Pollard's Garage line up

Late to this but here is some history: Mr. Ezra Pollard’s garage business was established at 31a Broomfield Road, Chelmsford in 1911 but a 1921 map shows a much larger garage occupying all the ground behind a shop/house (perhaps next door to what is now No.62) on Broomfield Road (opposite its Cedar Avenue junction) and Glebe Road behind.

In January 1913, Pollard’s application to build a petrol store, shop and house in Broomfield Road was approved but in February, his garage was gutted by fire, made worse by stored petrol and a seized hydrant valve, destroying a car, four motorcycles and some bicycles, and damaging an adjacent cottage. Plans by Pollard for a new store and garage in Broomfield Road were approved in August 1915.

From 1914, Pollard had been a county agent for Ford and in 1918 demonstrated the new Fordson tractors, although that May, when aged 33, married and with two children, he won a dispute with a conscription tribunal about an overdue call-up exemption certificate. In early 1919, the garage held an agency for the new Austin tractors as well as Austin, Sunbeam and Talbot cars, and Calcott, Calthorpe, GWK and Hillman light cars but also had Ford vans and cars, a Belsize and a Delage for sale. They had new Dodge Bros cars, vans and chassis on sale too in October 1919.

In April 1921, his always eclectic used stock included an Austro-Daimler, a Hupmobile, a Swift, a Rover, two Hillmans, a Cubit, a Minerva and a Studebaker, as well as Douglas, Lea Francis, NUT, Martinsyde, Triumph, Sunbeam and P&M motorcycles. A plan to install a 1000 gallon petrol tank in front of the shop/showroom, with overhead cantilever feed pipes was refused in 1922.

Pollard sold the business after 12 years, it becoming Pollard’s Garages Limited in June 1923, with a new Managing Director, Mr. H. Coleman-Smith. “New premises”, inside of which perhaps is pictured, were announced in August 1926 when he advertised that the garage held agencies for Austin, Chrysler, Fiat, Rover, Sunbeam, Trojan and one other make, possibly Citroen, ranged in price from £125 to £2000. And they still sold new Douglas motorcycles.

In view of the comments about the Crossley service vehicle, notable that this announcement said: “Already Pollard's breakdown equipment has earned a local reputation for efficiency and promptness in time of emergency. Police stations, hospitals, and other institutions have been notified of their service, and will doubtless make increasing use of it in the future.”

Pollards had a Ford agency in 1931, a Jaguar agency in the later 1930s, had at least one other garage at Leigh-on-Sea and still held multiple agencies during the 1940s-50s. The garage appears enlarged in the early 1950’s maps, with the removal of the front shop and house but it all disappeared before 1973.

My earlier comment is not quite correct.
Pollards were in Broomfield Road, Chelmsford (at the town end - Days, another BMC dealer were at the other end in Broomfield itself) and Eastern Garages were in Victoria Road South. Both were taken over at the same time by Lex and the Pollards site sold off.

Yes at least one survived. Look here
http://hmvf.co.uk/forumvb/showthread.php?17075-Crossley-RFC-Tender

Thanks everyone for the identifications - I was interested that the tow-truck was maybe a Crossley tender. Was this a car-based commercial or purpose made? Does one exist?

Pollards were the Morris dealers when I moved to Chelmsford in 1970. Their showroom was in Victoria Road South.
They were taken over by the Lex group.
Chelmsford had another Pollard connection in the shape of Ramsom, Hoffman and Pollard (RHP) - the bearing manufacturers. Whether the two businesses were related or not I don't know

The gem I also believe is a Crossley Tender confirmed by the typical spare double wheel which can be seen against the jib. The similar vehicle I have was originally purchased as war surplus and also used as a 'towing in' vehicle for Tom Thorneycroft's Venture Bus Company in Basingstoke where it stayed from 1919 to the mid 1960's. I am still looking for a known photograph where the Crossley is parked in line with the maroon and cream liveried buses if anyone can help.
Merry Christmas to all
Tom

Nr. 1 the tow truck----My guess is WW1 Crossley ex military. Reason besides the radiator--- the double type spare wheel showing above the next vehicle. This wheel was typical to those Crossleys.
Nr. 6 501 Fiat c. 1925/6

I'll not attempt to identify the models in detail, except the Austin which is a 1925-26 model, and the Singer which is a 10hp:
1. Rover
2. Lancia
3. Rover
4. Singer
5. Austin
6. Standard
7. Bean
8. Rover

Number six is a Fiat 501 Spider.

In my opinion I nominate four of the seven as your numbering system. 1. Rover, 3. Singer, 4. Austin Chummy, 6. FIAT 501.

1. Rover
3. smaller Rover
(4.) Singer Ten, on the left side of the Austin Seven nr. 4
5. Standard
6. 2-passenger Fiat, pressumably a 501.

The break-down lorry appears (to me), to be a Crossley. It is (was), most likely formerly a Royal Flying Corps tender vehicle.

You have missed another car before the Austin Seven.
Austin 7 is a 1924-26 C type tourer by the vertical flat bottomed screen .

Tony.