Figure 1.--Here we see an unidentified boy with his bike in the driveway of the family home in a leafy subburb, probably in the late-1950s. The bike is a popular bike style from the 1950s, perhaps a Schwin. Notice the basket. Color print film was rare and expensive in the 1950s. This was a Kodakchrome slide.

This ability of children to have bikes began to change after the turn-of-the 20th century, especially in America. The major development was the steadily rising income of American workers. American workers were the highest paid workers in the world. Which is why workers in Europe flocked to America in their millions. It was the opportunity created by market capitalism that attracted them. It wasn't the idea of capitalism, it was the high-paying jobs that capitalism created that attracted them, along with political and religious freedom and the absence of a military draft. Free land also attracted them, but even as the Frontier was closing, they still came because of the jobs that were on offer. The high wages meant that more and more families could afford bikes, at first primarily for adults. By the turn of-the 20th century there were bicycle shops all over America. And then Henry Ford introduced the Model-T Ford, an automobile that the average American worker, but not European worker could afford. By the 1910s as adult interest shifted to automobiles we see the bicycle industry shifting toward children. Affluent middle-class children began acquiring bikes. And of course there were trikes for the younger children. After World War I, bikes become increasingly common, even with working-class children. We begin to see girls with bikes after the War as well. The photographic record shows large numbers of children with bikes. Demographics was a factor. The bike was a little difficult to sort out for big city children. There was no place for it in cramped apartments and the streets were dangerous. It was, however, ideal for the suburbs and small towns. The move to the suburbs which began in earnest after World War I and the Model-T and other cars increased the move to the suburbs. Then the Roaring Twenties intensified these trends. All of this meant that more and more children could have bikes and trikes. The Depression slowed this process down, but after World war II (1941-45), bikes were standard for American children. Bikes were more appropriate for suburban life than they were for the cities. European style bikes with multiple gears became popular (1960s). BMX bicycles inspired from motocross motorcycles became popular (1970s).

Created: 2:13 PM 6/29/2024
Last updated: 2:13 PM 6/29/2024