Part of Milntown Estate’s vintage vehicle collection visited London
Marking the New Orleans Voiturette 125th anniversary in July, a selection of volunteers from the Milntown Estate travelled to Twickenham, where it was manufactured, and proudly displayed the car at St Margaret’s Fair.
With the support and consent of the Milntown Trust (who are charged with safeguarding the Milntown Estate and its contents), the team were able to hire a van large enough to transport the vintage vehicle safely down to London for the occasion.
The car itself is one of only five still existing of its type, built during the reign of Queen Victoria in 1900 at the Twickenham premises on Orleans Road. Though it is one of five remaining, this specific vehicle is even more unique as it is the only surviving twin cylinder model with an additional “dickery” seat.
The Isle of Man Steam Packet provided a generous discount for the journey, and the team were able to highlight our wonderful Island with promotional materials encouraging guests to consider visiting the Isle of Man in the future.
Only three of the five New Orleans made the event on the day, but the cars themselves proved a real crowd pleaser.
Andrew Kelsey, volunteer mechanic at Milntown, said: ‘The Fair draws a very large crowd of all ages – many with small families – and the cars attracted a lot of interest, especially when the engines were started up.’
‘The volunteers were surrounded by people asking questions all day – and not just about the cars as the Manx flags, bunting and banners promoting the Steam Packet and Milntown prompted a great deal of interest in the Isle of Man.’
The Milntown New Orleans car is now safely back on display at Milntown Estate in Lezayre and continues to be maintained by the team of wonderful volunteers for the visiting members of the public to enjoy at leisure.
The vintage vehicle volunteer team are on site every Wednesday afternoon for guests to learn even more about the cars themselves.
Steam Packet – The Isle of Man Holiday Guide 2025 | Steam Packet | Steam Packet
St Margarets Fair – St Margarets Fair