12 replies to this topic

[marksixman]

Hi All,

 

I am trying to find any details about one W P S (Pat) Melville. He raced in the late 1950's / early 60's, in club events, mainly in a Vauxhall 30/98. I believe he was a member of the Scottish Sporting Car Club, and also the VSCC. The latter award "The Melville Trophy" for VSCC Specials annually, which may be named after him.

 

Does anyone have any further details ?  His full name would be helpful, or where he may have lived.

 

Adam.

[RobMk2a]

https://charterhall....y.com/1957.html

 

There are few details / photos on David Spry's Charterall website (see 1956-58). 

 

Rob 

Edited by RobMk2a, 06 July 2021 - 12:46.

[Vitesse2]

His name looks to have been William Patrick Stewart Melville. Here's his commission as a 2nd lieutenant in the Royal Engineers, Supplement to the London Gazette, August 8th 1941.

 

https://www.thegazet...supplement/4561

 

He also appears in a list of servicemen mentioned in dispatches, in the Supplement to the London Gazette, January 10th 1946. Seems to have been a lieutenant by then, still in the RE.

 

https://www.thegazet.../supplement/382

 

Nothing obvious on Ancestry, but it's not very good on modern Scots records, which are in any case difficult to access unless you're a relative. However, on Scotland's People, I did find what could be your man - a William Patrick Melville, whose birth was registered in Pollokshields in 1918. If it's the right/same chap then it appears he was married in Elgin in 1940.

[Vitesse2]

However, Ancestry does have a possible travel record - a William Melville, 'contractor', born June 4th 1918, home address 4 Fleurs Avenue Glasgow, arriving at Liverpool, travelling first class from New York on the Scythia, in May 1957.

 

There are also travel records for a William Melville travelling to Canada in 1924, but he appears to have been one William Baxter Melville, who remained in Canada and died in Thunder Bay, Ontario in 2007.

[Geoff E]

There's a 1970 Solicitor's announcement for those-

"interested in the succession of the deceased William Patrick Stewart Melville who resided at Stormont, Murthly"

 

EDIT: There were more of these announcements ranging from 1966-80.  One of them dates his death as 6th August 1966.

 

Also a marriage in 1959 in Hampstead to Isabella M Milroy and her death in 2007 still apparently in Murthly https://www.legacy.c...e&pid=192240006

Edited by Geoff E, 06 July 2021 - 15:10.

[Roger Clark]

There was an obituary in the VSCC Bulletin winter 1966:

 

"Pat Melville died in hospital in Perth on 5th august, aged 48; his death may have been hastened by a tropical disease contracted while serving as a Lieutenant in 82 (WA) Divisional Field Park Coy., RE in West Africa, India and Burma.

 

"While an undergraduate at Cambridge he shared the ownership of a 100moh 3-litre Bentley, and had experience. of many cars of the period.  since the war his everyday driving was done in Borgward, Volvo, Porsche and BMW cars, but he will be best remembered for his spirited and successful racing activities with his 30/98 Vauxhall.

 

"Pat's knowledge of motoring matters was deep and wide, his judgement of cars and drivers sound and free from bias, his driving vigorous and courteous.

 

"The ebullience, wit and helpful friendship which were native to him were a part of the best years of vintage motoring and motor racing."

[Vitesse2]

The 82nd seem to have been in the thick of it in Burma: https://burmastarmem...rican-division?

[ReWind]

Another snippet from St. John’s College, Cambridge, magazine “The Eagle” under “Marriages” (p. 181):

William Patrick Stewart Melville (Matric. 1937), lancecorporal, only son of the late Alexander Melville, of Tighnambarr, Taynuilt, to Ruth Dewar, twin daughter of the late Alexander H. Dewar, of 24 DeVere Gardens, London – on 21 September 1940 at St. Columba’s Church, Elgin

[oliver heal]

According to Peter Hull's History of the VSCC Melville was a member of the VSCC Team that went to the USA in 1957 for the 2nd Anglo-American Rally. He drove a 1920 E-Type 30/98 and put up the fastest time in the Duryea Drive hill-climb as well as in the 1/4 mile acceleration and braking test on Long Island.

[Graham Gauld]

I must apologise, I only found this thread on Pat Melville who was an old friend from the mid-1950s when I joined Motor World magazine in Scotland as sports editor. Pat was always cheeful, rotund and tended never to leave a glass un-emptied !

He was a director of Melville Dundas and Whitson the Glasgow civil engineers and his great friend was Ronnie Millar who was Chairman of the huge Motherwell Bridge Engineering company and both of them were keen on racing.

As already noted they both had 30/98 Vauxhalls but Pat did much more racing and competed in the early meetings at Turnberry, Winfield and Charterhall. Ronnie's car had registration number AOA 2 and about two or three years ago it came into the hands of Gregor Fisken and as far as I am aware he is still the owner of it and runs it from time to time.

Pat bought a Borgward Isabella TS and was very quick in Scottish saloon racing with it  - Ian Stewart the Ecurie Ecosse driver also used a Borgward Isabella TS but Ian never raced his Borgward.

You can see that dear old Pat who could enliven any social event with his infectious good humour, died quite young. 

 

When Bill Dobson retired from Ecurie Ecosse at the end of the 1952 season the ex-Peter Whitehead short wheelbase F2 Ferrari became somewhat redundant and as Pat and Ronnie were great friends of David Murray of Ecurie Ecosse they bought the bits of the Ferrari left over after,. I think, Wilkie Wilkinson sold the engine of the car. The Ferrari chassis bits were then used by Pat and Ronnie to develop their own sports racing car called the Saltire and fitted a Lea-Francis engine to it. It was not much good and had other ideas and so sold the Saltire to a young Scot called Syd Ritchie who, with the help of Bryan Wingfield put a Jaguar engine into the Saltire.and the car proved to be a bit of an animal in the handling department. The only photo of Syd I took driving the car saw him on full opposite lock half way on the grass and two laps later he crashed heafily and became only the second driver to be killed in a race in Scotland.

Meanwhile Ronnie Millar and Pat Melville decided they would do the job properly and ordered a chassis from Brian Lister into which they would put a Jaguar engine and the chassis arrived in Scotland, was built up and it has a bodywork different to the regular Lister Jaguars of the day. However they hardly used the car and it was sold to David Ham who raced it and owned it for about thirty years and it still appears from time to time in historic evernts.

 

Both Pat Melville and Ronnie Millar are long dead but Pat in particular will always be remembered as a cheerful fun loving enthusiast who had not racing ambitions but just savoured the joy of racing his Vauxhall.

[Dutchy]

Slightly off thread but AOA 2 was owned for many years by Bunty Scott Moncrieff. I believe Bunty was Gregor Fisken's godfather and Gregor cut his teeth fettling cars for him - I recall a very young Gregor underneath AOA 2 with a welding torch at a VSCC Silverstone.

I think I'm right in saying AOA 2 was bequeathed to Gregor in Bunty's will meaning Gregor has owned the car for a good few years now. It now looks a great deal smarter than it did in Bunty's day! 

[hamsterace]

 

Meanwhile Ronnie Millar and Pat Melville decided they would do the job properly and ordered a chassis from Brian Lister into which they would put a Jaguar engine and the chassis arrived in Scotland, was built up and it has a bodywork different to the regular Lister Jaguars of the day. However they hardly used the car and it was sold to David Ham who raced it and owned it for about thirty years and it still appears from time to time in historic evernts.

 

 

It is gratifying to see that there is such interest in Pat Melville here. I can confirm that the Lister Jaguar he shared with Ronnie Miller, BHL 111, was raced by my late father for well over 40 years, and is still in Ham family ownership (52 years this year!). As with many Listers, the car left the factory via the "back door" (to avoid purchase tax) and was delivered to Ecurie Ecosse, who built it up to the order of Ronnie Miller. The late Stan Sproat remembered the car fondly when I spoke to him at the EE reunion at Knockhill a few years ago, having helped build it up at Merchiston Mews - although, as with many EE mechanics, I think he was a bit bemused how much credit Wilkie Wilkinson received for it! The irrepressible Ron Gaudion had similar memories when I spoke to him at Goodwood a couple of years ago as well. Interestingly, the body is one of two produced to the order of EE - in effect a "smoothed out" Knobbly - and is the only one surviving. Furthermore, I believe our car is now the only Lister still competing with its original body.

 

I will be out with it at the Goodwood Members Meeting in October, although "modern" historic racing can be a rather soul destroying experience at times given the prevalence of modern technology and - in some cases - "new build" cars, which happen to assume the identity of the real one which has been conveniently left at home....

 

David Spry's excellent website lists the car in far more races that either my father or I had ever credited it with. I think it is fair to say that they were all "Clubbie" events - although it is easy to forget the class of some of the drivers up at the front: Jim Clark, Ron Flockhart, John Whitmore, Innes Ireland, Tommy Dickson etc. 

 

Interestingly, I used to work for Gregor Fisken many moons ago, and I recall speaking to him about the ex-Moncreiff 30/98 and the Melville connection. It would certainly be nice to arrange a photo shoot of the two old stable mates together some time - I shall certainly drop him a line to suggest the idea.

[marksixman]

Many Thanks to all who have replied or shown interest in this topic.

 

It has filled in a lot of blanks !

 

Adam.