Identification of charabanc in photo circa 1925

[35 Ford]

I would appreciate help in identifying the make and model year of the charabanc in this photo dated circa 1925 in Sydney, Australia.

[58L-Y8]

A 1920's White truck chassis.

[35 Ford]

Hi 58L-Y8

I hope you and yours are keeping safe In Dalton. Our daughter lives in NYC and we don't know when we're going to see her again. COVID-19 is having new spikes in Australia although our numbers are still very low but one of our states has gone back into lock-down, with strict curfews. Many thanks for your help with the ID of the char-a-banc. I'd like to acknowledge your assistance in my article if you agree to provide your name but I understand if you wish it to remain confidential.

Kind regards

35 Ford

 

[Craig Gillingham]

I can add that this was bodied by Smith & Waddington from Sydney in 1922.

Edited August 3, 2020 by Craig Gillingham (see edit history)

[35 Ford]

Hi Craig

Many thanks for that very useful additional information. The vehicle in the photo does appear to be the 15 passenger White char-a-banc that Smith & Waddington made for N L Day of Coogee who used it on the Jenolan Caves and Royal National Park tourist runs? I just got that information from the Powerhouse Museum collection database which has an album of photos of vehicles constructed by Smith & Waddington and includes another photo of the same vehicle without driver and passengers. Here's the link https://collection.maas.museum/object/571869

Kind regards

35 Ford

[Craig Gillingham]

I've seen other photos of this vehicle in the Blue Mountains, so the Jenolan Caves connection seems likely.

[35 Ford]

Hi Craig

The tour company Day's, who ordered the vehicle from Smith and Waddington, was the subject of an inquiry in the 1930s into a monopoly because they had the sole contract for tourist services with the NSW Tourist Bureau and they certainly did run tours to Jenolan.

Kind regards

35 Ford

[58L-Y8]

Hi 35 Ford

 

I recognized the make because of the distinctive White radiator shell plus all the suspense surround the 16 Valve White Four Series that's recently come to light.  Char-a-banc must be a regional term, they're called sight-seeing coach or bus here in the States.   

 

NYC and the State in general has brought this Covid-19 situation under control with people being thoughtful of more than just themselves, by wearing mask, social distancing, sanitizing, self-isolating when potentially contagious.   We continue to do so, because this isn't over and we're all still in this together.  We will get through this with a bit of intelligence and thoughtfulness for others.

 

Steve 

[35 Ford]

Hi Steve

The term was originally char-a-bancs (it should have a grave accent over the middle 'a') and originated in France in the 19th century It literally means 'carriage with benches' and early examples were horse-drawn. The term char-a-banc was commonly used in Britain and Australia for motorised versions in the early 20th century although some early examples with several rows of seats and drop-down sides e.g. some on Milnes Daimler, Panhard et Levassor and De Dion Bouton chassis were called wagonettes. Wikipedia suggests char-a-banc was pronounced 'sharrabang' in colloquial British English. Later, closed versions in the 1930s to 1950s had up to six rows of seats each with a separate door and were known as 'parlour cars'. Several Australian cities had coach-building companies who built parlour cars on imported chassis. I 've attached a photo of one.

35 Ford 

[58L-Y8]

Hi 35 Ford

Thanks for providing the history of the term 'char-a-banc', something I wondered how had come about.    Here in the U.S. they were also called an "airport limousine' once air travel became a more widespread and airlines provided such transport as a courtesy to their customers to and from hotels, etc. 

Steve

[Old28]

Hi All,

The spectacular 50 hp White charabanc in 35Ford's August 2 post was custom built for Sid Day's "Day's Motor Tourist Service", Sydney, NSW Australia, as noted above, by Smith and Waddington, prominent local body builders of the time.

More of the story of this particular White and of charabancs in general can be found in Country Motor Issue 28 

 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/579ae8c9725e25911c587e32/t/5f4d9c52af99b05d73617ca6/1598921828891/028+Country+Motor+Issue+28_GI.pdf

 

Day was also known for the fleet of beautiful 6 door Hudson Super six service cars and 7 passenger Cadillacs that he operated on tourist trips out of Sydney. From period reports and photos it seems his fleet of vehicles were well appointed and always looked special.

 

As was the trend, Day shifted to the "parlour" style vehicle in the attached photo, for the tourist trips to the Blue Mountains and Jenolan Caves. Behind the coach though is on of  Day's Hudson tourers. This particular coach is often referred to as "the Government coach" but it was owned by Day and contracted out to the NSW Government Tourist Bureau.

Jenny

[58L-Y8]

Old28:

Great image, thanks for posting it with the background history.  The 'parlor car' style with doors next to the seating rows was also popular in the U.S. with stage/bus lines that ran routes between smaller towns.  Buick supplied long-wheelbase commercial chassis which was bodied by Flxible in Ohio.  Into the 1960's Armbruster-Stageway stretched Chevrolet and Pontiac sedans and station wagons to an eight door configuration for ease of loading from both sides.  With luggage rack on top, these stage line buses plied routes on State highways that serviced those smaller towns after regular passenger rail service had ended.  It was common to see them stopped in college towns in the days before many students had their own cars.

[35 Ford]

35Ford

Thank you Old28 and 58L-Y8 for great information. That photo of the White with the Hudson behind it is wonderful. You can access my published article on the history of motorised road and rail transport to Jenolan Caves in Blue Mountains History Journal Issue 9 at http://bluemountainsheritage.com.au/journals/

My handle 35Ford comes from the car I learned to drive on, a 1935 Ford model 48 De Luxe Fordor touring sedan which my late father purchased new in December 1935. It was the only car my father ever owned. I took it over in 1970 and in 1984 it went to Sydney's Powerhouse Museum. My father did keep driving until about 1990 but in a 1970 Ford Fairmont XW Station Wagon with 302 cu.in. motor, a car which my sister owned until only a few years ago. The 35 Ford featured in bus and taxi ads for the museum's exhibition Auto Obsession. Information on the car can be found at https://collection.maas.museum/object/213364 It's currently stored at the Museums Discovery Centre at Castle Hill and is on occasional display. I hope you enjoy the links.

[Craig Gillingham]

On 7/22/2021 at 10:20 AM, Old28 said:

Hi All,

The spectacular 50 hp White charabanc in 35Ford's August 2 post was custom built for Sid Day's "Day's Motor Tourist Service", Sydney, NSW Australia, as noted above, by Smith and Waddington, prominent local body builders of the time.

More of the story of this particular White and of charabancs in general can be found in Country Motor Issue 28 

 https://static1.squarespace.com/static/579ae8c9725e25911c587e32/t/5f4d9c52af99b05d73617ca6/1598921828891/028+Country+Motor+Issue+28_GI.pdf

 

Day was also known for the fleet of beautiful 6 door Hudson Super six service cars and 7 passenger Cadillacs that he operated on tourist trips out of Sydney. From period reports and photos it seems his fleet of vehicles were well appointed and always looked special.

 

As was the trend, Day shifted to the "parlour" style vehicle in the attached photo, for the tourist trips to the Blue Mountains and Jenolan Caves. Behind the coach though is on of  Day's Hudson tourers. This particular coach is often referred to as "the Government coach" but it was owned by Day and contracted out to the NSW Government Tourist Bureau.

Jenny

The bus at the front is a Fageol, and I think this model was referred to as the Safety Coach

 

[35 Ford]

Apologies everyone. I mistakenly referred to the image of the Fageol coach and the Hudson as a White and Hudson.

US made Fageol vehicles were used on the Jenolan Caves run from the early days of motorised road transport. One photo, of the four men standing in front of the coach, is outside Caves House at Jenolan. One coach obviously came to grief near the Grand Arch at the Caves. 58L-Y8 mentioned Flxible bodies. A Flxible bodied Ansair coach with a British Leyland Tiger chassis operated by Pioneer Tours was involved in a fatal accident on the Jenolan Caves Road in 1962. Given the dangerous nature of the last part of the road down to the Caves, known as the Five Mile, it's a wonder they're weren't more serious accidents. That part of the road is currently closed after our disastrous bushfires of December 2019-January 2020 which burned out an area the size of Wales. The fires were followed in February 2020 by torrential rains which caused lots of rock falls and landslides. A flash flood swept down behind Caves House causing considerable damage and resulting in massive silting of the famous Blue Lake which is important habitat for our endangered monotreme (egg-laying mammal) the platypus (see photo).

[Boyer]

Voici un site pu il y a beaucoup d'informations sue le Charabancs:

https://familyfractals.wordpress.com/2017/08/19/charabanc-experience/

[Larry Schramm]

1 hour ago, Boyer said:

Voici un site pu il y a beaucoup d'informations sue le Charabancs:

https://familyfractals.wordpress.com/2017/08/19/charabanc-experience/

 

Translated:

Here is a site where there is a lot of information on the Charabancs:

https://familyfractals.wordpress.com/2017/08/19/charabanc-experience/