Black Country Museum Displays Vintage Motorbikes
Motorcycles from 1920s on Exhibit at English Historical Site
Jun 18, 2009
The Black Country Museum is a recreation of a 1930s West Midlands coal mining village. This living history museum features an underground coal mine tour, a fairgrounds with carnival rides, a typical mining village with shops and homes, and a transport museum. This museum is the first exhibit after leaving the main entrance hall.
Black Country Museum Exhibits Old Motorcycles
There’s even an old motorcycle at the entrance to the main building. It’s a Rockson from the 1920s. It has a belt drive and short spokes holding up the belt. The belt drive also serves as the rear brake.
Also inside the main building is a 1916 AJS. Very few of this 550cc, twin engine motorcycle were made.
The building signed “AJS Motor Co.” can be found just to the left of the main building. It houses cars, bicycles and motorcycles from that era. The motorcycles featured are only those made in the Birmingham area from 1919 until the early 1930s. The Birmingham area was an important manufacturing center for powered vehicle during that time.
Black Country Museum Has Many AJS Bikes
There’s a 1927 AJS H7 350cc motorcycle with an overhead cam and exposed drive. There’s also a 1931 AJS v-twin with side valves.
The museum is heavy on AJS motorcycles because they were made in nearby Wolverhampton. AJS also made cars, but in 1931, the motorcycle manufacturing side of the business was sold to Matchless. The Stevens family started out as a manufacturer of screws, with AJS being founded in 1909 to manufacture motorcycles. The first models were successful as racers, and by 1931 had set 117 world records.
Vintage Cars On Display, Too
Cars also are on display at the Black Country Museum, including a 1931 Star Comet which sold for £448 at a time when a new house cost £200. That’s more than $33,000 in today’s dollars! This restored vehicle was sold to a buyer in Shanghai.
The transport building also houses some early bicycles as well as a 1924 fire engine.
Black Country Museum Open Daily in Summer
The Black Country Museum is located in the West Midlands town of Dudley, on Tipton Road about a mile from the town center. Take bus number 126 from central Birmingham or anywhere along Edgbaston Road; this is a flag stop so be sure to ask the bus driver to stop there.
Admission is £12.95 (US$19.50) for adults and £6.95 (US$11) for children. Discounts are available for senior citizens and families. The museum is open daily, from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m., March through October. It is closed on Mondays and Tuesdays the rest of the year when open hours are 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
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