John Henry Knight

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Britain's first convicted speeder in action!

John Henry Knight (21 January 1847-22 September 1917) from Farnham was a wealthy engineer and inventor. He was the first person to be convicted of speeding in the UK after he built Britain’s first petrol-powered motor vehicle in 1895.

The three-wheeled, two-seater contraption had a top speed of only 12 mph (19 km/h), but it was enough for Knight to feel the long arm of the law. On 17 October 1895 Knight and his assistant James Pullinger were stopped in Castle Street, Farnham and charged with using a locomotive without a licence. The case was heard at Farnham Town Hall on 31 October 1895. Knight and Pullinger were both fined 2s 6d. Knight was restricted to using the car only on farm roads until the Locomotive Act was replaced by the Locomotives on the Highway Act, on 14 November 1896. He was later also responsible for the repeal of the notorious Red Flag legislation.

Knight's vehicle was said to be "almost silent" when it was running; the vehicle entered a limited production run in 1896 and shortly after that the tricycle was the only British car at the 1896 Horseless Carriage display at Crystal Palace, although the design was later changed in favour of a four wheel version. The car is currently on display at the National Motor Museum^[1].

Although best remembered for his car and his driving, he had, for many years, been an inventor and a designer of steam-powered digging machines. A rival designer, Frank Proctor, stated in an 1890 edition of the weekly magazine "Engineering" that "Mr Knight has undoubtedly earned the distinction of being one of the early pioneers in the system of steam digging". He had begun developing his first digging machine in 1872, specifically for working in hopfields, which are difficult to cultivate due to the incidence of the hop poles which support the strings up which the plants climb. "Digging by Steam" by Colin Tyler (published in 1977 by Argus Books Ltd) devotes a chapter to hop digging machines, many of which were designed and built by Knight, and which are illustrated with drawings or photos.

John Henry Knight lived in Weybourne House, Weybourne, Farnham, Surrey. The house still stands.