1935 Rolls-Royce 20/25 Arthur Mulliner Limousine GBK51

A really lovely example of a traditional limousine of the the 1930s. in excellent condition mechanically. cosmetically and structurally. The doors click shut beautifully! Paintwork. chrome and interior are all wonderful. and the car is running very nicely. with a smooth. quiet engine. Of interest to us is the fact that this car's first owner lived just ten miles from us here in Bethesda! Consequently. the car originally carried a Caernarfonshire registration number. JC 3500. which we are hoping to re-instate. Features include a large. useful rear-mounted trunk in excellent condition. an impressive set of lamps. horns & badges. an attractive black-lacquered dashboard. and best of all. overdrive. Superb wedding car. being very sharp. smart and attractive. but at the same time very appealing as a family fun car.

Chassis No. GBK51. Reg No. JC 3500 (but see above). £39. 00.

Snippets: Platts & Robbs:
Mjr Eric Platt was a great-grandson of Henry Platt (1793/1842) founder of Platt Bros whose business encompassed textiles. iron works. collieries – by 1879 the firm were the largest makers of cotton-processing machinery in Lancashire & indeed the world. Mjr Platt's grandfather John (1817/1872) died at the Hotel Maurice in Paris after contracting Typhoid leaving a widow and 12 children with ages ranging from 30 to 10 years of age. The eldest child was Henry Platt (1842/1914) – and like his son Eric he also served with the Royal Welsh Fusiliers attaining the rank of Colonel. Eric and Eleanor Platt owned Bryn Mel on the Isle of Anglesey which had been built in 1889 for William Imrie (White Star Shipping) and used as his summer home – all 39 bedrooms! After Imrie's death (1906) Bryn Mel was purchased by Eric Platt and was his main residence until 1914 when after the death of his father he and his family move across the Menai Strait to Gorddiniog. Llanfairfechan. In 1857 John Platt (Eric's grandfather) purchased the estate of Bryn-y-Neuadd and even managed to persuade the Turnpike Trust to move the main road as it was too close to his new home! A few years later John Platt acquired the neighbouring estate of Gorddiniog and in 1868 demolished the old house replacing it with a new mansion which he gave to his son Capt Henry Platt as a wedding gift - the grounds were laid out and designed by Edward Milner who in 1866 had designed the garden at Bryn-y-Neuadd. Upon Capt Henry Platt's death Gorddiniog was inherited by Mjr Eric & Mrs Florence Platt – Mjr Platt died in 1946 but Florence remained at Gorddiniog until her death in 1955. GBK51 was purchased by Mjr Platt in April 1936 when he was a 65 years old – he only kept the car for a year. In 1937 Henry Robb. Naval Architect & shipyard owner took delivery of GBK51 at his business address of West Pier. Leith. Henry Robb started his career in 1901 with Ailsa Shipbuilder Co and by 1914 was with Ramage & Ferguson as their shipyard manager. Four years later in 1918 he started his own company of Henry Robb Ltd and in 1922 he acquired the Hawthorn yard and the neighbouring Cran yard. In 1936 Henry Robb acquired his old employers – Ramage & Ferguson and by 1938 he had delivered 280 vessels – from Corvettes names included the Delphinium. Petunia & Pink; the Frigates were named either after rivers – Ness. Derg or Lochs – Achanalt & Insh; Ocean Rescue Tugs Bustler. Hesperia and Turmoil and Salvage ships Goosander & Pochard! In 1940 HM King George VI & Queen Elizabeth toured the shipyard and in 1987 Robbs was featured by The Proclaimers in their video “Letter from America”. In 1928 his son Henry. also a Naval Architect. joined his father at Robbs and became joint MD in 1948 taking over the firm in due course. It is not known what happened to GBK51 from 1951 to 1982 when it was next known as being in America but we are in touch with the great-granddaughter of Henry Robb and hope that she can find some information in the family archives. From 1982 until 2013 GBK51 was with R. A. Brechler who served during Korea as a Naval aviator flying Corsairs & Panthers. his wife Martha was a scion of the Swisher Sweets & Tobacco family of Jacksonville.

Also published at eBay.co.uk

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