Rally Cancellation August 2020
A note from Helen Carrick, Rally Secretary and Vice Chairman of the Biggar Albion Foundation Ltd.
Due to the ongoing risk to public health from Covid-19, it is with extreme regret and sadness that the rally committee have been forced to cancel The Biggar Rally, due to be held on 16th August 2020. This is only the second time the Rally has been cancelled in its 48 years of operation – the previous cancellation resulted from Foot and Mouth Disease in 2001.
The health and wellbeing of all exhibitors, spectators, volunteers, and committee must be our primary concern for at least the next few months, as it has been since the beginning of lock-down in mid-March. The committee have left this decision until the last possible moment in the hope that some level of normal life may resume later in the summer, but it is increasingly apparent that it would be impossible to ensure sufficient safety for all, given the current format of the Rally, and indeed would be unlikely to be permitted by the Government.
The committee hopes you will all sympathise with our position and will consider attending in 2021, if everything is back to normal then or if suitable amendments to the event, where required, can be made.
The planned date for the rally will be Sunday, 15th August 2021.
However, this could not have come at a worse time for the Biggar Albion Foundation Ltd, The Albion Club and the Biggar Rally. Sadly we lost our new museum building after the death of the sponsor and had to move many of the vehicles into paid storage, and following two years in which rally income was severely impacted by inclement weather, we face the reality that there will be no income in 2020 which means that it will be extremely difficult to finance the Foundation and Club's ongoing expenses such as climate control for the Archive, storage, insurances, website, email, daily running costs and the 2021 Rally without injection of funds.
With the sole exception of the first Rally in 1973, the Rally has thereafter been entirely self-funding. All income is retained to cover the expense of hosting the Rally and the continuance of the Albion movement in Biggar. None of the organising committee are remunerated for their involvement.
If you feel that you can assist with a donation, these will be gratefully received by either:
A Paypal donation using this button:
Or by posting a cheque, made out to The Biggar Albion Foundation Limited, to Helen Carrick, 12 High Street, Biggar, ML12 6BN.
Should you have any questions or would like to discuss anything further, please do not hesitate to contact Helen Carrick on 01899 221 497 option 1
Finally, please accept our sincere thanks for your support of The Biggar Rally.
Kind regards and keep safe.
Helen
About us:
The Biggar Albion Foundation Ltd was an offshoot of the Biggar Museum Trust. It was founded by the late Brian Lambie, MBE, FRSA in around 1993 and became an independent organisation in 2001. We run the Biggar Rally annually in August and this is our primary source of funding at present. We have an extensive archive of Albion-related documents, photographs and records and our museum has several Albion vehicles, sectioned engines, gearboxes and models. Coming soon, we will have display equipment to enable the visitor to enjoy all of our images and some fascinating films.
Mission Statement:
To advance and promote the education of the general public, and in particular the inhabitants of Biggar and District, without distinction of gender, sexual orientation, or of political, religious or other opinions, by associating voluntary organisations, local authorities and other bodies of whatever status together with the inhabitants in a common effort to establish a Museum, to be called the Albion Museum, which the Company intends to achieve by means of:-
a) bringing together, holding, adequately housing, conserving and documenting a Collection of specimens being of historical, artistic or scientific importance, and in respect of which there will be a strong presumption against the subsequent disposal of any item;
b) stimulating public interest in the Museum as a focal point of education and of historic, artistic or scientific interest, thereby improving the facilities available for general public amenity and education;
c) displaying and publicising the Collection for the public benefit; permitting access to research workers and school children, always providing that the safety and security of the Collection are not thereby endangered; permitting with similar safeguards the loan of any Specimen for exhibition or research;
d) promoting and assisting in the collating and recording of historical, ethnological, archaeological, biological, geological or other related information appropriate to the purpose of the Museum
The 3rd Albion Just-For-Fun Run
Sunday 28th July 2019
Organised by the Albion Club, Biggar.
DEPARTS:- 10am Route 74 Truck stop, Lesmahagow
FINISH:- 3pm at the start location for food and refreshments.
Entries are now open. Cost is £5. Please contact Walter Watson on 01899 220708 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
On Sunday 12th April 2015, members of the Albion Club and the Albion Foundation attended a presentation at the Glasgow Training group (GTG) premises of Arnold Clark on South Street, Glasgow. This was the site of the Albion Motor Car Company works from 1903 until 1987.
The Albion Club Chairman, Maurice White in conjunction with Robert Fulton, grandson of Norman Fulton, co-founder of the Albion Motor Car Company, joined GTG Chairman Glen Gall to unveil a plaque to commemorate the location of the Albion works on the site. Below are photographs from the occasion, including many Albion vehicles brought along by various proud owners, along with four of the Albion Foundation and Club vehicles.
Below is a shot of the Albion Works on South Street as it was before the demolition and where the GTG is now.
There is great news! The Biggar Albion Foundation Ltd has been able to buy the Gladstone Court museum premises which is adjacent to our own museum premises just off North Back Road, Biggar. Our own building is too small to house all our exhibits, and buying the Gladstone Court building has secured the whole site and will enable us to display more exhibits, and to provide a better museum experience for our visitors in Biggar, the home of the founders of the Albion Motor Car Company.
With the help of many generous donors, and by selling our Edinburgh Road Offices, we managed to raise the necessary £100,000 in order to purchase the building. We have set aside some money to kit it out with climate control, displays, etc, then as a future project, we estimate we will need a further £150,000 to link this building with our own. People have been very generous with donations. We have some funds of our own, but these will be needed to equip the building with all the requirements of a modern museum, and vitally, a heating system as this is currently lacking in the building. This will protect the exhibits from damp/condensation as well as providing a comfortable environment for the staff and visitors. We hope then to consolidate some of our buildings and this will enable us to provide better opening hours for the museum. We also plan to have a workshop where visitors can come and see some restoration work being done by suitably qualified experts.
If you want to volunteer, or can help us with donations or loans, large or small, please contact us by email to This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or by writing to us at: Building Fund Appeal, BAFL, 19 North Back Road, Biggar, ML12 6EJ
To help us raise funds to expand our museum.
Please click for more information.
We are looking to raise £150,000 by end of July 2020.
Can you help us?