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  • Finding out about a great uncle

    Having difficulty in trying to get information about the husband of one of my grandfather's sisters.

    What I know about him is that he was going in for the world speedway championship at White City and rode for a club called Hackney Wike. I have found out that it was the White City in Nottingham. At sometime in the 1930s he was competing for the world championship and he tipped over too far and the rider coming up behind, took the side of his face off and he lost the sight of one eye. That I know to be true as my Mum has a newspaper cutting of him leaving the hospital with his wife Ruth (angel as he called her). I also have been told that he was given freedom of the city of Retford and I can't find anything about that.

    He was called Frederick Tate but was known to most people as Nicky.

    I am not sure when he built it, but I am told he made a racing car, with an industrial sewing machine for an engine and called it the Yellow Peril. I am told the car still existed in a museum 15 years ago, but unfortunately kids kicked off and the chance to find out more was lost and then they divorced and I haven't seen him since.

    So if anyone has an ideas or information or pointers on where I can look, please let me know. MTIA.

  • #2
    What are you wanting to find out? I think he probably rode for a Hackney Wick club, never heard of Hackney Wike.
    ~ with love from Little Nell~
    Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

    Comment


    • #3
      From Wikipedia

      "Motorcycle speedway racing was staged in Nottingham before the Second World War. The original venue known as Olympic Speedway was redeveloped by the building of the White City stadium which also featured speedway. A book by Philip Dalling, published by Tempus Publishing, chronicles speedway events in Nottingham. For a short spell in the 1980s the promotion based at Long Eaton raced under the Nottingham Speedway banner and the team was known as Nottingham Outlaws."

      Perhaps if you could get the book from your library via the inter-library loan scheme, that might help.
      ~ with love from Little Nell~
      Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

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      • #4
        Retford isn't a city, don't really suppose that helps though!
        KiteRunner

        Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
        (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

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        • #5
          Just in case it matters one day:
          If you're looking in an index for Retford - its proper name is East Retford!

          Christine
          Last edited by Christine in Herts; 16-03-09, 19:29. Reason: removing grocer's apostrophe which had crept in
          Researching: BENNETT (Leics/Birmingham-ish) - incl. Leonard BENNETT in Detroit & Florida ; WARR/WOR, STRATFORD & GARDNER/GARNAR (Oxon); CHRISTMAS, RUSSELL, PAFOOT/PAFFORD (Hants); BIGWOOD, HAYLER/HAILOR (Sussex); LANCASTER (Beds, Berks, Wilts) - plus - COCKS (Spitalfields, Liverpool, Plymouth); RUSE/ROWSE, TREMEER, WADLIN(G)/WADLETON (Devonport, E Cornwall); GOULD (S Devon); CHAPMAN, HALL/HOLE, HORN (N Devon); BARRON, SCANTLEBURY (Mevagissey)...

          Comment


          • #6
            There is a book about the history of Hackney speedway by Chris Fenn for sale on Word of Sport - The Specialist Sports Bookshop Featuring Sports Books, DVDs and Prints Sorry I can't do a proper link to the page about the book at the moment because I'm on the pocketsurfer but maybe someone else can do it.
            KiteRunner

            Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
            (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

            Comment


            • #7
              Oh, well, I see it's cheaper on Amazon anyway:

              Hackney Speedway: Friday at Eight: Chris Fenn: Amazon.co.uk: Books
              KiteRunner

              Every five years or so I look back on my life and I have a good... laugh"
              (Indigo Girls, "Watershed")

              Comment


              • #8
                Originally posted by Christine in Herts View Post
                Just in case it matters one day:
                If you're looking in an index for Retford - its proper name is East Retford!

                Christine

                I did wonder whether it was Wretford, but could find any info I am looking for googling it.

                Its really frustrating trying to get info on ancestry (when I had a sub), its like Uncle Nicky never existed.

                Will see about getting a copy of the book. I know about the newspaper cutting but couldn't tell you which paper it was from concerning the accident, not being fiction. I'd love to be able to find where the yellow peril is, as I was lead to believe its housed in a museum but not Beaulieu.

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                • #9
                  Just thought of another way of finding out about the Yellow Peril, it was a type of race, not a car according to the info I have been able to find. It is possible that the car wasn't necessarily made by my GU, my Mum thought it was because she was only a small child at the time and uncle Nicky was really kind to her. Could it be that he wasn't English?

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                  • #10
                    can't you get his marriage cert which might help?
                    ~ with love from Little Nell~
                    Chowns, Dunt, Emms, Mealing, Purvey & Smoothy

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      I've just asked my husband of any good speedway web sites you could try and he's come up with this one

                      speedwayhistory.proboards67.com

                      We are speedway fans and have been for a great many years but 1930 is a bit far back even for us.

                      Jane

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                      • #12
                        I've saved 3 newspaper articles from 1933 and 1936 from the Manchester Guardian if you would like them - they are about race meetings at Belle Vue and mention Fred Tate. They may not tell you anything new but may fill in a few gaps.

                        If you would like me to send the pdf's then PM me your email address and I'll happily send them
                        Jackie

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Originally posted by Night Owl View Post
                          I've saved 3 newspaper articles from 1933 and 1936 from the Manchester Guardian if you would like them - they are about race meetings at Belle Vue and mention Fred Tate. They may not tell you anything new but may fill in a few gaps.

                          If you would like me to send the pdf's then PM me your email address and I'll happily send them
                          Pming you Nightowl, thank you.

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Originally posted by Little Nell View Post
                            can't you get his marriage cert which might help?
                            Thing is when I had a 14 day trial I tried to find the marriage but couldn't. He married a Ruth Wilson, my Mum says she recalls 'having' to sit next to Uncle Nicky when she was 7 ish, as her mother had left the family fold by then. That would make it something like 1932/1933/1934 and Ruth and Nicky were she thinks married by then. Sorry to be so vague.

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Originally posted by Breckland Jane View Post
                              I've just asked my husband of any good speedway web sites you could try and he's come up with this one

                              speedwayhistory.proboards67.com

                              We are speedway fans and have been for a great many years but 1930 is a bit far back even for us.

                              Jane

                              Thanks for the information Jane, I joined up and one kind member has been able to help fit more pieces in the jigsaw :D

                              Comment


                              • #16
                                I'm really pleased it was of use.

                                Jane

                                Comment


                                • #17
                                  Got another question for you, I am wondering now whether my GU was an Australian, how would I find this out? What makes me wonder this is that he built his own 'Yellow Peril' car which he used to drive all over the place in. Thing is, from what I have been able to find out, it would appear that the Yellow Peril was a race in Australia and there is a YP called Amelia that has never left Australia. Why did he want to copy it/build his own unless his family had an Australian connection or if he was Australian.

                                  After his crash, he married and as far as I know stayed married to Ruth (my great aunt) and didn't go back to Australia.

                                  Comment


                                  • #18
                                    I can't tell if you have enough info to make use of this ink:
                                    RecordSearch - National Archives of Australia

                                    But if you look in the Wiki, there are a number of useful links for Australia-related research.

                                    Christine
                                    Researching: BENNETT (Leics/Birmingham-ish) - incl. Leonard BENNETT in Detroit & Florida ; WARR/WOR, STRATFORD & GARDNER/GARNAR (Oxon); CHRISTMAS, RUSSELL, PAFOOT/PAFFORD (Hants); BIGWOOD, HAYLER/HAILOR (Sussex); LANCASTER (Beds, Berks, Wilts) - plus - COCKS (Spitalfields, Liverpool, Plymouth); RUSE/ROWSE, TREMEER, WADLIN(G)/WADLETON (Devonport, E Cornwall); GOULD (S Devon); CHAPMAN, HALL/HOLE, HORN (N Devon); BARRON, SCANTLEBURY (Mevagissey)...

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