"Electrophants" at Goldhanger
In the 1960s electrically driven
mechanical elephants was developed and marketed at Follyfaunts in Goldhanger...
extracts from a USA magazine “Road &
Track” |
|
The main people involved in this
enterprise appear to have been:
Lord Hillingdon - Director of Electrophants company. He
was probably Charles Hedworth Mills 4th baron 1922-1978.
An
inscription in St. Martin's Cemetery, Feering, Essex, reads "Charles
Hedworth Mills, 4th Baron Hillingdon, 1978"
Frank Stuart -
the original designer from Thaxted
Maurice Radburn -
employee of Frank Stuart, he later lived and worked at St Osyth, Essex.
Fred Berry -
of Aldham, Nr Colchester
Karl Nelles -
employee of Frank Stuart and driver who was an ex German P.O.W.
Colin Chapman - just possibly the same person who
founded of Lotus Cars.
However, there had already been several
other versions mechanical elephants developed in the UK previously by:
Frank & Eric Smith - Morcombe 1947 - 1950
Macades Entertainment & Luneside
Engineering - Halton, near Lancaster 1950
Frank Stuart - Thaxted 1948 to the 1952
Fred Berry -
Aldham, Nr Colchester
Maurice Radburn - St Osyth, Clacton, Essex. late 1940s
In this video Eric Smith relates the
history of the Morecambe mechanical elephants...
www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qxhrg5FsTUQ
Over a twenty five year period many
different versions on the mechanical elephants were developed. There were full
and half size models with both petrol and electric versions. The petrol
versions suffered from the drawback of the exhaust fumes, emitted from the
elephant’s trunk, caused the children to choke. The electrical version had the
advantage that it could be operated indoors and photographs available show it
being used for children's rides in a departmental store.
The machines were sold and shipped around
the world and the very large and extensive website cyberneticzoo has many examples of destinations such as the
USA, Canada, Australia and Sweden. Today many have found homes in museums and,
as some of the more recent videos (identified below) indicate they even
occasionally take to the roads for special events. It is difficult to track
particular models as most seem to be named either Nellie or Jessie and most
have been completely re-built as they would have needed constant maintenance.
There have been many newspaper articles
about the them in the UK over the years, a search within this website for:
“mechanical elephants” between 1948 and
1980...
www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk
produces well over 100 relevant articles
from resorts around the country
The version marketed from Follyfaunts was
electrically driven using conventional 12volt car batteries. Only a few models
of this version seem to have produced before the company closed down, probably
resulting of an incident in the USA when the elephant fell over while carrying
children. It was most likely that it toppled due to the weight of the batteries
held within the body combined with the weight of the children being carried.
This was probably inevitable because with the batteries and the children they
were ‘top heavy’ with a centre of gravity far too high. The driver would have
to have been very careful to stay on level ground and avoid pit holes and
bumps.
Various locals remember seeing a mechanical elephant on the Prom
at Maldon. One recalls riding on it in 1950 and another recalls it in 1954. One
person remembers seeing it in the Maldon carnival, but no one else has verified
that. Here are photos taken on Maldon
Prom and at the Purleigh Queen Inn...
a large version on the Prom at Maldon remembered by many locals |
at
the Purleigh Queen Inn Purleigh,
Essex |
|||||
at
Margate |
at Thaxsted |
|||||
Frank
Stuart’s drawing |
A 1967 advert in the USA |
|||||
inside
a London store |
the
inners of an electric version |
a small version at Cromer |
|
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There
is much more information about the many variants of mechanical elephants and
Electrophants at...
cyberneticzoo.com/great-britain
There are also many videos
available from past times showing mechanical
elephants on the move... ( * recently added)
1932 www.britishpathe.com/video/mechanical-el * a
stroll in a park – a very early record
1949 www.youtube.com/watch?v=_5Z4YApl06Y small 2-stroke petrol versions at
Humberside
1950 www.britishpathe.com/thaxted-news Frank Stewart at Thaxted
1950 www.youtube.com/watch?v=aSdZCmm6Vgk as above on YouTube
1967 www.eafa.org.uk/catalogue/954 Jessica with Lord
Hillingdon at Stratford St Mary, Suffolk
1975 www.youtube.com/watch?v=BKyY34D-O98 from BBC Blue Peter, large electric
version (poor quality video)
1980 www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlDq6nIl9Ag Jessica (formerly Nellie?) - has
comments about the poor centre of gravity
2008 www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q4HMzpbTS68 BBC Top Gear and Jeremy Clarkson with a
large petrol version
2011 www.youtube.com/watch?v=eLAmeCblFTk Nellie in a Christmas Pageant, Adelaide
Australia, large petrol version
2011 www.youtube.com/watch?v=fdV1oNlBoL8 Jumbo at Michigan, USA with a large
electric version
2011 www.youtube.com/watch?v=L2hFrchgE_k Larry Gavette and Eric go for a ride
down in the USA
2011 www.youtube.com/watch?v=RSapsltKS0o Jumbo 1st walks after rebuild
2013 www.youtube.com/watch?v=BbtK1AD614Q Off
Bros USA, large electric version
2013 www.youtube.com/watch?v=b0ER1Y4E1xE
* Mechanical Elephant USA – no location
or details given
2013 www.youtube.com/watch?v=xreGGsDiVM8 * 'Rajah' returns to Lancashire in 2010, ITV
News
2014 www.youtube.com/watch?v=LqWwxI_qpCI Wendall in Auburn, Indiana, USA with a
large electric version
2015 www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-XPIzBkCYQ in the USA – maybe the same machine and
event as Off Bros
2015 www.youtube.com/watch?v=fEnXc3UI0UU Richland Michigan 4th of July Parade
with the same machine
2020 www.msn.com/en-us/.../vp-BB1bjWBQ *
Ron Martin's Mechanical elephant, MSN WGAL USA
This
article dated 2016 has impressive pictures of a
restored 1951 model which was auctioned for $275,000...
www.hemmings.com/stories/2016/08/18/an-eight-horsepower-three-speed-1951-elephant *
an acknowledgement...
we would like to acknowledge the contributions made to this webpage by Mr
Andrew S Hatton
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