Present family ownership since 1969 1914 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Silver Ghost...

1914 Rolls-Royce 40/50hp Silver Ghost Sports Tourer
Coachwork by Hooper & Co
Registration no. LO 5850
Chassis no. 48 YB
Engine no. 107.A
• Originally bodied as a tourer by Ferguson's of Belfast
• Present Hooper coachwork fitted in 1922
• Well documented
• Recommissioned by P&A Wood in February 2018, little use since.

This Rolls-Royce Silver Ghost was delivered new on 28th May 1914 and originally bodied as a tourer by J B Ferguson Ltd of Belfast. The current Hooper body was fitted in 1922. First owned by one W Watson, the car passed later in 1914 to T W Laidlaw of Castleknock, Ireland. In 1915 the Rolls-Royce was owned by a Mr Lancaster in Kent and then a Mrs Lancaster of East Sheen. One E Erza of Hove, Sussex owned the car in 1920, and they were followed by Mr R Neale (1957) and then our vendor's father in 1969. The Silver Ghost has remained in the Beck family's ownership ever since. Chassis number '48 YB' is featured in Lawrence Dalton's Those Elegant Rolls-Royce (page 100) while there are notes in the file from The Edwardian Rolls-Royce (page 756).

There is a letter on file dated 2nd July 1969 from R Neale to our vendor's family asking: "I wonder if you may be interested in a 1914 Hooper bodied Silver Ghost... we bought her in 1957". Evidently a deal was concluded between Mr Beck and Mr Neale as a letter on file dated only ten days later confirms that Mr Beck had driven the car home. Mr Beck kept in contact with the Neales over the years.

The car was Mr Beck's pride and joy; he had two other Silver Ghosts but '48 YB' was the favourite. Excursions included a trip to Norway, where the car performed faultlessly, and a trip to Spain. Mr Beck was very involved in the Veteran Car Club and notably the eastern regional chairman of the R-REC until the early 2000s. In 2015, the ownership was transferred into Mr Becks sons' ownership.

The history file contains copy build sheets and detailed accounts of the car returning to the works between 1914 and 1933. There is also a VCC dating letter issued 16th July 1958; various typed notes for the period 1971 to 1978 regarding upkeep and maintenance; and various invoices from Hoffmann & Mountfort for works carried out between 1989 and 1999. Also on file are various event stickers, including '75 Years of the Silver Ghost' (1982) and the VCC Golden Jubilee Rally (1980).

Since 2015 the car has been stored for the vendor and in February 2018 was recommissioned by renowned marque specialists P&A Wood at a cost of £5,993 (see detailed bill on file). There are a number of spares, including the original engine cylinder blocks (top cracked) and several sundry spares in storage at P&A Wood, which will be collected at the successful purchaser's expense. Since 2018 the Ghost has been back in secure storage. Offered from a five-decade long ownership, this example now presents a new owner with a wonderful opportunity to take over custodianship of this important 1914 Silver Ghost.