And yet, for a cyclist
to it as the hobby horse. Drais took his
bicycle to Paris in 1818 where it was
atop a high wheel Penny
well received. The problem was that the
rider still had to propel it with his feet
Farthing bike in 1888, it
- much like a scooter, and it could only
was an apt description of what often
be ridden on flat surfaces.
happened. The bigger the wheel, the
Historians credit Scottish blackfaster the rider could go. The problem
smith, Kirkpatrick MacMillan, with
was that the breaking mechanism
adding pedals to the front wheel.
was unreliable and there was no good
MacMillan’s creation had a wooden
way to slow down the bike. Since the
rider (usually a young man) sat almost frame, iron-rimmed wooden wheels,
and weighed 56 pounds. This innodirectly above the oversized front
vation created a lot of interest and
wheel, should there be a sudden stop
bicycling took a giant leap forward.
there was no place for the rider to go
When he rode his bike 68 miles to visit
other than up and over the wheel,
his brother in Glasgow, it was a publiclanding on his head. The impact often
ity sensation. Before long, copies of
resulted in devastating injuries.
his invention appeared on the market.
The first “cycle” was more of a
As a result, MacMillian saw almost no
wooden scooter than bicycle. Comte
financial gain.
Mede de Sivrac of France is credited
By the 1870s the industrial revoluwith building what he called a “celertion was in full swing. Metalworking
ifere” around 1790. Unfortunately,
improvements allowed bicycles to be
there was no steering mechanism - or
constructed entirely of metal, greatly
peddles for that matter. A German by
improving both their performance and
the name of Baron Karl von Drais de
strength. Designs also changed. Pedals
Sauerbrun added front wheel steering
to what he called a “Draisienne” (after were still attached to the front wheel,
himself) in 1816. Many people referred but solid rubber tires and longer spokes
in the larger front wheel made the ride
far more comfortable. In addition, the
larger front wheel greatly increased the
speed. Those innovations account for
the Penny Farthing’s great popularity
in Europe and the United States during
the 1870s and 1880s in spite of the
hazards of breakneck speed.
Safety became a growing issue.
John Kemp Starley came up with a
major breakthrough in 1885. Starley’s
design featured a rider mounted much
lower between two wheels of the same
size. He also added a sprocket and
chain assembly that drove the bike
from the rear wheel. With Starley’s addition of inflated rubber tires, cycling
became safer and fun. With improved
manufacturing methods, bicycles
dramatically dropped in price. People
began riding for practical reasons as
well as pleasure. It was cheap transportation as well as recreation. Cycling
grew in popularity and groups like the
League of American Wheelmen formed
to lobby for better roads long before
the days when cars ruled the highways.
Once the bicycle became affordable
The Hometown Treasure · April ‘13 · pg 19