Cobber's 1936 ( actually built 1933/34 ) PLYWOOD Caravan

[Gypsy 10]

Truly amazing

[Roehm3108]

Wow cobber AFter starting to think that it was getting a bit uninteresting on the forum, how good is that story! And thanks to DonR for his magnificent sleuthing skills. So, after chatting with the rellies, are you game enough to date the van any earlier than 1936? Wouldn't it be great to know the exact year of build!!!

Regardless, even this information is terrific news for us all.

[Don Ricardo]

G’day Cobber,

I’m so glad you’ve had the opportunity to meet Karen. I’m over the moon that we’ve been able to track down the origins of Ol ‘36 at last. And so amazing that it was built not too far from your patch too. Just goes to show that Facebook has some value after all, even though I’m sometimes a bit of a skeptic!

Such a great coincidence that the van spent time at Coledale with the Barlow family. Did the van always feel more ‘at home’ when you took it to Coledale?

Now the question of the moment...

Are you going to re-christen “Ol ‘36” as “Ol ‘32” or “Ol ‘33”?

All of this certainly cements Ol ‘36 - ‘33 - ‘32’s place as one of the half dozen (or fewer?) earliest Australian caravans still in existence. Given that Ern Barlow didn’t have a lot of other examples to work off, the design and workmanship in the van marks him out as a real craftsman.

This is a fabulous development in the story of your van, and I’m really tickled to have been a bit player in it.

Don Ricardo

[cobber]

Thanks fellas 😉,

It is hard to tell who is the most excited Derk, me or the family.
You realise they had never seen the actual caravan before but when they did, and sat inside it they recognised every thing, the stained timber, the slide down table, the wardrobe and most importantly the slide out cooker cabinet. They had listened to their mother Jean reminiscing about it and the places she had been in it over and over for years they had almost stopped listening, they now wish they had asked more questions. I wish I had been able to show it to her a few years ago before she passed away in 2017.

There is no doubt Ray that the van was built and in use before 1936. There is a little bit of ambiguity about when Ern started and finished the build. It is thought that it took him a year or maybe two to complete the job but Jean always said she was travelling in it when she was 10 years of age.

It is great Don R that Ol '36 now has some provenance eh? We thank you for making it possible.😘
When we took her to Coledale she was amassed at the number of other caravans that were there, previously she said, she was the only caravan to be seen when she went places. Don't know that I'll re-christen her until somebody else gets an older van on the road and skites about it 😜
You are right, she was born in Lidcombe and I was born in Auburn, the very next suburb in 1938.

In fact I now recall my mother standing on our front verandah nursing me in her arms when she suddenly said " oh look Cobber darling there goes a loverly caravan being towed by an A model Ford" ... I thought to myself " when I get bigger I would like to buy a caravan like that" ..... in 2006 I saw that very same caravan in a shed at Rossmore, the very next door suburb to where I live, Leppington. It was for sale so I bought it..... a boyhood dream come true 😘🙄😁😁😉

Cobber.

[thegeneral]

Great stuff Mr Ricardo , a great bit of sleuth work one mistake not a" bit part" but a BIG PART,
Now we've read the book when is the movie coming ?
Graeme

[Franklin1]

G'day Cobber,

Congratulations on a truly remarkable discovery! And congratulations to former Senior Detective (now Chief Inspector) Don Ricardo for his super-sleuthing skills in "joining the dots".

Such a shame to find out the lady connected with the van was still around up until a couple of years ago. Imagine how many pipes you could have shared with her over the previous 10 years, as you collected all her memories of the history of the van.

This discovery would have to be one of the best Fathers Day presents you've been given??

cheers,

Al.

[cobber]

G'day Graeme and Al,

You want a movie Graeme ? I would have been satisfied with a diary written at the time they were doing these pioneering journeys. I imagine they would have run up dead ends, got bogged occasionally and Ern would have had that rifle to provide fresh rabbit for dinner down at the Coxs River.

You'r right Al, over the past ten years the old van would have brought back a host of memories.
And DCI Don Ricardo did do well on this case but he now has to devote himself to the investigation of the cold case of Driftwoods origins 😉

Cobber.

[DC3Td]

Fantastic news Cobber & Congratulations to all concerned in unearthing the history behind a truly iconic vintage caravan.

[Jennison]

Well done Richard you’ve done the impossible again and what a buzz for you Cobber. Hope we can catch up in SA next year at the Nats
If not the oldest we know of it must be the oldest registered and still on the road?
Best regards
Jenno

[tonyy]

I've read this whole thread, it was so riveting.

Well done Cobber.
Tonyy

[cobber]

G'day Tony, Pleased you enjoyed the 13 year journey I've had with this old van, thanks for you comment.

Over the 15 years this forum has been running there have been many inspiring rescues it is hard to pick the best ones but one that gave many of us goosebumps was this one of surf tragics see what you think of it 😉

Cobber.

[collyn]

Am urgently seeking a high- definition front cover pic for a new book on self-building a light single axle caravan. If anyone can help I'd appreciate their aid.

Collyn

[cobber]

G’day Collyn,

I have sent you a PM.😉

Cobber.

[cobber]

We recently received a very special gift, again courtesy of Don Ricardo.

He contacted me during the auction, in aid of local charities, being held at the 2021 Nationals held at Victor Harbour Holliday Park to let me know there was a wall clock in the auction that had a painting of my Ol’ 33/34..36 caravan and ‘55 FJ Holden on it, did I want to put a bid on it ?
During a telephone hookup Don R placed the winning bid on my behalf, he then enticed many of the wonderful people we have become friends with on the forum to post greetings on the back of the clock, including the artist who did the art work and was attending the Nationals, Susan Hensal ( the painting was inspired I think by a photo taken by Keith & Susan Hall on the now defunct “Some Where Else” site)
Thanks for doing the art work and submitting the clock for auction Susan, and a big thank you to the great people who left messages on the back of the clock.

And a big thank you to Richard Don Ricardo....... for everything.

Cobber Bob & Yvonne.







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[cobber]

Another surprise gift, we received sometime ago, was from Karen the granddaughter of the bloke who built Ol’ 36 in 1933/34 (see the relevant posts starting at the end of page 5 on this thread).

She went to the trouble of knitting car and caravan in the image of Ol’ 36 and posting them to us, an indication of how pleased she is that her grandfathers caravan is still alive.





Cobber.

[cobber]

Another photo turned up today. 09/03/2022 .
What is interesting is I can’t see evidence of a front window. It is thought this is a very early photo of the van showing colour over the entire side and the complete waistline stripe whereas the photo that started all this excitement shows part of the side in a different colour,
Maybe it was built without a window at the front and one was added later ?








Cobber.

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Cobber,

That's another fascinating insight into the history of Ol' 33/34. You're gradually piecing it together. 

Apart from the lack of a front window, I can't see any sign of the lantern roof in this photo, although perhaps it's because the top of the photo is not visible? Either way that suggests that the van was a 'work in progress' and evolved over a period of time as Ern Barlow improved the design as he went along based on using the van in real life on the road.

Where did this photo pop up from?

Don Ricardo

[cobber]

G’day Richard,

The photo was sent to me by Karen, they are in the process of moving house at the moment so when they are settled i’ll get a better copy, the copy I received shows a tiny bit more towards the top and there is evidence of the lantern roof but not all of it. She found it towards the front of an album so suggests it was taken early in the vans life.

Cobber.

[Don Ricardo]

Hi Cobber,

That's interesting to know that you can see the lantern roof in the photo. That means that Ern grafted the front window into that. That's a nice effort, but then he was a craftsman.

If the new photo you have is from a photo album, Karen may be able to narrow down the dates for your van if she knows enough about the photos in the album?

Don Ricardo

[cobber]

Aug 25, 2019 10:25:46 GMT 10 cobber said:

 
          BREAKING NEWS !!

At long last, after 13 years in my possession the pioneering craftsman who built Ol '36 has been identified 😀😀
Due entirely to the dedication and skill of Detective chief inspector Don Ricardo of the 'Anything to do with vintage caravans squad' who noticed a post on the "Australia Remember When" Facebook site and recognised the photos likeness to Ol'36.
He contacted the author and much has been learned.
Thank you Don Ricardo 😘👍👌😎

This is the post DCI Ricardo noticed on the 'Australia remember when' Facebook site

Karen xxxxxxxx
This is one my grandfather built in 1930 down the side of the house in Lidcombe NSW, they went everywhere in it most weekends and holidays and towed with the trusty Model A Ford and then upgraded to the Standard Ford. My mum grew up with enjoying this with her younger brother and talked about it constantly, all good memories and holidays are spent in caravans
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Karen

After contacting Karen, who was very excited to hear her grandfathers caravan was still alive, here is some of what we have learned.

The van was built by Ernest (Ern) Walter Barlow (b.4/08/1899 d.31/01/1971 ) at Lidcombe NSW during the early 1930s and Karen's mother Jean definitely remembered first holidaying in the van when she was 10 or 11 years of age i.e. 1933/34 ( she was born in 1923 and died at the age of 94 in 2017 )


An enlargement of that photo, it is not know when the original photo was taken 😟


The holidays they enjoyed in those early days were not extensive, remember these were the Great Depression years, they traveled mostly on weekends to places like Fitzroy Falls, COLEDALE BEACH ! Richmond and Penrith where they free camped beside the river. Ern, who was a skilled professional furniture maker had also made a canoe that was carried on top of the A model Ford.
They also spent many school holidays on the Coxs River between Katoomba and Oberon and travelled and free camped along the Bells Line of road.
Ern served in the AIF during the later years of WW I after he turned 18, at the time he was doing his Joiners apprenticeship.
During and after WWII the caravan did not get a lot of use due to petrol price and rationing.
This is Ern and Karen's uncle Bruce on the Coxs River.


Here we have Ern, Karen's mother Jean and the younger brother Bruce, not real sure where or when the photo was taken.


The van was sold to the Lidcombe Bowling Club about 1968 ( the latest rego label on the van is 1961 ) where it went after that is not known, I tend to think it was not re-registered before I bought it in 2006.

We recently enjoyed a visit from Karen her husband Ross and brother Geoff who were thrilled to see the caravan they had heard so much about over the years, inside it was exactly as it had been described to them, including the slide out cooker cabinet 😎
They brought with them the only other photo showing the caravan they can find at the moment, note the awning and the A model ford.



A very happy Cobber 👌

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[Franklin1]

G'day cobber, this would have to be one of the most amazing updates posted on the forum!! Well done to "Super Sleuth" Don Ricardo, and well done to you for being able to have more pieces of the puzzle.

Ol'36 is even older! In less than 10 years, the van will be a genuine antique (Get it on the Antique Roadshow!)

Wonderful update to a wonderful caravan!!

cheers,
Al.

[cobber]

Gee Al I didn’t intend for this post to be regenerated, I was actually trying to print it out and didn’t think I had modified it in any way but for some reason it has appeared as ‘the most recent post’. Some people will accuse me of being an incurable skite. 🙁

Cobber 😡