ARMSTRONG
SIDDELEY CAR CLUB
South Australian Branch History
The ASCC was formed in
Sydney in 1960. The first branch of the
ASCC was formed in South Australian in 1963 and was chaired by John Bull.
Unfortunately the branch failed in the late 60's as a result of lack of
support. 1970 saw the rebirth of the SA branch. This branch quickly prospered and is still strong today, nearly 40 years later.
George Hume had
purchased his first AS in 1964 and had been a member of the original SA club.
He recognised the resurgence of interest in the cars with owners requiring
information and spare parts for maintenance and restoration of their unique
vehicles. He along with a few
like-minded owners determined to revive the branch.
Armstrong Siddeley
enthusiasts and interested persons were asked to attend an outing on August
2nd, 1970 at 10.30 am beginning from King William Road, Adelaide. 11 Sapphires,
1 Whitley, 1 Mercedes, 1 Daimler and 1 Austin 1800 left in procession, headed
by a 1925 AS owned by Graham Knott. Advertisements were placed in the local
newspapers and the event was telecast on Channel 9 and 7. The procession of
cars made their way to the Birdwood Mill and participants enjoyed a Barbeque
lunch, between the light showers of rain. Two more AS cars arrived swelling the
numbers.
A short meeting was
held at 2.30pm to thank those who attended and to inform people of the
intention to form a new branch of the ASCC. A meeting was planned for August
23rd at 2pm at Hart St., Semaphore (an
address which became familiar to many within the branch for years to come) to
inaugurate the new club. Some 20 people attended what was to be the first
monthly meeting of the branch. A few of those who attended had been involved in
the original branch but the majority were people who had only just discovered
the marque.
George Hume took the
Chair with Robert Loughhead as the first secretary. Graham Knott was the
Publicity Officer and Events organizer, Garth Pennington was Historian and
Librarian, John Grindlay was the Treasurer. In December 1970 Mr Loughhead was
unable to continue as secretary and Garth Pennington took on this role. Barbara
Pennington became Minute secretary, Robin D. Hall Librarian and Andrew McBride
took the role of Historian. Meetings continued to be held at the Hume residence
and regular committee meetings were held at the Grindlays’ home.
Certain principles
related to the aims of the club were established during the first few meetings.
These included: that a person could join and not necessarily own an Armstrong
Siddeley; that regular outings be held at locations of interest; that guest
speakers or entertainment be organized for meetings. The minutes of the meeting held in December
1970 recorded a request that young members were asked to come along to meetings
to learn how to work on their cars.
Early outings included
a drive to Clare to view a local collection of Vintage cars and the Monastery,
an outing to Victor Harbour, a visit to Wick’s car collection at Balhanna,
attendance at the Australia Day long weekend Veteran, Vintage and Classic Car
rally in Mt Gambier and our first gymkhana held in March 1971.
Early meetings
included guest speakers, Mr. Stan Norris who spoke about the history of the
Nagant Hobson car; and Bill Colmer showing slides of the 1970 International and
Federal Vintage and Classic Car Rally.
Other entertainment included films from Castrol Oil on Rallying and High
speed driving, and a talk on Sapphire cooling system. Whilst focused on our cars the club had a general interest
in all things automotive.
The branch developed
quickly and enthusiastically and by Easter 1973 was confident enough to host a
very successful National Rally in Swan Hill, Victoria.
Since these early days
the club has continued to develop and remains an active branch with
approximately 40 members (many of whom have been with us for many years). The
branch continues to provide an important service to the owners of Armstrong
Siddeley Cars as the web site can testify. Benefits include regular contact
with other enthusiasts, some with many with years of experience and extensive
knowledge of the cars; access to spare parts which are becoming increasingly
difficult to obtain, a library, historical records of most cars, and regular,
pleasant motoring activities.
For more information on the history of the national organisation of
the Armstrong Siddeley Car Club access the national web page on
