Getting steamed up in Cambridge
Cheffins has appointed Willem Middlemiss as Specialist Steam Consultant in a move to further strengthen their position as the UK’s leading auctioneers and valuers of steam engines.
His role is to roam the UK searching out traditional steam engines – those huge machines which worked on farms, road building, quarries, road haulage and at funfairs before the internal combustion engine consigned them to misty memory.
The highest price ever paid at auction for a steam engine was achieved by Cheffins seven years ago with £320,000 for a Charles Burrell built in 1920. This was an example of the traditional showman’s road engines which powered old merry-go-rounds. Today, claims Cheffins’ Chairman Bill King, it would make at least half-a-million pounds.
A year ago, Cheffins achieved a world record price of £250,000 for a pair of 120 year old John Fowler 14 NHP single cylinder ploughing engines – nearly double their guide price.
Bill King says:”Cheffins moved heavily into vintage machinery sales during a serious outbreak of foot and mouth disease in late 1960s – our livestock markets in Ely, Cambridge and Saffron Walden were knocked out of action for more than six months and we needed to fill the gap in our income. It was a form of diversity which today contributes significantly to our income and has led us to becoming the leading vintage machinery auctioneers. Each year we run 20 auctions across the UK in addition to our three times yearly vintage auctions at Sutton, near Ely, and one each at Harrogate and Bristol.”
They not only sell steam engines at auction but also value them for probate, insurance and balance sheet requirements.
Willem Middlemiss has witnessed the steam preservation movement since its inception, firstly as a boy in the late fifties accompanying his father, the late Dr John Middlemiss, himself a pioneer preservationist and noted steam engine historian to the earliest rallies. More recently, he has been a well known figure in his own right with his famous Burrell Showman’s 'Nero', which he has restored and owned for over twenty years.
Willem acquired his first engine, a rare 'N' type Fowler roller as a teenager in 1964 directly from the contractor H F Smith of Hexham, Northumberland for the princely sum of £75.
While at school and Leeds University, Willem carried out much restoration on the engine. After a spell working for the London Museum as an archaeological illustrator and research associate, he soon decided that he wanted to work for himself, opening his first restaurant in Norwich in 1979. His career in catering was to last over 25 years, having recently sold the last of his four Cambridgeshire businesses after returning to the family base of Godmanchester in the mid-nineties.
His interest in classic and vintage machinery also extends to classic cars, having owned several including two E Type Jaguars and a prize winning XK 120 Drophead Coupe. His first love, however, has always been in traction engines and over the last 40 years has gained a wealth of knowledge and experience as well as a substantial historic archive and photographic library.
There are around 3,000 road steam engines in the UK with a vast following – owners and purchasers are a diverse group – Cheffins’ clients include a High Court judge, a molecular scientist, lawyers and accountants, and, of course, farmers, haulage contractors and many others. Many are also from outside the UK.
In the recent times the economic uncertainty has persuaded many investors to buy into tangible assets which can also be enjoyed for their own sake.
Cheffins next steam and vintage auction is at their Sutton saleground, near Ely, on 17 October.
CONTACT DETAILS
WILLEM MIDDLEMISS: 07801 229129. Email: willem.middle@btconnect.com
BILL KING: 01223 271956. EMAIL: william.king@cheffins.co.uk
