This week’s blog features century old photos of Bicycles, Penny Farthings and their riders. The vintage picture collection also includes US messenger boys from around 1910 who despite being children were expected to ride through areas frequented by prostitutes and gamblers. To add some much needed glamour to my website I have also included some beautiful young lady bikers (with even more in my new video Bike Boys).

 

While you read why not listen to my album ‘Electro Baroque‘ (all tracks are also available on iTunes using the link here)? Classical music using modern instruments:

or if you prefer to listen to my electro/techno album ‘Studio Valiumm‘ here are the videos (also on iTunes using the link here):

More info about my music is at the dedicated website www.TRANSFORMATES.com

In this rapidly changing world where fashions and styles seem to change every month it is refreshing to think that one piece of equipment we see every day has hardly changed in appearance in over 100 years. In today’s report I would like to share with you some vintage pictures of bicycles and cyclists which could have been taken yesterday – until you look closer at the horse drawn carriages and old-timer cars in the background.

It is not only the presence of some very old methods of transportation but also the fashions featured in the photos that help to transport you back to a long forgotten era of gentlemen wearing hats and ladies in flowing dresses (who of course also wore some very elegant hats).

In fact I really had to search hard to find photos of bicycles with a shape which differed significantly from that of today. However, if you go back to early 1900 or even the late 1800’s it is possible to see examples of the old penny farthing bicycle. This was so named because the different size of its wheels reminded people of the penny and farthing coins which existed in the UK at that time. I was fortunate enough to find one very old photo of an elderly gentleman demonstrating the challenges in trying to mount this very challenging form of transportation.

In order to present the best bicycle photos from my collection I have prepared a video ‘Bike Boys’ which you can view in the box below:

In the next couple of days I will add my old bicycle photos to the ‘Vintage Photos‘ galleries which is an area of the ChrisDuggleby.com website dedicated to some very old pictures I have restored. Because of their age I have had to do some restorative work on most of the old photos but I have endeavoured to maintain their original character and charm. I have already added a section to the Vintage Photos Galleries featuring several Child Labour pictures (again from around 1910). You may remember that in my last blog (link here) I presented a video ‘Ghost Children‘ on the theme of child labour which included a large selection of the ‘children at work‘ pictures.

To link with the child labour theme of the earlier video I have also included some pictures of messenger boys in the Bike Boys video. I will add more of these pictures to the Vintage Photos gallery in the next couple of days. These are pictures taken between 1905 and 1915 of young boys who were used to deliver messages and parcels in the USA. Sometimes they where very young (10 years of age or less) and they were expected to ride to some very undesirable areas such as red light districts or gambling dens. Many of these pictures were taken by Lewis Wickes Hine (1874 – 1940) a pioneer in the use of the camera as an instrument of social change.

Please visit the Vintage Photos pages and let me know if you have any suggestions for future themes. Meanwhile perhaps I can introduce the support team who were involved in preparing some of these vintage pictures. In this shot they are preparing a selfie with what I understand was an early Asian copy of a prototype iPhone. Enjoy!

Chris Duggleby

Whoops I nearly forgot the glamour. In the video I have included some shots of extremely beautiful lady bikers (to ensure appropriate inclusion and balance). Here is an example which I think you will agree is much more appealing to the senses than some sweaty bloke with shaven legs trying to hide his bulges under an overly tight Lycra leotard (don’t worry no Lycra is in my video – it is definitely suitable for work!)…

If you found this article interesting please consider taking a look at some of his other recent reports on similar subjects.

Just click on the titles below:

…starting with some more serious stuff:

12th June 2016 Hospital Serial Killer – Super Bugs Created With Jumping Genes During Bacterial Sex

31st May 2016 Linking Poverty to Depression – Genes of Poorer Adolescent Children Permanently Labelled for Depressive Behaviour

21st May 2016 Skin Cancer and Cataracts From Your Car – Poor UV Side Protection – Windows Tested From 15 Vehicle Makers

19th April 2016 Torture In The Shower – Face and Body Soap Allergies – Main Suspect: Pears Transparent Soap

14th March 2016 Eliminating Noisy Commuter Calls – Cheap Cell Phone Jammers – Hidden Costs:

13th March 2016 Bugs Evolve That Can Eat PET Plastics Used In Bottles And Textiles

3rd March 2016 Using Gene Drives To Change Mosquito Sex In Fight Against Zika, Dengue and Malaria

1st March 2016 Ladies – upto half a satisfying sexual event per month but risk of side effects from “Pink Viagra” Flibanserin (“Addyi”)

14th Feb 2016 Breast Cancer – How Blind People Use Their Enhanced Tactile Sensitivity to Save the Lives Of Women With Tumours

3rd Feb 2016 Zika Infection Spread By Sex In Dallas – Earlier Sexual Transmission In Colorado – Detailed Symptoms 

1st Feb 2016 Sexual Competition Between Women – Ovulation Can Be Seen In The Face

31st Jan 2016  Bed Bugs – Insecticide Resistance – Arbovirus Transmission – Zika and Microcephy

19th Jan 2016 ZIKA Virus Epidemic  – Health Warning – Pregnant women should postpone travel to affected areas – Including Brazil 

17th Jan 2016 Bubonic Plague Special – Lice – Hosts for The Black Death Bug

13th Jan 2016 Kill Head Lice In A Day With The Newly Developed Plasma Nitcomb From The German Fraunhofer Institute

8th Jan 2016 Cancer from Handbags, Shoes and Gloves – Allergic Reactions to Jewellery – German Institute Identifies Excessive Chromium 6 and Nickel Levels

26th July 2015 Poison in your Washing Machine: Allergic Contact Dermatitis from Laundry Detergents, Softeners, Conditioners and Whiteners

17th October 2015: Health Risk: Vitamin and antioxidant supplements help cancer cells become malignant – latest research from Texas

31st May 2015: German Concern about Potentially Carcinogenic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Cosmetics  

29th December 2012: Spreading diarrhea and vomit through the washing machine– The Norovirus propagator in our kitchen

and here are some fun related articles:

19th March 2016: Joggers – How To Stop Dogs Chasing You – Research Into New Pet Friendly Technology

9th March 2016: Penis Ring Emergency – German Fire Fighters Rescue Man From Painful 13 Cock Ring Torture: Vorsprung durch Technik and erectile dysfunction

4th March 2016: Dachau Industry Park Evolves From Concentration Camp To Nudist Wellness Club (Brothel)

21st June 2015: Bio-undies: Guilt free Passion with ‘Easy Emma’ and ‘Loose Harry’and Getting Rid of Garden Snails with Rent-a-Duck

4th March 2015: Hamburg Reeperbahn (St. Pauli): Germans install walls that urinate on passers-by

17th April 2014: Niche On-line Dating Services (Specialities: Herpes, Thrush and Genital Warts)

18th March 2014: Germany and Finland Joint Investigation: New Case of Sexual Cannibalism Including Self-mutilation (Castration) During Intercourse.

18th August 2012: How Bavarians and Austrians use their middle finger – Fingerhakeln: a men-only sport (did Arnold Schwarzenegger start training this way?).

You can also find some of my more humorous reports in the Alpine Press section of this site using the link here.