Mystery magic motor which thrilled the crowd
This mechanical marvel entertained the crowds in Oswestry years ago, but these pictures of it are intriguing John Powell, who is hoping a reader can come up with more details about it.
Fashioned with an old beer barrel, spoked wheels, and a smoke stack, its operators are, with their stove-pipe hats, a throwback to the Victorian era.
And the vehicle itself was not much functional use, as it had to be towed by a rope.
"I have just come across three prints of some sort of home-made vehicle," said film and photos collector John, from Oswestry.
"The first picture shows the vehicle in Oswestry and I guess that the crowd are watching a carnival procession. The Wynnstay Hotel is shown on the left. Unfortunately, the picture is not very sharp due to some camera shake.
"One of the other two pictures shows the vehicle on a road though I don't recognise the area. The operators all have tall hats, in maybe a take-off of Thomas Telford. The vehicle wheels look, possibly, like Austin 7 wheels and the whole machine looks Austin 7 size but needs to be towed.
"From memory, I think that the staff from Criggion Radio Station used to take part in local carnivals with this sort of construction. Possibly, a reader or readers might have more details.
"Chitty Chitty Bang Bang could have been the idea for the operators so maybe the date of that film could indicate the era of the construction, 1968 or thereabouts.
"These prints were in a box of photographs and I think that they came from Colin Powell who was an engineer based at Criggion Radio Station. I had helped clear his darkroom after his death."
