1/11/2024 0 Comments New bedford oceanariumThis approach, though unconventional and requiring a fair bit of planning and self-discipline, does have one big advantage when, as here, you’re dealing with rare vehicles. Secondly, whereas most people with several lorries to restore, would tackle them one at a time, the Fitches have chosen to run three simultaneously. ![]() ![]() The long-term (1937 to 1949) operator’s name remained intact, but not a lot else did… All their restoration work is, however, done at Alvar’s premises, meaning a 400-mile round trip for Garry for each joint working session. The first complication is that the pair live some 200 miles apart – Alvar’s based near Manchester while Garry, who works ‘in finance’, lives on the western edge of London, near Heathrow Airport. with the bull-nose front.Īt this point, we also need to reiterate a little about how this father-and-son team carry out their restorations. The one thing that isn’t certain, however, is whether a new three-tonner in 1938/39, would have been the older model as represented here, or the new- in-1939 ‘Interim’ model. In this, they’ve been guided by the livery and finish of both the 1932 lorry and the O-Types, J-Types and TKs that the Fitch business operated post-war. Alvar initially considered the Bedford too far gone for restoration, so Garry went ahead and bought it on his own.Ĭonsequently, the WT has been restored to replicate, as far as possible, what the ‘new’ lorry would have looked like, had it arrived in 1938/9, as intended. He continued using the old lorry until he was called up, at which point his wife (and Garry’s grandmother) took over.Īs it was found. However, it took until 1939 for the order to be processed, by which time, war was looking increasingly likely, so he cancelled the order. Then, in 1938, he ordered a new Bedford three-tonner from Salthouses, the Bedford dealership in Ashton Under Lyne. This started in the 1920s, when Garry’s grandfather, HB Fitch, established a coal and coke merchants business in Cheshire with, as was usual then, a horse and cart.įrom this, he graduated to a Model T Ford and then, in 1932 ,the Fitch’s first Bedford a 1932 two-tonner. To explain this, we need to start with a brief look at the family’s background in lorries and road haulage. It’s a 1936 WT three-tonner, like the D, it’s absolutely stunning, and we were therefore delighted when the invitation came to take a look.Īlso like the D, the WT is a lorry type which the family intended to use operationally, but never did. In that feature, we mentioned that the D was “one of three Bedford restorations nearing completion.” Now, though, number two has been completed. ![]() This is about as far as I got, so I wanted to ask if any Zoochatters have any information about the Ocean Explorium to supplement my research.The body is a new creation in keeping, and with the working-wood look rather than varnished.Įxactly two years ago, in the September 2018 issue of Classic & Vintage Commercials, we featured Alvar and Garry Fitch’s newly restored 1958 Bedford D. Perhaps the Explorium has permanently closed, and someone else bought the web domain name after. The site also gave me a link to what is apparently the Explorium’s official website ( but this site seemed completely unconnected to the New Bedford Oceanarium, and only featured a blog for “interesting facts and stuff about oceans”. The profile describes it as a zoo / aquarium / marine science center. I couldn’t find any other articles or sources corroborating any of this info regarding closures, however, so I do not know if Google Maps’ information is accurate.Īfter more research, I eventually found this site ( New Bedford Oceanarium Corporation - GuideStar Profile), which gave a profile on the Oceanarium Corporation. Google maps also says that the Explorium is now permanently closed, but that the Corporation is still open. The two places have the same address on google maps (174 Union St, New Bedford, MA 02740), so I am assuming the facility was renamed at some point or that the names have some other connection. ![]() Nothing substantive really came up, so I decided to make this post to document my research, and to see if anyone on here knew about the oceanarium or had anything to contribute.įirst, different sources appear to refer to the Oceanarium with different names, with some people calling it the “New Bedford Oceanarium Corporation,” and others calling it the “Oceanarium Explorium at New Bedford Seaport”. According to Google Maps, the Oceanarium is really close to the Buttonwood Park Zoo, but I was not aware of an aquarium in New Bedford, so I tried to do some research to find out more about the place. Recently I heard of a place called the New Bedford Oceanarium.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |