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Rhode motor car

Here I am replying to my own posting. Have just taken a close up look at the restored Rhode car that started this thread and the numbers visible on number plate are 7046 so the wreck that I have black & white photographs of did get restored. Wonder who owns it now?
 
The Mead part of Mead and Deakin was my gt uncle Fred Mead, and I remember my father Robert Mould talking about the Rhode Motor Company, I have a brochure of one. I think it all went bust. I am in contact with Diana Mead, my father's cousin, she is nearly 90yrs old now.By the way, my father was in business in Dudley Rd, Smethwick as H.Mould builders and plumbers merchants which his father Harry Mould started.
Good to read about family history here !
 
HI ROSAMARY ;
Just read your thread on your family thread the name rings abell with me i am just wondering what end of dudley rd was there selling pitch
to my knowledge there was at one time three car dealer on dudley rd many many years ago;
and also i would like to asked a question on where does the deakin family and especialy mould family
was deakins from the smethwick area and mould from around the spark hillor spark brook area possiblely stratford rd end of birmingham
you do not have to answer if you do not want to moulds i knew and ait of a coinidence with deakins as i knew two familys
and the one deakin was from farm street hockley and the other was smethwick ;
hope you did not mind me asking ; best wishes Astonian;
 
Hi Astonian,
Thanks for your reply. My grandfather Harry Mould started a builders and plumbers merchants business in about 1897 at 417 Dudley Road, they owned premises both sides of the road, my father Bob Mould took over and worked there until he died in 1986, my brother ran it briefly before it was sold. I don't know where the Deakin family came from, the Mead family lived in Ladypool Rd, Smethwick, that's where Fred Mead was born who was the partner in Mead and Deakin.
Harry Mould was born in 1875 in Aston, the family lived in Kings Norton for a while, but after marriage Harry and Charlotte Mould lived at 379 Rotten Park Rd, that's where my father Bob Mould was born in 1909.
Hope this is some help to you,

All the best,

Rosemary
 
Hi Mikejee,

I guess that a Rhode motor car was auctioned at Hockley Heath in the twenties because the Mould family lived at Hockley House at that time and the Moulds are related to the Meads, in fact I think that my grandfather Harry Mould put money into the Rhode business.

All the Best,

Rosemary
 
in my Birmingham industrial Heritage Book p 165, I list 3 locations Blytheswood Road, Rushey Lane and Webb Lane, Hall Green, this information was extracted from newspaper, magazine and trade directories. I regularly ask the question at the Classic Car Shows at the NEC, to find out more about surviving examples. There may be one or two in private ownership although perhaps not intact. I recall there is a Building Plan for Blytheswood Road premises in Birmingham Reference Library.
 
I have recently inherited a Rhode. My father bought this 1925 10.8hp 2-Seater in 1957 and became a founding member of the Auckland Vintage & Veteran Car Club. My understanding is that this car is one of 3 Rhode cars in NZ. Also on a couple of occasions tourists from the UK would appear in our driveway, both of these gentlemen also had a Rhode car - one was based Poole and the other in Gloucester. I do have a number of photocopies of different articles, featuring the Rhode and printed between 1921-30, these are sourced from "The Light Car and Cyclecar" and "The Autocar" magazines. There is also an excellent summary of the history of the Rhode Motor Company in "The Automobile", April 1994, and a short article in the Birmingham Mail, 24/10/1960.
Unfortunately my father dis-assembled his Rhode for a restoration many years ago so I have a "project" rather than a car.
 
DSC_0196.jpg Here is a picture of our Rhode it is the one from the Dingles Steam Village, we have recently collected it and got it running once again,it had been on loan for 20 years. My grandad bought the car back in the early sixties, at one time he owned 2 more Rhodes but i have no idea where they went to, would love to find out where they are or see some more pictures and find out more info on these cars, hopefully this one will be out and about a little bit during next year
 
Rhode2.jpg
A photo of the 2 door version, now dis-assembled. My mothers aunt also owned a Rhode saloon. It came to an unfortunate end versus a tram in downtown Auckland.
 
This is the plan. I have to work out the practicalities. Have you met Hugh or Geoffery, the other Rhode owners in England?
 
Steve,
please email me at [email protected]. I have the details of the other Rhode owners mentioned, I can pass these on to you. Although these contacts are quite old and may have moved or passed on.
 
Anyone interested in this thread, I currently have a very select list of 4 Rhode owners. I have also found an old list of owners, there may be 11 complete cars remaining across the world.
 
Anyone interested in this thread, I currently have a very select list of 4 Rhode owners. I have also found an old list of owners, there may be 11 complete cars remaining across the world.

nzchris..this is an old thread and since it started one of the posters is now deceased and two other posters are no longer members so this explains why they have not picked up the thread and replied...

lyn
 
(from my FiL John D Barnes who writes......) Henry B Denley (pictured) was apprenticed to https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Wolseley_Sheep_Shearing_Machine_Company in Birmingham precursors to the Wolseley (see picture) with Herbert Austin. https://www.wolseley.com/index.asp?pageid=24&year=1880 Henry trialled the three wheel Morgan. After WW2 he did trials with Rhode cars. The Rhode Motor Company started in 1920 by Henry and his brother-in-Law, Fred Mead (see Rosemary Ramm above). Henry did some original designing. The business was run from a small factory in Blythwood Road Tyseley as posted above.
Most firms, like the Rhode Co, purchased chassis frames from Rubery Owen, engines from Meadowlines , steering gear from Burmans, gear boxes from Moss and Villiers of Wolverhampton. Tyseley was where the Rhodes saloon bodies were constructed using ash , beech etc. panelled and roofs covered with fabric before being fitted to the chassis. Models during the late 1920s were tested over a measured mile on the Stratford Road just beyond Hockley Heath.
The cars consisted of a driveable chassis, wheels, engine, but no body, four wooden planks as mudwings and a square box behind the seats to hold lead weights equal to body weight.
In 1928 Henry left the company after a disagreement with his partner over proposed design. In 1929 Rhodes went into liquidation. Henry purchased the goodwill, stores etc . , from the Receiver and moved everything to Webb Lane Hall Green. There a McKenzie had a factory making wickerwork invalid carriages, bath chairs and kitchen furniture. The business of McKenzie and Denley was formed with the aim of repairing Rhode cars. The firm was absorbed by the Star Cycle Co. The first Star was built in 1899 at the Star Cycle works in Stewart Street, Wolverhampton. In 1904 it moved to Frederick Street where they earned a reputation for well engineered and robust vehicles ranking in quality and style with neighbouring Sunbeam.
Between 1933 and 1936 Henry purchased a garage in the High Street, Kings Heath. Next he bought out McKenzie and the Rhode and Star business of Kings Heath, forming a family business H.B. Denley Ltd. The attraction of the Kings Heath site was the very large workshop and stores. Henry employed a number of the original Star men who travelled daily from Wolverhampton."
 

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I have three locations for Rhode
Blythewood Road 1921-8
Rushey Lane 1929-1930
Webb Lane 1931- 1935

Actually the name is topical at the moment- as stated the name is derived from Cecil Rhodes, the founder of Rhodesia.

Was the picture taken in 2011?. When I was chasing up models in 2006 I was told no complete vehicle existed.
 
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I have three locations for Rhode
Blythewood Road 1921-8
Rushey Lane 1929-1930
Webb Lane 1931- 1935

Actually the name is topical at the moment- as stated the name is derived from Cecil Rhodes, the founder of Rhodesia.

Was the picture taken in 2011?. When I was chasing up models in 2006 I was told no complete vehicle existed.

I just wonder whether it was actually named after Cecil Rhodes, as in the majority of cases the Company names has no “s”.
 
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