WW1 Military Motors - 1916 set x 50 cards

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Topical photograph - Recuperating wounded American soldiers taking a tour of London on an LGOC ( London General Omnibus Company ) B-Type London bus, in celebration of their National Holiday on 4th July, 1918, 96 years ago today.

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[BSM]

Rod,

I located the source of the photo, which was taken in May/June 1917, so it is definitely WW1.

The soldier front right wearing the helmet, is a member of the American Field Service ( A.F.S. ), hence the style of uniform. The A.F.S. was made up of American volunteers serving with the French Army, so the other two soldiers were probably from the French Army.

------- if something existed during WW1, there is a strong possibility that someone took a photo of it, so hopefully, a photo of the ' British Army Water Trailer ' will surface.

Regards,

LF

Thanks for the background LF....well that explains quite a lot and interesting to note the similarity of the wheels with the different and also interesting French variant posted by Johnboy. I certainly have no arguments with the WW1 period of the pic. WW1 images of any vehicles towing trailers (other than RFC/AFC ... i.e., aviation Units) and artillery are not plentiful in the public domain! Holt caterpillar tractors towing artillery are reasonably common. It will be a bit of a "find" when an image of a lorry surfaces with a water trailer behind it. It is well documented how well Peerless etc. in the Middle East performed towing guns but am yet to see an image. Rod

[BSM]

August Issue 'Classic & Sportscar Magazine'

Unsure where I should post this, but the August issue of C. and S.Car features an interesting article on the 1918 Vauxhall D-Type Staff Car. The car is from the collection of Vauxhall Motors, and is pictured in a great two page spread outside the Cloth Hall in Ypres, then driven around the quiet roads to the north-east of the town amidst 3 military cemeteries. The writer comments favourably on the ride and cruising speed of the car, having sampled a friends 1912 A-Type 2 seater can confirm the running qualities of these durable Edwardian Vauxhalls.

Interestingly when the car was rescued from a scrapyard in 1946, it carried the faded WD serial number IC-0721, this was originally issued to one of 2 cars sent to Egypt in 1916, but the engine and gearbox date from 1918.

The 'Autocar' had a correspondent in Belgium in 1914, who commented 'We are on the eve of great events here, and those of us who remain will see much'.

Mike

Mike interedted to read your post and yes this is a car that would tell a great story if it could talk I woud dare say! I made a similar reference to it in a book I did some time back. What intrigued me at the time and I am yet to get a definitive answer from some Brit. researcher in the future was and is the IC Military prefix. The broad arrow ties it to the WD. We know that RC was a red cross car used on WD or Army work etc. ut IC^0721 is a bit of an orphan. My original quote follows:

"From the Vauxhall section in the book “Veteran and Vintage Cars” by Peter Roberts (Paul Hamlyn 1965) where there is an image of a 1916 Vauxhall Staff Car. There is a civilian in the driving position wearing a suit suggesting a promotional image taken at their factory in Luton. The car has a London issued civilian plate on the front namely HM-2157 and the interesting aspect is the unknown W.D. number on the bonnet, ‘IC 0721’."

LF's later post of the surviving example (or replica rebuild) stimulates the interest in the car's history and the rego prefix once again. Rod

[Lancashire Fusilier]

A trailer at the French Salmson aircraft factory.

An interesting, purpose built trailer for transporting the fuselage.

Regards,

LF

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Nice piece on the D Type Vauxhall IC 0721 in the August edition of Classic and Sports Car magazine out today.

David,

It is good to see the renewed interest in these fine motorcars used during WW1.

Attached are two interesting and rare photographs of King George V using a Vauxhall D-Type open topped Staff Car during his visit to the Front at Vimy on 11th July 1917, normally, he always rode in his Rolls-Royce.

His Vauxhall Staff Car has some refinements, including a second windshield fitted behind the front seats.

Regards,

LF

IWM These images are reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

King George V riding in his Vauxhall D-Type Staff Car during a visit to the Front, note the second windshield fitted behind the front seats, the solid steel road wheels, and the hand-cranked siren fitted by the driver's door.

LF

IWM This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[johnboy]

An American mobile de lousing vehicle. Captioned as a G-M.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

An American mobile de lousing vehicle. Captioned as a G-M.

Lice, or Cooties as the Americans called them, were not just a lousy infestation but were also extremely dangerous as lice carried and spread Typhus, and so were a major and constant problem for troops living in the unsanitary conditions of the trenches.

Both the Americans and the British had ' Delousing ' vehicles, some of which were steam driven wagons, which may have been an advantage, as the delousing process consisted of steam cleaning the clothing at a high temperature in sealed containers mounted on the delousing vehicles, this hot steam process killed the lice.

Attached are some photographs of a British and American Delousing Vehicles.

LF

These images is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Delousing vehicle.

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Delousing in process.

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

An American ' Yankee Division ' steam delousing wagon.

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

A British ' Disinfector ' delousing steam wagon, which as with the American delousing vehicles, used hot steam piped into sealed chambers containing the infected clothing to kill the lice.

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

An interesting American report on the lice or ' Cootie ' problem at the Front.

LF

" It was impossible to keep clean in the trenches. Dirt bred disease, and with only the most primitive drugs, many diseases which are today innocuous could be life-threatening. They also sapped the AEF's fighting power. Official figures show 71 per cent of duty-time lost in the AEF in France was through disease, against just 22 per cent from battle injuries. In 1918, influenza, pneumonia and other respiratory diseases caused 17.33 per cent of all AEF hospital admissions for disease and 82 per cent of illness-related deaths. The same year the total number of AEF soldiers admitted to hospital for disease was 2,422,362. . . Officers were as prone to succumb to bullet or bug as their charges. . .

The vermin [a.k.a. cooties] were about the size and color of small grains of uncooked rice until they would gorge themselves on the blood of their victims. Apparently their digestive system was in the shape of a cross, since when they were well-fed a black cross could readily be seen. The troops considered this a black German Iron Cross. It was a standing joke that there was no point in scratching because the little ******* had legs on both sides. The Army had a 'delousing' program which consisted of, thank God infrequent, visits of a large tank-truck-like device and a steam generator. We were required to completely disrobe and toss our clothes into a bundle which was then thrown into the tank and live steam cooked the bugs. During this time we froze, of course, since the contraption never came on a nice warm day, but usually made its appearance during the winter months. After submitting to this we were louse-free until we crawled back into the hay beds, when we again became infested. "

[Lancashire Fusilier]

American ' Cootie ' warning notice.

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

The ongoing problem of lice infestations among the troops at the Front spawned various ' cures ', which could be purchased either by the troops themselves, or by family and friends and sent to the troops at the Front.

One such cure was the " Trenchman " belt, which for 1/6d., protected the wearer against body vermin and the chills.

LF

IWMEPH896 This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

The " Trenchman " belt.

LF

IWMEPH896 This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Both standard-gauge and Decauville lines were built by the British

I don't know what 1 EFC stands for. The British contingent was always referred to as the British Salonika Force or BSF so the best I can offer is Expeditionary Force Canteen.

Keith

Keith,

Many thanks for the information on the Salonika railways and the railway map, attached are two interesting photos, one of which shows the British Army's construction of the Stavros Light Railway using Turkish Prisoners of War to work on the laying of the Decauville lines.

Also attached, is another photograph showing the construction of the Broad Gauge railway through Salonika by the British Army in January 1917.

Regarding the ' 1 EFC ' marking on the packing crate, with the other crates containing Huntley and Palmer biscuits, ' EFC ' could certainly stand for Expeditionary Force Canteen.

The first photo, shows Turkish P.O.W.s working on the Stavros Light Railway guarded by British troops. At the head of the train, we can see the roof of a ' Protected ' Simplex 40 hp Trench Tractor.

Regards,

LF

IWM1513 This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Local men and or possibly Turkish P.O.W.s, working on the laying of the British Army's Broad Gauge Railway through Salonika in January 1917.

LF

IWM This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

With reference to the photograph in the previous post # 2092, this photo has some interesting vehicle details. The lorry parked on the far left looks to be a British Army Thornycroft ' J-Type ' lorry, the motor car in the middle of the photo has British military registration marking on the back of the motor car, as does the lorry to the right of the motor car. Also of note, is the ' 3 arm ' British Divisional or Unit Insignia on the back of that lorry, which is also shown in the attached photograph of another British Army Thornycroft ' J-Type ' lorry, which due to the uniform being worn by the driver, could also have been taken in Salonika.

Does anyone know which British Army Division/Unit used that ' 3 Arm ' insignia ?

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[Lancashire Fusilier]

Could that vehicle Divisional insignia be for the 21st Division ?, see attached, and do we know if units of the 21st Division served in Salonika ?

LF

This image is reproduced strictly for non-commercial research and private study purposes as permitted under the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988, as amended and revised.

[johnboy]

I think the 21st Div. served in France. The symbol was known as three sevens.

[RobL]

21st Division didn't serve in Salonika, and think it's unlikely to be them as it looks so different

[Mike_H]

The unit sign on the 'J' type is 245 Mechanical Transport Company, ASC. The design is a radiator fan.

Mike

[Lancashire Fusilier]

21st Division didn't serve in Salonika, and think it's unlikely to be them as it looks so different

I think the 21st Div. served in France. The symbol was known as three sevens.

Thanks for the confirmation, that 21st Divisional sign was a shot in the dark, as it looked similar to the insignia in the photos.

Mike has now answered the question, with the insignia being that of the 245 MT Company, ASC.

Regards,

LF

[Lancashire Fusilier]

The unit sign on the 'J' type is 245 Mechanical Transport Company, ASC. The design is a radiator fan.

Mike

Mike,

Thanks for identifying that Unit sign as being that of the 245 MT Company, ASC., and it follows that their insignia was a vehicle radiator fan.

The following information, via the Long, Long Trail, confirms that 245 MT Company, ASC.,did serve in Salonika :-

245 MTC - Formed January 1915. 29th Division. Transferred to 10th ( Irish ) Division for service in Salonika.

Regards,

LF