The petrol powered mechanical elephant which had kids awestruck on Seaburn beach
We’ve all heard of donkey rides on the beach - but Sunderland had a quirky treat for children 75 years ago.
Back in 1950, Wearside youngsters turned out in all weathers to enjoy rides on the back of a mechanical elephant.
He brought joy to thousands of day-trippers
The man who operated it was Jimmy Sawyer, who was described as the caretaker of seaside rides in the post-war years.
He brought joy to thousands of day-trippers for almost a decade.
James Edward George Sawyer - Jimmy to his friends - was born on St Mary’s Island, Gambia.
At 16, he found work as a merchant sailor, making the journey to Aberdeen in Scotland. From there, he worked his way down the coast to the North East.
The mechanical elephant called Rajah was petrol powered
Once peace was declared after World War II, Jimmy left Hartlepool for Sunderland where he started working for the council and became "keeper" of the mechanical elephant which was called Rajah.
We hope there are still people around who enjoyed a ride on Rajah and have memories of Jimmy.
The petrol-powered elephant was controlled by a lever behind its ear. It was mounted via a set of steps - and has previously been described in the Sunderland Echo as "very smelly."
Little is known about the origins of the contraption, though it is likely to have been crafted either by inventor Frank Smith or Macades/Lunedise Engineering in the late 1940s, according to previous Echo articles.
If there are people with memories of Jimmy and the elephant, get in touch to tell us more by emailing [email protected]