From the archives of Bob Montgomery, motoring historian
MR PEARE'S GARAGE: Often incorrectly claimed to be the first garage in Ireland - that distinction went to The Northern Motor Company of Belfast in 1899 - the garage of W F 'Bill' Peare in Waterford was more correctly the first "purpose-built" garage in Ireland. It was founded in 1900 when Bill Peare went into partnership with a prominent Waterford businessman, Sir William Goff.
Peare had previously been in business with Billy Meredith, a crack racing cyclist of the time, and in 1898 had imported a De Dion motor tricycle with which he gained his first experience of motoring.
The title "garage" was just then coming into use, having been taken from the French and meaning a place where cars are "looked after."
Shortly after the establishment of the business, the company imported its first car, a De Dion for Sir William. The company also imported a Milnes-Daimler with tube ignition during that first year.
In those early days, Peare's were often called upon to do much work no longer undertaken by garages. They cast their own gear-boxes and often made their own replacement parts.
Much of their work was a matter of trial and error as there was often no precedent to go on. For example, in hardening gear cases, they used a mixture containing horse hoof clippings from a nearby forge mixed together with tar.
Peare's gained a reputation as "car-doctors" and were often wired for advice by a motorist stranded in some out-of-the-way part of the island. Two of the party out mapping the Gordon Bennett course in 1903 wired back to Peare's for instructions on how to start their engine. "Apply hot formentations to carburettor" came back the reply, which apparently did the trick!
In 1913, Peare's opened a branch in Cork but the harsh economic conditions of the war years forced the company into liquidation in 1917. During the years of its existence, Peare's handled what seems today a bewildering range of makes including: De Dion, Daimler, Oldsmobile, Gladiator, Vulcan, Sizaire-Nauden, Delaunay-Bellville, Napier, Bedford-Buick, Cadillac, Darracq and De Dietrich. They also sold Stanley and White steam cars.
Bill Peare, pioneer garage owner, died in 1948.
STOP, THIEF! In June 1896, while it was undergoing repairs at its makers, the Peugeot of Baron de Zuylen was stolen by a mechanic employed at the factory. The thief and vehicle, having set a regrettable precedent, were later apprehended at Asniéres.
MATCH THAT! Production of motor vehicles was begun in France in 1892 by the Paris firm of Panhard et Levassor, followed soon afterwards by Peugeot. To give some idea of the scale of early motor manufacture, the total output of the French motor industry in 1900 was 1,500 vehicles, with the vast majority of them produced by six companies: De Dion (400); Peugeot (350); Panhard (300); Georges Richard (150); De Dietrich (150) and Mors (100).
From this it can be seen that even in France, then the greatest car-producing country in the world, the motor car remained a rare thing.
Interestingly, French motorcycle production in the same year reached 4,000, while the total value of the motor industry's exports was €490,000. By 1903, France was producing nearly three times as many cars (30,204) as its nearest rival, the US (11,235) , and half of the total world production of 61,927 vehicles.