Motorcar Suppliers: Estate Cars and the Duke’s Personal Car

Description:Watson’s letters contain many details about the management of the Duke's various motorcars. A further letter refers to ‘the return of "16 two gallon cans" to Yarrotts & Letts’ who supplied oil and petrol to the Duke for his motorcars.

Watson oversaw the motorcar finances and in this letter to Simpson he notes that he encloses an invoice from a company called ‘Albions’ and also from a company called ‘Panhard’. Watson states that he had not received a ‘carburator’ he had been waiting for and refers again to ‘the Fiat’ and ‘the Daimler’, reflecting the variety of motorcars owned by the fourth Duke of Sutherland.

Another letter returns the ‘Holmes & Co Bills’ to Simpson and refers to Watson's order for ‘spare burners’, noting he ‘can find no trace of them been delivered’. Watson details expenditure on ‘Parafin Lamps, brackets & Frughtape’. He also notes that ‘two sets of buffers have been ordered one for the Duke’s Albion’ and one for the ‘Estate Car’. This suggests that the Duke owned his own personal cars as well as cars to serve the estate.

Watson’s letter also refers to provisions made for the Duke’s drivers. He refers to a man named Mr. Denham for whom he had ordered a ‘Mackintosh’ and ‘a blue surge suit & cap leather’. Denham had evidently been wearing a cap belonging to Watson and needed his own uniform as the Duke’s driver.