bird's eye view by the hawk Commercial Motor takes road
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haulage very seriously. However, once a week our quirky correspondent, the Hawk, steps off his perch to take a humorous look at the industry to keep us all sane. If you have any off-beat yarns that illustrate the stranger, or sillier, side of the business, he'd like to hear from you. As a softhearted old bird, he's also happy to publicise charitable works— and is always interested in events for the vintage vehicles he drove as a fledgling. Drop the Hawk a line at Commercial Motor, Bird's Eye View, Rm H203, Quadrant House. The Quadrant. Sutton, Surrey SM2 SAS, or fax him on 0181 652 8969. t is widely known that the Hawk holds a season ticket for his many journeys down memory lane. So it pleases him greatly to receive this photograph from Peter Edmonds, of Ansty Cross in Dorchester. It was taken in September 1951 and shows the fleet belonging to J Edmonds & Sons at its farm in Maidstone. Kent, where fruit and vegetables were grown and sheep and cattle reared.
It seems that Peter's father, Harry (pictured second front right) was quite an engineer: he bought eight ex-army six-wheel Leyland Terrier trucks and, together with his pal, a Mr Hodges, an Albion agent from Rainham, Kent, rebuilt the Terriers into eight wheelers. The lorries carried about 10 tonnes, averaged about l'Ompg and were used on the run to the farm's stand in London's Covent Garden.
The trucks seen here are four Terrier eight-wheelers and four Albion four-wheelers, all petrol driven. Peter tells me that between 1939 and 1950, J Edmonds also ran four Tilling Steven lorries which had been converted from 1929 East Kent singledecker buses. These played their part in the war effort by making the perilous journey to Covent Garden throughout the period of the blitz.
Sadly, Peter has no pictures of them, although I suspect he has memories to last a lifetime.