuper d'un stock plus intéressant que les Austin et les Morris d'occasion, ce qui lui a valu une certaine notoriété. En effet, beaucoup de choses ont été écrites sur R. J. Shanks dans le passé et il n'a pas été trop difficile de trouver des informations.
Tout d'abord, la photographie montre que l'entreprise a été créée en 1897. Il s'agissait alors probablement d'un simple atelier d'ingénierie générale avec une activité secondaire de vente et de réparation de cycles. Il est très probable qu'il se soit orienté vers la réparation de moteurs peu de temps après, mais la première preuve que l'entreprise s'est affichée en tant que garage remonte à 1911. Au milieu des années 1920, il était "l'unique agent de district pour Humber, Hillman, Lagonda, Gwynne". Le lien avec Humber et Hillman semble avoir conduit Shanks à devenir un garage Rootes, comme ce fut le cas à la fin des années 1940. Notamment, à la fin des années 40, son directeur général était Frank Kennington, qui était un pilote passionné de MG et d'une Cisitalia D46, et qui était également impliqué à la même époque dans la gestion de Weybridge Motors, un garage entièrement distinct. Nous ne savons pas quand R. J. Shanks a cessé son activité, mais elle se poursuivait encore dans les années 1960.
Malgré tout, le point culminant de sa longue et illustre vie a peut-être été la prise en charge d'une certaine Alfa Romeo, comme l'a rapporté Bill Boddy dans l'édition de mars 1952 de Motor Sport: "Mais aujourd'hui, Brooklands n'est plus et Weybridge n'est plus qu'un lieu de tristes souvenirs. Lors de la visite en question, cependant, ceux-ci ont été apaisés par la voiture vraiment excitante que nous avons trouvée chez R. J. Shanks & Co. à Baker Street. Ce n'était autre que la P3 Tipo B de 2,9 litres de l'Alfa-Romeo pilotée avant la guerre par le regretté Richard Shuttleworth. La conversion de voitures de grande puissance pour la route est depuis quelque temps un hobby pour les riches Anglais, et l'on pense notamment à la Bugatti 3.3 de Rodney Clark, à la Maserati 2.9 de Crampton, etc. Mais une version sportive à deux places de l'Alfa-Romeo monoposto...!"
Nos photos semblent montrer la concession vers 1930, et les Humber et Hillman sont certainement présents. En tout cas, nous pouvons voir que dans la rangée de cinq voitures orientées vers l'avant, il y a une petite Humber 9/20 à l'extrême gauche et la deuxième à partir de la droite est, nous pensons, un coupé tout temps Hillman 14. Mais c'est la voiture du centre qui est la plus intéressante. Elle ressemble à une Hispano-Suiza, mais est-ce vraiment le cas? Pour ce qui est des autres voitures, nous vous demanderons de nous aider.
Paroles: Zack Stiling; photographie: Collection Stiling
Publié:
jeudi mai 2nd, 2024
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Commentaires
Brian Spiers
21 Mars 2025, 22:24
I own a car that was sold at this in garage in1955 as a company car, my Hillman Minx. l have owned this car for 43 years and have the logbook.
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David Grimstead
07 Mai 2024, 20:09
And it has a connection to a “Brooklands” and historic motorcycling in British Columbia… R. J. – Richard James – Shanks doesn’t seem to have been that much interested in cars outside of business, being more keenly a cyclist turned motorcyclist. Even so, he built up his Weybridge Motor Garage business until 1911 but ceased to be involved with it by 1912 when he emigrated to Canada. Mr. Harold Turner advertised himself as its proprietor in 1913.
Born in Chertsey in 1876, Richard Shanks served his apprenticeship in H. Shanks’ cycle-building business advertising from Mead-lane, Chertsey by 1883 and he was still employed by his brother, H. Shanks, in 1897 when Henry Shanks’ Steam Cycle Works occupied 45-47 London-street, Chertsey. Later, under control of H. Shanks junior (Henry junior, seemingly known as Harry), the Chertsey premises became that town’s first motor garage. It was re-sited in 1922 in a new London-road garage said to be designed by him shortly before he died.
From 1890 to 1909, Henry Shanks, with an address in London-street, was the Chertsey part-time fire-brigade’s engineer and his sons became firemen. They were all members of Chertsey Cycling Club too. Dick Shanks, as Richard was known, was an avid sportsman during the 1890s, captain of cup-winning Chertsey football team and highly competitive in athletic and cycling events in Surrey. After 1900, with Shanks’ selling motorcycles, racing them became a family sport: Harry Shanks junior was unplaced in the first ever Brooklands motorcycle race in April 1908 on his own 2.75 h.p. Chater-Lea but in May won the first 5.5-mile, 25-Sovereign Handicap. Richard entered a 2.75 h.p. Peugeot for a 1909 Brooklands’ 8-mile Motorcycle Handicap and Harry junior rode a single-cylinder Kingfisher there several times in 1911.
As to the origin of R. J. Shanks Weybridge garage: in March 1898, “H. Shanks Cycle Manufacturer, Chertsey” advertised that it had taken over the “Coventry Cycle and Repairing Works” of the recently deceased Mr. H. G. Harris, maker of Kingfisher Cycles in Baker-street, Weybridge. Richard J. Shanks probably took control of this new asset of Shanks cycle-building business, re-branded it and expanded its premises for sales and servicing of cycles, motorcycles and cars. He agreed in 1903 to cut back the frontage of his property to accommodate council road widening for £16 5s in compensation.
In 1911, facing competition in Baker-street from Woods Garage, he sold his business and moved to Vancouver for fourteen months as a garage foreman before returning to Chertsey in July 1912. Having met up with a number of other successful ex-Surrey emigrants in Canada, he emigrated permanently in October 1912, taking his wife Emily, a daughter and two sons viâ Vancouver to Victoria, British Columbia where he opened a motorcycle garage called “Brooklands.” His dealership in Victoria was praised in a 1923 edition of the Harley-Davidson Magazine. A son continued to operate it until 1986.
In a 1952 interview, Richard Shanks said he had co-founded the Victoria Motorcycle Club, which promoted competitions and events, and that he was known in Canada, with two fellow trail-riders, for being the first to ride motorcycles along the length of the Caribou trail. He declared that motorcycling was the safest form of travel and to prove it lived until aged 87 in 1963.
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Born in Chertsey in 1876, Richard Shanks served his apprenticeship in H. Shanks’ cycle-building business advertising from Mead-lane, Chertsey by 1883 and he was still employed by his brother, H. Shanks, in 1897 when Henry Shanks’ Steam Cycle Works occupied 45-47 London-street, Chertsey. Later, under control of H. Shanks junior (Henry junior, seemingly known as Harry), the Chertsey premises became that town’s first motor garage. It was re-sited in 1922 in a new London-road garage said to be designed by him shortly before he died.
From 1890 to 1909, Henry Shanks, with an address in London-street, was the Chertsey part-time fire-brigade’s engineer and his sons became firemen. They were all members of Chertsey Cycling Club too. Dick Shanks, as Richard was known, was an avid sportsman during the 1890s, captain of cup-winning Chertsey football team and highly competitive in athletic and cycling events in Surrey. After 1900, with Shanks’ selling motorcycles, racing them became a family sport: Harry Shanks junior was unplaced in the first ever Brooklands motorcycle race in April 1908 on his own 2.75 h.p. Chater-Lea but in May won the first 5.5-mile, 25-Sovereign Handicap. Richard entered a 2.75 h.p. Peugeot for a 1909 Brooklands’ 8-mile Motorcycle Handicap and Harry junior rode a single-cylinder Kingfisher there several times in 1911.
As to the origin of R. J. Shanks Weybridge garage: in March 1898, “H. Shanks Cycle Manufacturer, Chertsey” advertised that it had taken over the “Coventry Cycle and Repairing Works” of the recently deceased Mr. H. G. Harris, maker of Kingfisher Cycles in Baker-street, Weybridge. Richard J. Shanks probably took control of this new asset of Shanks cycle-building business, re-branded it and expanded its premises for sales and servicing of cycles, motorcycles and cars. He agreed in 1903 to cut back the frontage of his property to accommodate council road widening for £16 5s in compensation.
In 1911, facing competition in Baker-street from Woods Garage, he sold his business and moved to Vancouver for fourteen months as a garage foreman before returning to Chertsey in July 1912. Having met up with a number of other successful ex-Surrey emigrants in Canada, he emigrated permanently in October 1912, taking his wife Emily, a daughter and two sons viâ Vancouver to Victoria, British Columbia where he opened a motorcycle garage called “Brooklands.” His dealership in Victoria was praised in a 1923 edition of the Harley-Davidson Magazine. A son continued to operate it until 1986.
In a 1952 interview, Richard Shanks said he had co-founded the Victoria Motorcycle Club, which promoted competitions and events, and that he was known in Canada, with two fellow trail-riders, for being the first to ride motorcycles along the length of the Caribou trail. He declared that motorcycling was the safest form of travel and to prove it lived until aged 87 in 1963.