Photo courtesy of Museum Victoria, Moreland Annexe
Statement of Significance
The Penny Farthing
The penny-farthing or high wheel cycle as it was also known, was first built in 1869 by a Frenchman named Eugene Meyer. It marked the beginning of a new age for cycling, offering an efficient mode of transport with regards to the speed and distance that could be travelled. Not only does this machine represent an important development in bicycle design, it was a part of cycling becoming a social activity and a sport. This is demonstrated by the fact that it brought with it clothing fashions for riding, and more importantly, ushered in the dawn of cycle racing. The ‘ordinary bicycle’ as it was named was essentially enjoyed by the affluent that had the money to purchase such an item, and the time to devote to using it in a social and sporting context. Considering this makes the notion of a child’s penny-farthing even more significant. This would have been an expensive toy, and perhaps an indicator of the importance given to learning to ride such a machine by a father.
Ridden sitting virtually on top of the front wheel, it is a direct drive design, with the pedals directly connected to the hub of the drive wheel. In the pursuit of performance the wheel was made larger to increase speed and reached a size of 60”, halted only by the limitation of the riders inside leg measurement. The result was a machine whose aesthetic looks would be instantly recognisable against proceeding bicycle designs. This golden period for the penny-farthing lasted only 16 years until the development of the Rover Safety Bicycle in 1885 that utilised a drive chain and gear, and the now common diamond shaped frame. After this the penny-farthing quickly faded from general use, but has remained as a novelty bicycle and a special interest to enthusiasts.
The Penny Farthing and its place in the Bicycle Revolution
Case Study
photo courtesy of author
The penny-farthing bicycle is an icon of cycling history. Its golden age only lasted fifteen years or so from 1869 to 1885, yet its impact on cycling as a pastime and sport, and on the society of the time is undeniable. The example shown above is held in the Museum Victoria Collection, donated by Matthew Matheou and was built by his father, a blacksmith in Fiztroy, Melbourne in 1913. The image of the penny-farthing, so unique in its design, still captures peoples imagination and more than many other objects, contains a slice of history in itself perhaps because of the fact it reigned for a relatively short time. Looking at it, it is a quirky, captivating object with enough similarities to a modern day bicycle for us to relate to it, and enough eccentricities to marvel at it. Had it existed simply as an offshoot of bicycle design, it would perhaps only be known to those interested in specific histories, but the penny-farthing was a pivotal development in the bicycle that eventually brought cycling to the masses.
The origin of the bicycle is not uncommonly rather obscure. However, it is known that in the late eighteen hundreds around 1791, Frenchman the Comte de Sivrac became the centre of attention in the Palais Royal when he appeared riding a ‘wooden horse’ with two wheels. With no steering and powered by pushing the ground alternately with the feet, the celerifere as it was called, was the rudimentary beginning of the bicycles’ evolution. It is interesting to note that before the Comte de Sivrac had brought it to the attention of the aristocracy, it had probably existed as a child’s toy (McGonagle, 1968). And a toy it remained for those with wealth, plenty of time and lots of energy, used as a source of pleasure and amusement for the next 100 years or more. This was the first of two major social booms in the popular history of the bicycle. Further major developments were made including steering in 1817, which is attributed to Baron von Drais from Mannheim. Kirkpatrick Macmillan, a blacksmith from Scotland, has claim to what could be considered the predecessor to the modern bicycle, when around 1840 he designed a machine where the rear axle was driven by foot treadles. These were essentially pedals pushed forwards and backwards driving the rear axle to rotate by the use of levers. This allowed the rider to stay on the bicycle without the need to make contact with the ground.
The next big evolution was the one that would give birth to the penny-farthing. Another Frenchman, Pierre Michaux in 1861 attached cranks to the front wheel and while he may not have been the first to do this, he was an astute businessman and was able to capitalise on the growing industrial and consumer climate of the day. The second cycling boom was underway, and cyclists or ‘velocipedes’ as they were called, were gaining in numbers and commitment to the ‘sport’. There was a growing desire for performance from the velocipede. Then, in 1869 in an effort to make the machine faster yet another Frenchman, Eugene Meyer, increased the size of the front wheel, the average size becoming 54 inches. The penny-farthing or 'ordinary' as it would ironically become known, was born. A gentleman called Mr Turner, who was working in Paris for the Coventry Sewing Machine Company, returned to England with a ‘high-wheeler’ and convinced the manager of the company to turn his attention to manufacturing bicycles instead. It was here that James Starley, the companies’ foreman and a keen designer pioneered the penny-farthing into its golden age of the 1870’s.
These design features of being crank driven and an oversized front wheel, gave the bicycle a new level of performance. Coming at the height of the industrial revolution in Britain, manufacturing companies were already established and eager to build, market and make money from machines. This resulted in a bicycle that captured the attention of society, raising excitement in some and horror in others.
“How fast those new bicycles travelled and how dangerous they looked! Pedestrians backed almost into the hedges when they met one of them… it was thrilling to see a man hurtling through space on one high wheel with another tiny wheel wobbling helplessly behind.”(Thompson, 1941).
This quote is telling of the reactions the penny farthing generated. Those who embraced it and rode, found it exhilarating, described in 1869 as an ‘easy and rapid locomotion as an enjoyment which is positively intense’ (The velocipede: Its history and practical hints how to use it). Those who didn’t often abhorred it, such as a London journalist who commented, “We think they ought to be excluded from London Parks. Surely a sufficient infliction is placed upon the irate mortality by the introduction of the perambulator, without endangering life and limb still more by allowing velocipeditation” (McGonagle, 1968). The physical danger of the machines was ultimately felt most by the riders. Notoriously dangerous, due to the fact the rider was placed so high and forward on the wheel, with the only braking mechanism a spoon shaped lever that pressed down on the front wheel, riders were frequently sent over the handle bars, referred to as ‘taking a header’.
Bicycling, in its first boom of the 1790’s was dominated by the wealthy, and this was still the case with the second boom of the 1870’s led by the penny-farthing. A Starley bicycle for example was a prized possession, a highly crafted elegant machine, which cost about a years wages for a factory worker, thereby excluding all but the wealthiest people. One also needed plenty of time to dedicate to its pursuit. The cycle clubs that formed were snobbish, with Britain's Amateur Bicycle Club stating that the club’s goal was to promote cycling among the middle, upper and higher classes of society. To join a club you had to be recommended by an existing club member and wear a uniform. In this sort of social climate, without necessarily having rules against such things, most clubs would not accept tradesmen, workers or non-Caucasian people. There was an elitist and ‘gentlemens’ club’ attitude to the penny-farthing. Specific clothing was invented for riding such as the knickerbockers, and men would wear the crest or badge of their club with pride. Women were essentially excluded from riding the penny-farthing on a practical level, as the bicycle required some effort and a running start to mount it, not to mention the exertion to turn the pedals and stay on the bike, and the dangers once riding. The wearing of a dress whilst riding was out of the question. All together it was not a particularly ‘lady-like’ pursuit. The supposedly noble, exciting and dangerous nature of riding a penny-farthing is comically described in Banjo Paterson’s poem ‘Mulga Bills Bicycle’. It tells of Mulga Bill who is caught by the cycling craze, dresses in all the accompanying clothes, and with ‘an air of lordly pride’ announces how masterful he is of the new machine. He proceeds to race down a hill, very dangerous on a penny-farthing, only to end up in Dead Man’s creek. He survives, vowing to return to riding a horse!
Photo courtesy of author
However, there was no turning back to horses, and the issues associated with the design of the ‘high wheeler’ were solved by 1885 with the introduction of the 'safety' bicycle. It would take a few years for it to truly gain a lead over the penny-farthing, but the safety, with its diamond shaped frame, wheels of equal size and drive chain and gear combination was the beginning of the modern design. The shift from one design to the other was marked by searches for improvements and new and important technological developments such as the ball bearing and pneumatic tyres were found. The child’s penny farthing held in the Museum Victoria Collection is interesting from this point of view. It would have been a rare sight in the late nineteenth century due to their high cost, but by 1913 when the bike was built, elements such as the leather saddle (which was made by Dunlop), the pedals, hubs and even perhaps wheels, may well have been relatively easily sourced. Compared to the elaborate detail and fine quality finish of a Starley ‘Areil’ high-wheeler, this child’s’ bike is quite straightforward. The blacksmith father has used the skills of his trade to lovingly build the iron frame from a range of processes. The arched body is forged, the rear forks cast, and the front forks made from drawn half round bar. The wooden handle grips, leather seat and solid rubber tyres are typical of the early penny farthings, but it also shows more developed components such as an oil well in the front hub and rubber grips on the pedals. The ‘safety’ would have been more commonplace by 1913, but the simplified design of the ‘ordinary’ would have made it an easier proposition for our blacksmith to build.
Whilst the penny-farthing created the interest and brought attention to cycling, albeit dominated by specific areas of society, the safety bicycle brought the activity to all people. The competitiveness and efficiency of manufacture made it a machine that could be afforded by many, and the bicycle truly came of age as a mode of transport for everyone. It became a ubiquitous object in people’s lives, providing cheap and efficient transport. But with the arrival the car, its perception and what it meant in society shifted again. Particularly in Britain after the Second World War, it was viewed as a sign of lack of achievement, lack of financial standing and unfashionableness, owned by the poor and the needy, superseded by the new technological advancement in personal transport. One could argue that this is where it has remained for some time, though perhaps it is in the process of another revolution, this time not through invention, but through its benefits of clean, sustainable transport.
Without a doubt there is something endearing and enduring about the bicycle. There is purity about it. A simplicity and efficiency that has evolved over time but ultimately by its definition of a two-wheeled machine to be powered by the human body, has not radically changed. The satisfaction and exhilaration of riding is perhaps derived from the feeling that you and the machine become one. It is a balance of human and machine, the rotary motion of the legs, the spinning wheels, motion and stillness. Perhaps it is this Zen-like quality that keeps us enamoured with the bicycle (Watson 1978). I would suggest it is this feeling that the first riders of the penny-farthing experienced, and which led to people becoming ‘hooked’ on cycling. The further developments in the ‘safety’ allowed more people to experience it. However, the commonplace nature of the bicycle we are all so familiar with now is in stark contrast to the era of the ‘high wheeler’ where it was something of a spectacle. The penny-farthing was at the introduction of the bicycle to the general public and when people first saw and experienced the feeling of self powered transport. Perhaps this is one of the reasons the penny-farthing remains such an iconic object. Its sense of spectacle has never left it.
References
Thompson, Flora, (1941) Over to Candleford, Faber and Faber.
McGonagle, S. (1968) The Bicycle in Life Love War and Literature, Pelham Books, London.
Woodforde, J. (1970) The Story of the Bicycle, Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd, London.
Watson, R., Gray M. (1978) The Penguin Book of the Bicycle, Penguin Books, Middlesex, England.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Penny-farthing accessed April 2007
http://www.thewheelmen.org/ Accessed April 2007
http://www.wuk.at/hochrad/index_eng.php Accessed June 2007
http://www.middlemiss.org/lit/authors/patersonab/poetry/mulgab.html Accessed June 2007
No comments:
Post a Comment