"There are plans to open a Lotus Museum at 7 Tottenham Lane
in Hornsey, where Lotus founder Colin Chapman built his
first cars. The premises are not very large and so there
will be only be around 10 classic cars on display but
former racer John Scott-Davies, who raced Lotuses in the
1960s, hopes that the museum will create some tourism and
an education centre for the area.
Chapman worked at the premises between 1951 and 1959, in
converted stables behind the Railway Arms Hotel, which his
father Stan has been running since Colin was a toddler. It
was there that Lotus was established in 1952 and on the
premises the first 100 Lotus Seven cars were built before
the firm moved to Cheshunt in 1959."
I remember visiting that place one Sunday morning in
October 1954 after visiting the London Motor Show on the
Saturday. In those days the Show didn't open on Sundays.
One thing I remember is the aluminum bodies hanging on
'string' from the rafters the chassis were built
underneath. Yes there were two people working there on
Sunday but not Colin.
The other thing I recently learned was that the first race
I ever attended, the British Empire Trophy at Oulton Park
in April 1954, was the first time the Team Lotus name was
used.
Of such mice are mountains made [or something].
Derek
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