Rummaging among collections and albums of old photographs and negatives I very often find images of motorcycles. And from talking to old-timers I gather that motorbikes were seen for many years as a relatively inexpensive means of transport. When coupled with a sidecar they were cheaper than a small car – both to buy and to run. That’s not to say they didn’t have an aura of glamour about them.
Here’s a selection of some vintage motorcycle photos, gathered from a variety of sources.
It’s got pedals, but it’s also got a motor. Does that make it a hybrid? Or a moped? Photo by William Fraser.A trick photo, with the same man shown twice. The arrangement for the passenger is intriguing and maybe a bit scary. Photo by William Fraser.Wicker seems to have been a popular material for sidecar construction. I wonder how that worked out in practice?Christ on a bike . . . I wonder if they knew the stand was down?Oh, the stand again. Lucky she is wearing all the right safety gear.Girl giving a parked Norton a sultry look. Another one of those sultry looks, this time with an AJS. Photo from Rohan Anderson.Dogs on motorbikes never really caught on. Photo by Syd Smith. An Australian idyll. The motorbike, the huge gun and the dead kangaroo. About to try out a new idea for the PMG (Post Master General) The Browns of Mayfield, NSW, with their 1926 Harley and sidecar. Photo by Doug Brown.When Marjory joined the Air Force. Photo by Doug Brown. Another girl on a bikeJack Parsons , WW1 eraJapanese man on a New Hudson bikeLikely lads in Hunter Street, Newcastle, circa 1940s. Photo from Rohan Anderson. Villiers motorbikeVilliers with rider and passenger
Greg, I own a series of motorcycle photos of Alex Buchan, owner of Alex Buchan Motor Cycles, Brunker Road Adamstown (now closed). He raced bikes from the 1920s for twenty years in Newcastle and the Hunter Valley and was a Newcastle Champion. You are welcome to add some of these photos to your collection.
Dear Mary,
I just came across the Photo Time Tunnel’s ‘Gallery of Motorcycle Photos’ and my interest was raised by your reference to Alex Buchanan’s racing exploits. Just to give you my background, I was brought up and schooled in Wallsend. I joined the Newcastle branch of the Veteran and Vintage Motorcycle Club of NSW while still at school. Having Graduated with a Batchelor of Science from Newcastle University I received Commonwealth cadetship, gaining a Post Grad Diploma in Librarianship from what is now Canberra University following which I worked at the National Library of Australia for 9 years reaching the level of Chief Librarian General Science and Technology. I then returned to Newcastle to establish a Library/Information Service for the Hunter District Water Board (now Hunter Water), following which I moved on to the University of New England in Armidale from which I recently retired.
That is probably enough about my background other than I have been a motorcyclist since I was at school and own and ride several classic and vintage bikes. A major interest has for many years been motorcycle/motorcycling history.
I would be most interested to examine Alex Buchanan’s photos … and am wondering whether Alex’s shop in Brunker Rd were the premises that Taylor Cycles moved to from Hunter Street.
As an aside, I am wondering whether you are related to Frank Tarrant, my father, Harold Nicholson’s, short wave radio ham GURU. Dad lived in Darby St and after marriage in Janet St and Merewether, I remember that he said that he could talk over the back fence Frank.
I would love to hear from you Mary,
All the best
Russell
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Greg, I own a series of motorcycle photos of Alex Buchan, owner of Alex Buchan Motor Cycles, Brunker Road Adamstown (now closed). He raced bikes from the 1920s for twenty years in Newcastle and the Hunter Valley and was a Newcastle Champion. You are welcome to add some of these photos to your collection.
Dear Mary,
I just came across the Photo Time Tunnel’s ‘Gallery of Motorcycle Photos’ and my interest was raised by your reference to Alex Buchanan’s racing exploits. Just to give you my background, I was brought up and schooled in Wallsend. I joined the Newcastle branch of the Veteran and Vintage Motorcycle Club of NSW while still at school. Having Graduated with a Batchelor of Science from Newcastle University I received Commonwealth cadetship, gaining a Post Grad Diploma in Librarianship from what is now Canberra University following which I worked at the National Library of Australia for 9 years reaching the level of Chief Librarian General Science and Technology. I then returned to Newcastle to establish a Library/Information Service for the Hunter District Water Board (now Hunter Water), following which I moved on to the University of New England in Armidale from which I recently retired.
That is probably enough about my background other than I have been a motorcyclist since I was at school and own and ride several classic and vintage bikes. A major interest has for many years been motorcycle/motorcycling history.
I would be most interested to examine Alex Buchanan’s photos … and am wondering whether Alex’s shop in Brunker Rd were the premises that Taylor Cycles moved to from Hunter Street.
As an aside, I am wondering whether you are related to Frank Tarrant, my father, Harold Nicholson’s, short wave radio ham GURU. Dad lived in Darby St and after marriage in Janet St and Merewether, I remember that he said that he could talk over the back fence Frank.
I would love to hear from you Mary,
All the best
Russell