A man and his son both riding Penny Farthing cycles, 1890.
A young lady proudly photographed with her bicycle, 1890.
The first electrically-powered taxi in London, 1897.
Businessmen on a horse-drawn bus in Westminster, 1900
Three forms of transport crossing a bridge in London, 1905.
(My guess is that whoever was previously driving the motorcycle was also the photographer.)
A famous London Suffragette on her electric folding scooter, 1907.
A happy lady on a very early type of moped, 1909.
Oh forgot to say that taxi looks very grand! I was thinking it’d be interesting but probably dangerous to have a ride in it!
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The electric cab company went bust, as the taxis had limited range before needing a long recharge. I doubt they were any more dangerous to ride in than petrol driven cabs, and certainly a lot quieter. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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I was thinking of the brakes!
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I like the lady’s bicycle! I was surprised to see the moped and scooter- never knew they went back that far! I thought the earliest were in the 1950s.
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I had read about electric scooters in the 1890s, but this was the first photo I had seen of a similar one. Mopeds and motorcycles were common well before WW1.
Best wishes, Pete.
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The first photo is priceless, and the early moped seems to have a revival soon. Low cost transportation will be the future. xx Michael
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Penny Farthings are still made and sold here, Michael. I would not want to ride one on the road though. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Hey, that’s new to me, but very interesting. Maybe somedays we will get it also here. They are definitely great noisemakers. 😉 xx Michael
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Reblogged this on NEW BLOG HERE >> https:/BOOKS.ESLARN-NET.DE.
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Hi Pete, great pictures. Although it makes perfect sense, I didn’t know there were horse-drawn buses. Penny farthings always make me smile, they just look so funny.
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Here is an article about horse-drawn buses, Robbie. They started on the streets of London in 1829.
https://www.ltmuseum.co.uk/collections/stories/transport/londons-horse-bus-era-1829-1910
Best wishes, Pete.
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HI Pete, thank you for this link. A most interesting story. It’s a pity the inventor of the service went bankrupt. I looked up this museum and the closest tub station is Covent Garden. I hope to get there sometime soon. It looks like a place my family would enjoy.
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Yes, it is right in the main Covent Garden Piazza. Also a short walk from tube stations at Charing Cross or Leicester Square.
Best wishes, Pete.
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As a child our neighbour’s brother had a bike shop and he had quite a penny farthing bike collection every year he displayed some of them at the local, church fete and treated us to a demonstration of how to ride them…and how to get on and off he always dressed for the occasion whenever we saw him riding one of his penny-farthings…xx
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They still make modern ones, but I think I would hesitate to ride one on the roads today. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Wow.. I don’t think I would chance it either, Pete although I don’t think I could even get on it now.. 😂 X
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I remember reading about a O’Henry story set up on a horse drawn bus. It was one of my favourites.
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That electric folding scooter looks superb. I wonder why it went out of use?
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Probably because very few ordinary people could afford to buy one, Shaily. Then WW1 came along too.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Oh! When you say folding how small could it get?
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The handle section folded back against the base for storage. It would have been too heavy for most women to carry though.
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Somehow the scooter style seems coming back 😀
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Yes, they have re-invented it with lightweight materials.
Best wishes, Pete.
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This is so cool! Thanks for sharing.
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Glad you enjoyed the photos, Sara.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Interesting. A while back I read a Jay Leno article where he said 130 years and electric vehicles still have approximately the same range… the sensible girl with a bike worth riding in 1890 made the daredevils on the ass buster p/f riders look downright silly.
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Leno was more or less correct, Phil. There were no ‘charging stations’ back then of course, and the batteries had to be charged each time using the original ‘crocodile-clip’ trickle chargers.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Cool. Nice find, warmest regards, Ed
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I knew about electric scooters in Edwardian times, so was pleased to find a photo of one, Ed.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I always wondered how they mounted a Penny Farthing cycle. Warmest regards, Ed
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See my answer to John, below. There is a link to a video. That video has answered the question for everyone now. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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(1) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AuXmuhmtwz4
(2) “Yes, my dress flies up when I do wheelies. But how else am I going to get a hot date?”
(3) “Elon Musk, eat your heart out!” (Babook Popplebottom)
(4) Overheard:
A horse named Trotsky: “It’s almost 3:30. Ready to race?”
A horse named Portneigh: “No, and neither are you!”
(5) Headline: “Bus 33 Swerves! Passengers Flung Off, Tumble Off Bridge into Thames, End Up in Fishing Nets, Request Fare Reimbursement.”
(6) The rider of the electric folding scooter has folds in her dress that produce static electricity.
(7) My sister and I once rode Mobylettes on the Corniche Inférieure from Nice to Monaco. (Just to clarify: The lady in the photo is not my sister.)
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I guessed she was not your sister, or she would be very old! Come to think of it, I have known you for around 10 years, and have no recollection of you ever mentioning a sister! 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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She visited me in Nice when I was a “study abroad” student at the Université de Nice (1974-75).
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I always wondered how one got on and off the Penny Farthing. Now I know! (I saw your link here) Great photos.
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Glad you saw the link. Now you know, you can tell others. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Electric scooters is 1907? Who knew? Thanks, Pete.
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I had heard of them, but never seen a photo until I found this one. The electric taxi was even earlier! 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Fascinating! Best to you, Pete.
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I’m surprised at that electric scooter – it looks similar to the one I fell off of! When those penny-farthings stopped, how did the rider not fall off, and how did they get back on again?
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See my reply to John, lower down. There is a video link showing how to get on and off a Penny Farthing. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Ah, thanks Pete. I’ll have a look.
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Quite a contrast in mood between the last two ladies.
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Yes, the first lady was a famous campaigner for Votes For Women, and was making a ‘statement’ by riding her electric scooter. I think the lady on the moped is a model, hired to make the machine look more attractive. Much like the bikini-clad girls who were shown next to new cars in 1960s advertisements. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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I had no idea there were Penny Farthings for little kids.
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They came in all sizes, and for ladies too. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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The prelude to what we think of as ‘new’ inventions. They were way ahead of us. (Preferrably, I’d take the horses! lol)
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I think it may go back to horses one of these days, GP. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Sure wouldn’t bother me!
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These are lovely photos Pete. Nice to see their means of transport centuries ago.
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Thanks, Arlene. I’m glad you liked them.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I do not understand how anyone could mount up on a Farthing cycle and once they got on the thing how they could keep from killing themselves trying to dismount it. That electric folding scooter looks like something that is whizzing around our roads over here right now .. and they are dangerous.
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Riding a Penny Farthing was definitely a skill, John.
Best wishes, Pete.
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I’ve always had the same question about the Penny Farthing.
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John and Liz, this is how it is done. 🙂
https://m.facebook.com/abcwesternplains/videos/the-art-of-getting-on-and-off-a-penny-farthing/291902578161545/
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Thanks
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Very cool….those early mopeds are great…..chuq
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I thought so too. Thanks, chuq.
Best wishes, Pete.
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amazing and close to what we have now in some cases
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Very true, Beth. Electric scooters are sold here as a ‘new invention’, and the ownership of bicycles increases year on year.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Oh wow, the Suffragette on her scooter! And interesting to see the horse drawn bus…my grandfather was a saddler for those, and that’s the first image I have seen of one, so thanks!
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That’s a nice historical connection with your family, Sue.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Indeed, Pete My grandfather was born within the sound of Bow bells…
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Wow! These are all very good. I love the suffragette on her scooter.
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Thanks, Darlene. It’s good to know how long those electric scooters have been around.
Best wishes, Pete.
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Things haven’t changed that much.
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Yes, and now they are selling electric scooters as a ‘new invention’. 🙂
Best wishes, Pete.
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Reblogged this on Wonders of Wandering.
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Many thanks for reblogging.
Best wishes, Pete.
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