The Safety Bicycle and Beyond

 

Because of the Ordinary's inherent danger, efforts were made to design a safer bicycle. Some people tried to modify the Ordinary to make it safer, others put their efforst into redesigning the bicycle. The latter path won out as “Safety” bicycles became more popular. These cycles had two small wheels of equal size, a chain driver, and gears. Soon after the advent of the Safety bicycle, John Boyd Dunlop patented a pneumatic tire (in both England and the United States). Brakes were also improved in the 1890s. The number of bicycles in use boomed as production rose from an estimated 200,000 bicycles in 1889 to 1,000,000 in 1899.

By 1899, only a few score automobiles had been built, horses and carriages were expensive to maintain in crowded cities, and urban public transportation was, with few exceptions, slow and frequently inadequate. The bicycle met the need for inexpensive individual transportation—much as the automobile has in recent times—for going to and from business, for business deliveries, for recreational riding, and for sport.

What seems to us a simple device of modest and limited performance was, in the relatively unmechanized 1890s, a swift vehicle and a fine machine. A nationwide bicycle club, the League of American Wheelmen, was formed on 30 May, 1880 at Newport, Rhode Island. Membership reached 150,000 in 1900.

Directly and indirectly, the bicycle had a decided influence on the introduction of the automobile. In addition to introducing thousands of persons to individual and independent mechanical transportation, the bicycle proved the value of many materials and parts that were subsequently taken over by the automobile designers. Ball bearings found one of their earliest uses in the bicycles of 1880 or earlier. The differential unit was employed in tricycles, and various forms of free-wheeling and gear-shifting devices were in use. Steel tubing, developed largely for cycle frame construction, was adopted by some earlie automobile builders. Pneumatic tires, previously mentioned, and wire wheels were also in use on bicycles prior to the introduction of the gasoline automobile in America.

Many pioneer automobile builders were at first bicycle manufacturers. Among these were Charles E. Duryea, Alexander Winton, and Colonel Albert A. Pope. Furthermore, Wilbur and Orville Wright were bicycle manufacturers in Dayton, Ohio, before they turned their attention to the aeronautical field, and Glenn H. Curtiss, another aviation pioneer, started out as a bicycle manufacturer.

A group of early safeties, ca 1889

A group of early safeties, ca 1889

From Abbot Bassett scrapbook

Between 1900 and 1905 the number of bicycle manufacturers in the United States shrank from 312 to 101. Interest in the automobile was only partly responsible for this. Additional factors were a switch to other forms of recreation, and the fact that a considerable number of electric railways took over the sidepaths originally constructed for bicycle use. Thereafter, for over half a century, the bicycle was used largely by children.

Recent cycle development has not involved significant changes in construction, but rather a refinement of earlier features. During the late 1960s there began a reawakening of adult interest in cycling as a non-polluting, non-congesting means of transportation and recreation. In 1970, nearly 5 million bicycles were manufactured in the United States, and an estimated 75 million riders shared 50 million bicycles, making cycling the nation's leading outdoor recreation.

 

The Overman Wheel Company of Boston, Massachusetts produced this Victoria Model bicycle during the 1890s. The bicycle bears a nameplate carrying patent dates ranging fThe Overman Wheel Company of Boston, Massachusetts produced this Victoria Model bicycle during the 1890s.
Description
The Overman Wheel Company of Boston, Massachusetts produced this Victoria Model bicycle during the 1890s. The bicycle bears a nameplate carrying patent dates ranging fThe Overman Wheel Company of Boston, Massachusetts produced this Victoria Model bicycle during the 1890s. The bicycle bears a nameplate carrying patent dates ranging from Nov. 20, 1877 to July 9, 1889. The safety bicycle with two wheels of equal size replaced the high wheeler (penny-farthing) when it was introduced to the US from England in 1887. Unlike the earlier high-wheeled bicycles, the drop frame style of the safety bicycle allowed women to ride by accommodating their skirts.
The 1890s saw a great boom in bicycling. As the first personal mechanical mode of transportation, the bicycle gave both men and women a thrilling sense of freedom. Cycling was a popular way to get around the city, and on weekends many bike enthusiasts went for rides in the country. Bicyclists played a major role in lobbying for road improvements.
Date made
1889
manufacturer
Overman Wheel Company
ID Number
TR.214971
catalog number
214971
accession number
40667
This Cleveland model 69 bicycle was manufactured by H. A. Lozier Company in Cleveland, Ohio around 1899. This bicycle was used by L. J. Powers who rode to work in Nashua, Iowa from his home in Powersville on a daily basis between the years of 1899 and 1902.
Description
This Cleveland model 69 bicycle was manufactured by H. A. Lozier Company in Cleveland, Ohio around 1899. This bicycle was used by L. J. Powers who rode to work in Nashua, Iowa from his home in Powersville on a daily basis between the years of 1899 and 1902. It was donated to the Smithsonian Institution in 1989. This type of bicycle was the most common men's bicycle during a period when cycling was an extremely popular activity among adults, factory output of bicycles was increasing rapidly, and bicycle manufacturing methods were changing.
Date made
ca 1899
used date
1899-1902
maker
H. A. Lozier and Company
ID Number
1989.0648.01
accession number
1989.0648
catalog number
1989.0648.01
This is a Model D-77 balloon-tire Schwinn Panther girl's bicycle made by Arnold, Schwinn and Co., Chicago, Illinois in 1953.
Description
This is a Model D-77 balloon-tire Schwinn Panther girl's bicycle made by Arnold, Schwinn and Co., Chicago, Illinois in 1953. Balloon-tire bicycles for girls and boys, introduced by Schwinn in 1933, intrigued millions of young Americans with the promise of personal mobility, and appealed to their imaginations with features that simulated automobiles and motorcycles. A typical model had long fenders, whitewall tires, streamlined styling, and a dummy gasoline tank containing a battery-powered horn. Mechanical features included internal-expanding brakes and shock-absorbing spring forks. Sales of children's balloon tire bicycles increased after World War II and remained strong until the late 1950s. Schwinn was an innovator and one of the largest makers of bicycles at the time.
date made
1953
maker
Arnold, Schwinn and Co.
ID Number
1986.1021.01
accession number
1986.1021
catalog number
1986.1021.01

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