The John Warrick Online Museum

This website records the history of the the innovative engineer John Warrick and the vehicles he made. They are an important part of our motoring heritage. The pages on the right side of this website will provide you with more comprehensive details. You’ll be able to read about…

********************

1. Is the Tricar Dead?

Three-wheeled cyclecars, which were actually the first type of car to be made. But this historic vehicle design only lasted until the First World War, after which time motorcycle and then (four-wheeled) car design and functionality had started to improve to such an extent that three-wheelers could not compete on either price or reliability.

***********************

2. John Warrick & Co of Reading: History

***********************

3. The 1914 Warrick Motor Carrier

(owned in the 1930′s by O. Bailey & Sons, Bakers, Prinsted, W. Sussex)

***********************

4. Warrick’s ‘Monarch’ Carrier Cycle

***********************

5. Stop Me and Buy One

**********************

6. Warrick v Pashley

***********************

7. Mr. Mathews finds Warrick Carrier in a field in 1950

***********************

8. Other Warrick Vehicles

***********************

9. John Warrick Catalogue

***********************

10. The Pigpen

***********************

11. John Warrick: ‘The Celebrated Machinist‘

In 1883 John Warrick designed a carrier tricycle for carrying his heavy tools around with him. During his partnership with Pitt of Birmingham to make rifles, he obtained the trademark ‘Monarch’.

In 1888, the first Cycling Battalion was formed and led by Colonel Saville. The carrier tricycles were for carrying arms and Warrick won the contract to supply the cycles.

***********************

12. The Soper Rifle

***********************

13. Monarch TWS Teenage Girls’ Tricycle

***********************

14. Your Emails

***********************

15. Greg Warrick meets a Warrick Trike

***********************

16. 1923/1924 Burney Motorcycle 495cc

***********************

25. More Online Museums

***********************

JOHN WARRICK ONLINE MUSEUM

Why a Website on John Warrick?

It all started when I bought a 1914 Warrick Motor Carrier and wanted to find out more about its history. The more I learned about John Warrick, the more fascinated I became. He was a genius in his day.

I am surprised he is not acknowledged as such by the people of Reading.

Why isn’t his history taught as part of the local school curriculum?

Why is there no statue of him in the centre of the town?

As for my Motor Carrier, it’s a ridiculous machine, one of a motoring elite – the first generation of vehicles that was obsolete by the time WW1 ended.

Being a three-wheeled veteran commercial carrier made by a cycle manufacturer, it is also falls within the regulations of 4 different vintage vehicle clubs:

The Vintage Motorcycle Club

The Veteran Car Club

The Veteran Cycle Club

The Historic Commercial Vehicle Society

I’m the marque specialist for motorized three-wheeled commercial carriers within the Vintage Motorcycle Club. I have a few such oddities, but don’t know much about them. In my defence it’s a very broad specialization and there’s very little information written about these small manufacturers. Nevertheless, I decided to do something to earn my title. When I realized that none of the clubs knew much about John Warrick & Co I started researching and was rewarded with rather more information than is usual in such circumstances. I even discovered he built a motorcycle.

The John Warrick Online Museum is the result.

*************************

Monarch Cycles is the shop to the extreme left of the picture below, taken around 1930

St. Mary’s Butts, Reading, looking northwards from a high vantage point, c. 1930. On the west side: No. 34 (John Warrick and Company, cycle dealers); Nos. 31 and 30 (Picton’s Fish Cafe); No. 29 (L. Vidcosky, tailor); No. 10 appears to be under demolition. On the east side, No. 55 (S. Goodall and Company, plumbers and decorators). In the middle of the Butts are the refreshment stall, gas-lamps, telephone-boxes, the entrances to the underground public conveniences, and bollards. There is a variety of motor traffic, including a bus with “Bucklebury Common” on the destination blind.

*************************

This website (like all of my sites) is a Public Resource. You’re free to copy whatever you like for your own use. If you’re feeling generous, it would be appreciated if you add a link to this website or mention where you found the information. Thanks.

If you have anything further you’d like to add to its database, please email me as below (email address within the picture).

A website is an organic entity, and once created develops a life of its own. Goethe’s comments on the subject may be a little cliched by now, but it’s true that you never know what will happen until you start it…

Thanks to contributors to Reading Forum; also Reading Library; Veteran Car Club; Vintage Motorcycle Club Library; Rod S & Alan B of the Veteran Cycle Club; Gill F of Havant Library; Diane L of West Sussex Records Office; Southbourne Library; Mr. Phillip McDougal of Prinsted; Greg Warrick.

This website Copyright 2008 by http://www.BuyVintage.co.uk