1958 Lister Knobbly

The Geo Lister Company was formed by George Lister in the late 1890s. Geo Lister formed a partnership with Charles Flatters and Harry Branch, creating a general engineering, blacksmith, and wrought ironwork shop. When the partners retired and his sons Alfred and Horace joined the business, the company's name was changed to 'Geo. Lister & Sons' in 1919. In 1930, Horace became sole proprietor after the untimely death of his brother Alfred, and then their father.

Horace's sons Raymond and Brian later became directors in the company, ascending to joint Managing Directorship in 1954. Brian had an interest in racing and one of his first races was in a Morgan 4/4 sports. Later, he built a Cooper-MG sports car with help from Lister apprentice Edwin 'Dick' Barton. This was followed by the Tojeiro-JAP named the Asteroid.

Brian Lister met a one-handed individual named Archie Scott Brown who would later prove his abilities as a world-class racing driver. When the duo met Don Moore, a local motor engineer, the ingredients were formed for what would become a successful series of Lister sports-racing cars. During the 1950s, their cars would be a dominant force in the 'free-Formula' British sports car category and in Sports Car Club of America National Championship competition. The legendary 'Knobbly' Lister-Jaguars and Lister-Chevrolets are a few of the memorable names that raced during the 1958 and 1959 SCCA series.

A new company was formed by Brian Lister, dubbed 'Brian Lister (Light Engineering) Ltd' with the purpose of building racing cars. They utilized engines and various components from MG, Bristol, Chevrolet, Jaguar, and Maserati vehicles during the 1950s. The most famous of their creations was the Knobbly. In total, there were no more than 17 original cars constructed in 1958. Following Scott Brown's fatal accident at Spa, Belgium, in May of 1958, Brian Lister closed his car manufacturing business.

In 1990, four special 'Centenary Edition' Lister-Jaguar 'Knobbly' cars were created to honor the centenary year of Geo. Lister & Sons Ltd. They were made to the same standard as the original. The final products were marketed by Lawrence Pearce in England.

by Daniel Vaughan | Oct 2009