[Healeys] Healey Archive at Warwick needs support

[josef-eckert at t-online.de]

Healey Archive at Warwick needs support

 

Josef Eckert

Germany

 

 

 

 

Bid for Healey history motors gains international support


Warwickshire’s bid to buy and preserve over 70 years worth of Warwick 
Healey’s motor car history has gained international support to help raise 
thousands of pounds.

The Warwickshire County Record Office wants to buy the Warwick Healey Motor 
Company Archive to preserve and restore items and ensure they remain 
available for public viewing.

 
Keith Bates from A Head 4 Healeys presenting a cheque to Rob Eyre, Senior 
Archivist at Warwickshire County Record Office. Images taken from the 
Warwick Healey Motor Company Archive


The motorcar archives, which are publicly available in Warwick where the 
company was born, have been offered to the county office for sale. But they 
may be split up and sold off at private auctions if the deal does not go 
through.

The record office has now launched a fundraising campaign to raise £120,000 
to preserve the archive - and it already has already attracted support from 
the Austin Healey Club USA which will feature the campaign in the new year 
edition of its magazine.

The magazine’s global readership of enthusiasts are keen to see the 
historical collection remain in public hands and it is hoped the exposure 
will help draw in funds.

The iconic car company was founded in Warwick in 1945 by Donald Healey - a 
successful car designer and rally driver.


His business focused on producing expensive, high quality, high performance 
cars and was based in an old aircraft components factory off Miller Road. 
He later had a showroom in Emscote Road which was demolished and the block 
of flats on the site is commemoratively named Healey Court.


As fundraising continues, Kate Healey, granddaughter of the famous company 
founder, has spoken of her desire to see the archive kept in its birthplace 
for continued public enjoyment.

She said: “It was a big decision for us to find the best home for this 
collection which our father saved.

“We are sure this is the best place for it as it can be viewed by everyone 
equally for free in perpetuity. It goes without saying that it was also the 
birthplace of the cars.
 

 

Gerry Coker's original design for the winged badge used on the Healey 100. 
Images taken from the Warwick Healey Motor Company Archive


To date, the county record office has raised £17,750 towards the bid with 
help from groups including the Friends of the National Libraries and King 
Henry VIII Trust.

There are also planned bids of £72,500 to come from the Heritage Lottery 
Fund.

The Friends of Warwickshire County Record Office hope to raise an initial 
£9,000 in private donations to help save this unique piece of Britain’s 
motor and design history.

But the team is still £30,000 short of making the sale to secure the 
collection - and are appealing for public donations to help.


Read more: 
http://healey.hyperboards.com/action/view_topic/topic_id/4681/latest/1#ixzz3ybzg6iUc
<http://healey.hyperboards.com/action/view_topic/topic_id/4681/latest/1#ixzz3ybzg6iUc>



 

 

The extensive collection contains more than 20 boxes of material including 
early research and development designs, business records, letters detailing 
the company’s involvement in motor racing and test results for land speed 
records.

The collection also includes numerous photographs of various Healey models 
including action shots and celebrities.

If the collection remained in Warwick under county ownership, it would also 
be made available for public research and use by schools to inspire 
generations of engineers.

If enough money can be raised, the items would also be digitalised to allow 
for greater international exposure.

Speaking about the need to raise enough money to preserve the archive, 
county councillor Jeff Clarke, portfolio holder for the environment, said: 
“Warwickshire’s industrial heritage is something to shout about.

“The Healey brand is known throughout the world and deserves celebration 
here too. This project has already attracted international attention. We 
need to build on that to secure Warwickshire’s reputation as a great place 
for business.”
To make a donation, visit or send a cheque payable to Friends of the 
Warwickshire County Record Office to the office in Priory Park, Cape Road, 
Warwick CV34 4JS, or via heritage.warwickshire.gov.uk


Read more: 
http://healey.hyperboards.com/action/view_topic/topic_id/4681/latest/1#ixzz3ybz13y9a
<http://healey.hyperboards.com/action/view_topic/topic_id/4681/latest/1#ixzz3ybz13y9a>

 

-------------- next part --------------
An HTML attachment was scrubbed...
URL: <http://autox.team.net/pipermail/healeys/attachments/20160129/82b45a66/attachment.html>