Madelvic Motor Carriage Co., Edinburgh November 2019

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mookster

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The last spot on mine and @Brewtal 's long overdue long weekender - following a couple of fails we decided to stick fairly close to the airport so there was no mad rush to catch my flight home early that evening and so this seemed like a good option. I'd had it pinned for ages but could never remember seeing anything from it so it was going in blind so to speak.

The Madelvic Motor Carriage Company premises in Edinburgh is the oldest surviving car factory in the UK. They produced an 'electric brougham' between 1898 and 1900 - a Brougham being a light, four wheeled carriage normally drawn by horses. However by 1900 it became apparent that electricity wasn't the future in powering cars (oh how ironic), and so by 1900 Madelvic had gone bankrupt and was bought out by another early car manufacturer, the Kinsburgh Motor Company. Between 1900 and 1914 it was occupied by a succession of different small scale car manufacturers including Stirling’s Motor Carriages LTD, Scottish Motor Works, the Scottish Motor Engineering Company and Caledonian Taxis, and after that vehicle production ended. In 1925 United Wire, a wirecloth manufacturer, moved into the premises and during World War II parts of the factory were used to store torpedoes.

When United Wire moved into new premises across the road in 2001 the vast majority of the original works were demolished leaving only Madelvic House (the former offices), and one small section of the factory left standing. Madelvic House is now home to granton:hub, an arts and community centre and the last remaining piece of factory building is derelict.

It won't win any awards for best explore ever but it's more the history of the place that drew me here and I was glad to see it.

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Thanks for looking :)
 
Very nice set of images. Not surprising what a 100 years of battery technology has produced - lead acid cells housed in glass containers that cracked as soon as one moved them to recharge. No wonder the first battery powered vehicles were a disaster on the rough tracks that went for 'roads' back then, to the modern sealed for life alkali cell that is almost indestructible.
 
Interesting site that. Stripped but still shows some older bits such as the riveted girders.
What on Earth has someone been sewing tyres for?
A site I don't think will last much longer?
 
What on Earth has someone been sewing tyres for?[/QUOTE

They haven't - The tyres have been filled with twigs or straw, set fire to the straw and roll the flaming tyre down floor. Kid's game, as old as tyres have been abandoned, around these parts anyway.
 
What on Earth has someone been sewing tyres for?[/QUOTE

They haven't - The tyres have been filled with twigs or straw, set fire to the straw and roll the flaming tyre down floor. Kid's game, as old as tyres have been abandoned, around these parts anyway.

I hate to disappoint you but they had actually had some sort of twine woven across the faces of each tyre - very weird.
 
Very nice photos. National Transport Trust are proposing to erect one of their "Red Wheel" Heritage plaques at the site.
(Goggle "Red Wheel Scheme")
Their heritage sites database has a description, but it seems I am not allowed to put a link into this post.
(Google "Madelvic Motor Factory Transport Trust")

Regards, Mike
 

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