William Felton (coachmaker) on:
[Wikipedia]
[Google]
[Amazon]
William Felton was a London coachmaker from 36 Leather Lane in
"''A Treatise on Carriages; comprehending Coaches, Chariots, Phaetons, Curricles, Gigs, Whiskies, &c Together with their Proper Harness in which the Fair Prices of Every Article are Accurately Stated.''"
William Felton wrote in the book's introduction that he had no literary pretensions, but rather that his aim was to produce an authoritative guide to the construction, maintenance and repair of horse-drawn coaches. The ''Monthly Review'' agreed that it was not a literary masterpiece, but praised it for its encyclopaedic treatment of the subject. ''
full-size replica
of the London steam carriage was constructed. It was driven on the streets of''Kent's Original London Directory''
/ref>
William Felton was a London coachmaker from 36 Leather Lane in Holborn
Holborn ( or ) is a district in central London, which covers the south-eastern part of the London Borough of Camden and a part ( St Andrew Holborn Below the Bars) of the Ward of Farringdon Without in the City of London.
The area has its roots ...
, and 254 Oxford Street
Oxford Street is a major road in the City of Westminster in the West End of London, running from Tottenham Court Road to Marble Arch via Oxford Circus. It is Europe's busiest shopping street, with around half a million daily visitors, and as ...
near Grosvenor Square
Grosvenor Square is a large garden square in the Mayfair district of London. It is the centrepiece of the Mayfair property of the Duke of Westminster, and takes its name from the duke's surname "Grosvenor". It was developed for fashionable re ...
, and noted for his 1796 illustrated two-volum"''A Treatise on Carriages; comprehending Coaches, Chariots, Phaetons, Curricles, Gigs, Whiskies, &c Together with their Proper Harness in which the Fair Prices of Every Article are Accurately Stated.''"
William Felton wrote in the book's introduction that he had no literary pretensions, but rather that his aim was to produce an authoritative guide to the construction, maintenance and repair of horse-drawn coaches. The ''Monthly Review'' agreed that it was not a literary masterpiece, but praised it for its encyclopaedic treatment of the subject. ''
The Sporting Magazine
''The Sporting Magazine'' (1793–1870) was the first English sporting periodical to devote itself to every type of sport.
Its subtitle was "Monthly Calendar of the Transactions of the Turf, the Chase and Every Other Diversion Interesting to the ...
'' in its sixth issue was equally complimentary about Felton's ''Treatise''.
Richard Trevithick
Richard Trevithick (13 April 1771 – 22 April 1833) was a British inventor and mining engineer. The son of a mining captain, and born in the mining heartland of Cornwall, Trevithick was immersed in mining and engineering from an early age. He w ...
's 1803 London Steam Carriage
The London Steam Carriage was an early steam-powered road vehicle constructed by Richard Trevithick in 1803 and the world's first self-propelled passenger-carrying vehicle. Cugnot had built a steam vehicle 30 years previously, but that had been ...
was the first steam-powered vehicle designed for transporting passengers around London, but was never a commercial success. The carriage was carried by ship from Falmouth to London and arrived at Felton’s carriage works in Leather Lane in April 1803. Felton constructed the body, designed to accommodate eight people. The driver steered the front wheel using a tiller, with the engineman on a low step behind the coach. In July 1803 it was driven for some ten miles to Paddington
Paddington is an area within the City of Westminster, in Central London. First a medieval parish then a metropolitan borough, it was integrated with Westminster and Greater London in 1965. Three important landmarks of the district are Paddi ...
then back through Islington
Islington () is a district in the north of Greater London, England, and part of the London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's High Street to Highbury Fields, encompassing the ar ...
with 8 passengers, and as a precaution streets were closed to other vehicles. On one of the vehicle's test runs it tore down 7 yards of garden railing, causing London's first motor accident.
In the 1980s full-size replica
of the London steam carriage was constructed. It was driven on the streets of
Camborne
Camborne ( kw, Kammbronn) is a town in Cornwall, England. The population at the 2011 Census was 20,845. The northern edge of the parish includes a section of the South West Coast Path, Hell's Mouth and Deadman's Cove.
Camborne was formerl ...
on 28 April 2001, and in July 2003 retraced some of the original route between the Felton works in Leather Lane and St Cross Street. A plaque marking the route was unveiled. "''William FELTON’s carriage works was close to this spot. In 1803 he built a carriage powered by a steam engine designed and supplied by Richard TREVITHICK, the great Cornish engineer. The carriage made several trips from here with up to about 8 passengers. In July of that year, one trip was made via Greys Inn Lane, Dorset Square and Tottenham Court Road to Paddington, returning the same day via Islington. This was the first self-powered vehicle to run in the streets of London and the world’s first self-powered road people carrier. The London Steam Carriage heralded the age of the car. This plaque was unveiled by Francis Trevithick Okuno, descendant of Richard Trevithick, on July 6th 2003''”.In the 1806 publication "''A List of Bankrupts with their Dividends and Certificates, &c. &c. for the last Twenty Years and Six Months from January 1, 1786 to June 24, 1806 inclusive''", William Felton's name is entered on 3 December 1803. The 1823 edition of "''Kent's Original London Directory''" lists W. J. Felton of 6 Long Acre Street as being a coachmaker.
/ref>
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Felton (coachmaker), William Coachbuilders of the United Kingdom