Updated 15th February 2022

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This records my latest Tyzack family investigations and findings. Please let me know if you come across any new facts.

 Send to don@tyzack.net  

Working in Old Street


Dear Don,

In 1961 I went to England for a working holiday, while there I worked for eighteen months as a fitter for S. Tyzack and Sons in their Old Street workshop. After which I returned to Australia. The following is a list of the workshop staff that I can remember.

  • Bill Hayles, the workshop manager.
  • George Price, the workshop foreman.
  • Bill Price, leading hand fitter.
  • Bill Batt, leading hand turner.
  • Derek Curtis, fitter.
  • Alan King, 4th year apprentice turner.
  • Taffy, he operated the shapers
  • and an older turner named Alf.
While I was there I worked with Bill Price making the 16 inch Universal Saw Bench's with a 12 inch planer and mortise attachment.
Derek Curtis built the smaller 10 inch bench saws. I have fond memories of my time at Tyzacks' and was pleased to come across your website while browsing the web.
When I returned to Australia I could not afford to send my tools home. Like most young blokes, saving did not rate highly on the priority list. I think the cost was around twenty six pounds. That doesn't sound much today, but that was about two weeks wages in those days. So all I could do was to go round the workshop selling them to the boys.
Bill the manager found out and very generously had my tools sent to Sydney for no charge.

Yours Faithfully

Bob Heath





 

Tyzack Bay


Sometime in April 2005 I came across a place called Tyzack Bay. It is situated in some remote islands in the Antarctic Ocean. Naturally I have tried to find how they became so named. Unfortunately some French mapmakers changed the name around 1915 because they thought the name sounded of German origin. Strangely they changed it to Le Verrier Baie, not after the glassmaking Tyzacks but after a French astronomer.

Although discovered first by Kerguelen in 1772, I suspect Captain Rhodes probably named them when he spent eight months mapping the islands in 1799. Perhaps there was a Tyzack abord his ship the Hillsborough.

I have e-mailed the administrator who could not give me the source of the name. There has been some research done on the names of all the islands but it is too vague.

If anyone discovers anything I should be very pleased to hear.


kerguelen



Latitude: 49° 7' 0 S
Longitude : 69° 34' 60 E
(Degrees, minutes and seconds)

Kerguelen Islands

Volcanic archipelago in the Indian Ocean, part of the French Southern and Antarctic Territories; area 7,215 km/2,787 sq mi. They were discovered in 1772 by the Breton navigator Yves de Kerguelen and annexed by France in 1949. Uninhabited except for scientists (centre for joint study of geomagnetism with Russia), the islands support a unique wild cabbage containing a pungent oil.



Tyzack Bay



 

The Cyclecar (Published 1912)

A Correspondent on the Internet has just sent me this piece which relates to Raymond Tyzack, grandson of William Alexander who founded one of the tool companies.

Tyzack Car

Ingenious Transmission by a Youth of 16.

 

Having seen the description in THE CYCLECAR of a cyclecar built by a boy of 16, I enclose a photo and description of one built and designed by myself, who am the same age. Up to the introduction of the well-known Bedelia, I had been interested in motorcycling in general, and since the cyclecar seemed within my reach, I decided to design one. At the time I was only 14 years old, but found plenty of friends willing to give me their advice, among them being Mr. H. F. S. Morgan. The design finally settled on I will endeavour to explain.

 

The frame is made of ash, armoured where it was thought necessary. Between the engine cradle plates and the frame are flat rubber vibration absorbers. The power is transmitted from a flat 5 in. pulley on the engine shaft, through a 2½ in: by ¼ in. flat solid leather belt to the countershaft, which is in two parts and run on four ball bearings. There are three pulleys on the countershaft to take the drive from the engine and two V pulleys, with a Whittle belt to take the drive to the back wheels. The centre pulley gives free engine position, the one on either side drives respectively either wheel. As the two V pulleys are of different size, it follows that, by shifting the engine belt from one to the other of the flat pulleys, a high or low gear is obtained. The striker for moving the flat belt over the three pulleys is connected to a T pedal on the footboards, which makes rather a neat and handy control, as the high and low gears and clutch are all operated by the feet, leaving the hands for steering and the side brake. I believe the transmission is now used on the Glover cyclecars, but as I am not in the trade, and have no thoughts of being so at present, I feel sure this concern will not accuse me of infringing their patents. R. Tyzack .

Sheffield.

Tyzack Car


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