The motoring industry accelerated in Aberdeen in the post-war years, and where there were cars, there needed to be garages.
From the fledgling days when motor power replaced horse power, to the boom times of Aberdeen in the 1970s, the city’s garages have been quick to move with the times.
Whether it was a pitstop to fill up on North Anderson Drive before heading north, or the exciting purchase of a first car, Aberdonians will remember these familiar names in the motor trade.
1959: Station Garage, Rennie’s Wynd
Rennie’s Wynd was the place to go for a new motor in Aberdeen after the Cordiner brothers bought over the Station Garage in 1959.
The £50,000 buyout was described as “the biggest deal in the history of the motor business in Aberdeen” at the time.
The Cordiners were Aberdeen’s principal dealers in Ford motorcars and already had a garage in Menzies Road, Torry.
The firm started off repairing one car a day, but by 1959 were selling 2000 cars a year, forcing the brothers to acquire additional garage premises.
The street view looks very different today – most of the buildings were raised to the ground to make way for the Trinity Centre development.
1965: James Wilson & Sons, John Street
Not strictly a car garage, but this impressive fleet of vehicles belonged to James Wilson and Sons, one of Aberdeen’s biggest grocers and agriculture merchants.
The firm started at 48 Netherkirkgate, but business boomed when Mr Wilson realised there was money to be had in providing hay for the city’s working horses.
The business moved to Schoolhill in 1871, with its horses’ stables at premises in nearby John Street.
As the years rolled by, horses were replaced by the motor car. The stables were knocked down and in their place a garage was built to house the firm’s 12 delivery vehicles.
The photograph above was taken to mark the occasion of James Wilson and Son’s centenary in 1965.
1967: Town & County Garage, Justice Mill Lane
The Town and County Garage was the latest word in ultramodern mechanics in 1967 when it unveiled its expanded premises at 19 Justice Mill Lane.
The extended garage included a wide drive-in forecourt to allow easy access to the pumps, as well as a new parts department and the latest flow-line servicing system.
The sleek, new building was the result of an £85,000 revamp and was branded ‘the north of Scotland’s most modern British Motor Corporation service and sales centre’.
The first garage opened in 1903, and famously supplied petrol to drivers 24 hours a day, 365 days a year – even during wartime – well ahead of the supermarkets today.
1970: A&D Fraser, Affleck Street
This grand old lady stole the show and brought the elegance of a bygone era to A&D Fraser’s Affleck Street showroom in 1970.
The 1932 dark blue Morris 10 was taken out of early retirement after spending 37 years forlorn and forgotten.
She was discovered hidden in a lock-up in the West End of Aberdeen having only been run for two years in the 1930s.
A&D Fraser brought life back to the little blue motor, which had just 193 miles on the clock – the equivalent distance of travelling from Aberdeen to Auldearn and back.
Her V5C logbook hasn’t been updated since 1984 – where has she spent the last 39 years?
1973: Blue Star Garage, Great Northern Road
The busy Blue Star Garage at 565 North Anderson Drive underwent a big revamp in 1973.
It’s always been a handy pitstop for motorists heading north, but is better known these days as the Esso petrol station near the Haudagain Roundabout.
The modernisation saw improved facilities including better lighting for 24-hour fueling, while new pumps offered punters four grades of petrol to suit all budgets: Regular, Super, Economy Super and Supreme.
The Blue Star Garage was run by a trio of women – supervisor Nora Morrison, Mrs Alexander and Mrs Marr – and boasted an ‘Aladdin’s Cave’ of gifts in its shop.
As well as keeping drivers topped up with fuel, those after a new car could visit the glass-fronted showroom – day or night – thanks to the new night sales office.
1975: Callanders, Great Northern Road
Callanders Autoport on Great Northern Road fell foul of the Presbyterian Free Church for opening on Sundays in 1975.
Sales manager George Meldrum received a strongly-worded letter from the church’s Perth-based Sabbath Observance Committee.
The Reverand Ian Tallach accused the garage of “a flagrant violation of the Fourth Commandment” adding that “to trade on the Lord’s Day is to contribute to our moral slide”.
George said: “I was pretty surprised when I opened the letter, especially as it came from Perth and we have never had any complaints from local churches.
“Of course, the Church is entitled to its point of view, but Sundays is a very good business day for us.”
1981: Overton Garage, Dyce
Sadly not all cars are loved and cherished forever.
Those that reached the end of the road in Aberdeen likely ended up at Overton Garage in Dyce.
Owned by businessman Sandy Dalgarno, it was one of the biggest scrapyards in the country.
This bird’s eye view of the site in 1981 shows almost 2000 vehicles and shells.
A new crusher installed at Overton Garage made light work of flattening cars to bales just a few inches high, ready for exporting to Poland.
Overton Automotive still exists in Dyce today as car breakers, recycling and dismantling vehicles.
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