PLAISTOWE Hugh
Another Business he was involved with. 
CONNECTION WITH LATIL TRUCKS   NEW

This article is from information supplied by motoring historian John Parker about the very rare Latil Trucks.

The author knew that some Latils had been sold in Perth, for c1915+ they were sold by Motor Vehicles Ltd 1924-1938. Mr E W Tomlinson advertised in Perth’s 16 October 1924 Motorist & Wheelman, p24 (during which time he was friendly with Hugh Plaistowe of Plaistowe's Confectionary firm in West Perth). The contact address he cited was C/o of this confectionery firm - selling Latil commercial chassis [with front-wheel drive].

From 1925 til 1928, the confectioners Plaistowe & Co of Havelock St, Perth, owned a ‘Latille’ wagon with P1302 registration, and it appears, also a second ‘Latille’ wagon with a P 9353 registration plate.
 

LATIL COMPANY LOGO           #1
 

The author then contacted Hugh Plaistowe (Jnr) who said, “Yes, my dad and Ernie Tomlinson were friends - I recall Tomlinsons having delivery vans and a 10-ton truck but that would have been a long time after any connection with those 1920s Latil trucks you speak of.  In the 1829-1890 period, the large, private family-owned firms in Perth like Boans, Bunnings, Bairds, etc, worked together with each taking shares in the others companies so as to prevent hostile takeovers from outside.  They were members, too, of Perth’s exclusive clubs like the Weld Club in Barrack Street.” 

LATIL TRUCK TOWING WAGON                  #2
 

The Latil firm, founded in 1897, designed and built various vehicles (including colonial chassis). Auguste Latil (1878-1961) was a Marseille engineer, who exploited the idea of such a vehicle with the company ‘Avant-Train-Latil.’ The manufacturing and marketing was done by various firms - finally, Brimont SA.I
n 1897, Latil patented the principle of a transmission to operate wheels which both drove and steered, in a process called ‘the Avant-Train Latil.’ A year later, he began to build cars and develop front-wheel drive on the Blum-Latil truck.
A little research on the Net has shown that Michel Le Clerk in France has discovered a c1912 C2 Latil and intends restoring it.  Perhaps it will mean an interesting article for this magazine down the track a little.

In 1963, the forges and workshops of Le Creusot-Loire and the Schneider factory joined forces to form the Latil Batignolles Co, to acquire the rights and commercialize Latil agricultural and forestry tractors. The new firm also manufactured a forklift model called Armax.
In 1974, Marcel Brimont of Reims-Prunay of Brimont SA (125km east of Paris), took control of the new company. Then, in 1993, Brimont stopped building forest tractors.
 

WA auto historian, Eddie Rigg (dec), said,Millars Timber & Trading Company had two front-wheel, front-wheel-steering versions of these trucks.

The Allens family of Bruce Rock had a Latil truck on their farm in the Twenties-Thirties period. John spoke with Perth old vehicle enthusiast, Dacre Allen, about his family’s having had a French-built Latil truck on its Bruce Rock, WA, wheat and sheep farm in the Teens, “Were they rare here then? Yes, indeed - very rare!”  He was interested in my knowledge of such trucks.

THE ALLEN FAMILIY'S LATIL TRUCK TOWING WAGON                  #3
 

THE ALLEN FAMILIY'S LATIL TRUCK TOWING WAGON                  #4
 

This leviathan had a front-wheel-drive four-wheel steering with the engine and gearbox system under a mammoth bonnet.  They towed a trailer which still sits on the Bruce Rock farm. Sadly, there are no remains left today of this unique, and exceedingly rare, truck. Recent research has shown that the truck was, possibly, a TL Type - the five louvres on the side of the bonnet and towards the outside rear, and the exceedingly high firewall-dashboard seem to match. In the last decade, the author has been given a photograph of a 5-6-ton Latil wagon taken on a Bruce Rock farm during the 1920s. It has the typical, sloped ‘coal-scuttle’ bonnet we associate with French vehicles, although it may have been of British ‘birth.’
Of recent times, Dacre Allen has re-visited the farm and found the trailer that is shown in the two photos on a neighbours farm and the Latil at work on the farm. 

Every endeavour has been made to accurately record the details however if you would like to provide additional images and/or newer information we are pleased to update the details on this site. Please use CONTACT at the top of this page to email us. We appreciate your involvement in recording the history of our area.

References:                 Article:      Gordon Freegard
                                                 John Parker
                                                 
                                                

                                 Images:    Internet            1
                                                  John Parker    2, 3 4

Copyright : Gordon Freegard 2008-2025