A SOUTHPORT man hoping to tell the tale of these mighty vehicles from the resort's past - and he's looking to hear from residents who remember them.Peter Dyer, of Longacre, told Life On Cars he is working on a book covering the history of the amphibious DUKW vehicles, which were once a common sight along the region's coastline when they were used as rescue vehicles by the Sefton Lifeguards.
“The red and cream DUKWs, workhorses of the Southport and then Sefton Lifeguards, patrolled our shores for nearly four decades,” he explained.
“They were responsible for saving the lives of some 600 people, but started out here as pleasure ride vehicles. Now their story has come full circle, with some of them being used on the Liverpool and London yellow Duck Tours.”
The DUKW, popularly pronounced “duck”, is a six-wheel-drive amphibious truck designed for the American military to use in amphibious attacks during the Second World War, and among other operations was used in the D-Day Landings in 1944.
Mr Dyer is requesting that Champion readers who remember the vehicles should get in touch with him with their stories, along with any additional photos, film footage or information. He is particularly looking for more information about the company Thompson and Doxey Export, which was involved with the vehicles, the use of the Canning Road bus sheds to store them, and any photos from the late 1940s, when they were first introduced.
To get in touch with your stories contact 01704 231685 or by email at peter@peterdyer.wanadoo.co.uk
I Beleive but have not researched it that five DUKWs were donated to Southport as a thank you for hospitalty through and after WW2 by the Americans at RAF Burtonwood nr Warrington,at that time the largest US base outside of the USA,had a staff of 18,500 personell.
ReplyDeleteFound on a local glassfibre company's site... How the DUKWs came to be in Southport originally...
ReplyDelete"The American D.U.K.W. appeared on our beaches about 1948, brought here by a scrap metal merchant as a possible business idea. In 1949 an ex-Navy officer Joseph Rankin, the founder of Glasplies, purchased some 20 vehicles from the then Thompson and Doxey export Ltd. He used them as pleasure vehicles on the beach for several years.They were not always mechanically reliable and often leaked. It was from this experience that Joe found fibreglass to be the best material to repair these aging vehicles, its popularity amongst other craft users was the inspiration for Glasplies.
Joe had a standby recovery vehicle incase of problems, under the pier he had a mint condition D.U.K.W.to recover the recovery D.U.K.W. Joe used his D.U.K.W.s as shrimping vehicles with some success. He was asked in 1951 by the then Southport Corporation to pioneer the use of the D.U.K.W. as a sea rescue vehicle. In conjunction with the beach Rangers well over 600 people were rescued on our beaches from then until their retirement in the 1990s."
Sourcs: http://www.glasplies.co.uk/AboutUs.asp