Industry approach’d
And roused him from his miserable sloth,
His facilities unfolded, pointed out
Whose lavish nature, the directing hand
Of Art demanded, shewed him how to raise
His feeble force by the mechanic powers,
To drag the mineral from the vaulted earth;
On what to turn the piercing rage of fire;
On what the torrent, and the gather’d blast.
– James Thompson (Scottish poet and playwright, 1700-1748)
The invention of the velocipede in the late 1860s created the cycle industry. Three decades later, the car industry imposed itself upon the cycle industry’s factories and distribution networks, and by 1910 internal combustion was the dominant form of motivation.
A ride from London to Brighton on a velocipede on 17 February, 1869, was the spark that ignited a thousand furnaces up and down the country to turn steel into gold. Forge, anvil, vice, hammers and tongs were the alchemists’ tools.
1869 Velocipede. E.R Ransome, The French Velocipede Co
(Compagnie Imperiale de Velocipedes)
34″ Front wheel
28″ Rear wheel
Frame No 490
This velocipede represents an important part of British cycle history because its cartouche, engraved and stamped into the backbone, shows it to be built by Edwin Rayner Ransome of 10 Essex St, Strand, London, and licensed by the French Velocipede Company of 14 The Strand, London. This company was one of the first to import velocipedes from France for resale in Britain: “A boneshaker with forged ironwork, and front wheel of 32 inch, 34 inch or 36 inch was £10 or £12 according to finish and fittings.” £12 in 1869 would be around £1750 today.
A. Davis, a saddler and retailer of sporting goods, acting for The French Velocipede Company, placed the first magazine display advertisement in Britain to sell velocipedes. That was on 12 February 1869 in the ‘English Mechanic and Mirror of Science’ (below) …5 days before John Mayall’s famous velocipede ride from London to Brighton.
Davis became interested in velocipedes in 1868, publishing a 12 page pamphlet about them in October of that year called ‘The Velocipede, and How to Use It’ …which was the first book on cycling. He followed it up with a longer book on the same subject the following year. His promotional material encouraged the formation of clubs around the country. At the bottom of this page you can see a pamphlet he published entitled ‘The French Velocipede Company’s Club Rules.’
Meanwhile, in the 1860s, S & E Ransome had advertised a lever-operated tricycle known as a Rantoone (patented by J Goodman in 1863). I don’t know if they built it themselves, contracted another firm to build it, or just marketed it. Because they had experience selling tricycles and had a network of agencies around the country, they were ideally situated to handle the wholesale supply of velocipedes for A. Davis, whose premises were less than half a mile away at the other end of The Strand.
The name on the backbone is that of Edwin Rayner Ransome. The advertisements in the ‘Ironmonger’ magazine show that Ransome started selling velocipedes on a wholesale basis in March, 1869, just one month after John Mayall’s pioneering velocipede ride from Swiss Cottage to Brighton on 17 February, 1869. Mayall was accompanied by Mr Collins, a Times reporter, and Messrs Spencer and Turner, who were about to start businesses selling velocipedes. Turner ensured that the event was reported in no fewer than 300 periodicals, propelling this new form of individual transportation into the public imagination and launching the British cycle industry.
The other company involved with the French Velocipede Company was ‘Tangye Bros & Holman.’ Ransome had contracts with Tangye Bros for supplying their hydraulic equipment, and Tangye and Ransome were Quakers, so they had business and personal connections. Tangye was added to the velocipede advertisements as exporters, but they are also recorded as “manufacturing the velocipedes to the Michaux design, paying a licence fee to the French Velocipede Co.” The history of the Tangye company “A Hundred Years of Engineering Craftmanship” suggests that production ceased in 1870 due to their French trade connections and the war in France. Tangye was later a director of ‘Psycho Cycles’ along with William Starley.
As the cartouche shows Ransome’s name, I assume that it was built by his company. It’s possible that they also stamped imported machines that they sold wholesale, however as its frame number is 490 I assume that it was not one of the first batches from France but built in Britain. I also wonder if it was Edwin Rayner Ransome’s personal velocipede, as it is stamped with his name and initials rather than that of his company?
I also wonder to what extent Davis and Ransome built velocipedes: even if their advertisements showed them to be ‘manufacturers’ unless they had a forge on their premises they would have contracted out such work and used their own workshops for assembly and finishing. In fact, we can envisage that in the velocipede’s boom year of 1869, as all the orders came in, every blacksmith in London was engaged to some extent in making parts for velocipedes, and carriage makers would have been the ideal companies to turn to velocipede construction.
I bought the Ransome velocipede from Hilary, who lives in London. It had belonged to her grandfather, who died in 1947, and since then it had been a family heirloom. I was interested to know more about her grandfather. Hilary was three years old when he died and remembers him as being very old. If he had been sixty, for example, he would have been born in 1887, too old to have bought the velocipede from new. Was it passed down to him from a previous generation? Did he ride it, or buy it as a collector? Either way I believe it was kept because of its local London connection.
Though it has been in storage for the second half of its life, it was very well used before that. A previous owner had tried to improve its ride by fitting a solid rubber tyre to the rear wheel, and a wooden block was added to the brake. These innovations probably date from Victorian times, and show that the machine was cherished by its owner. As you can see from the photos, the metalwork has been covered with a zinc based paint, which has preserved it. We removed the paint around the cartouche, and the condition of the metal underneath suggests that the zinc paint was applied around the 1950s. There are some small traces of original red paint on the metalwork, while the wheels appear to have the remains of original orange paint.
It is a very well made machine, typical of the high standard of workmanship by French makers of the time. The hubs have oilers, and the frame design is unusual as it has separate stays to the rear axle that bolt on to the back of the frame. I’ve photographed this remarkable original machine here ‘as found’ – including cobwebs – before any work is done to it. The next job will be to remove the zinc overpaint, which will greatly enhance its appearance.
At the top it says THE FRENCH
In the middle: LONDON
At the bottom: VELOCIPEDE COMPANY
S & E RANSOME Ltd
10 Essex St, Strand, London
A timeline for S & E Ransome’s involvement in the velocipede trade can be seen from the ‘Ironmonger’ magazine advertisements. In the issue dated 27 February, 1869, A. Davis is announced as the British agent, but there is no mention of Ransome & Co.
A month later, in the 31 March issue, S & E Ransome has been added to the advertisement as ‘Wholesale – Home Department’ and with Tangye Bros & Holman handling shipping and exports.
As the French Velocipede Company’s initial advertisement (12 February) was the first to appear in the British press, I assume that A Davis received more orders than he could manage. The most logical step would be to contract other local companies to build velocipedes that he could resell under his company name. As a result, Ransome and Tangye became manufacturers too, as well as handling sales at home and abroad, while Davis focused on retailing from his London premises.
A DAVIS & Co, SADDLERS
10, STRAND, LONDON
As you can see from the advertisement above, A Davis had an established business selling saddles and other equestrian equipment from his shop at No 10, Strand. In 1868 he published his pamphlet on velocipedes which also acted as his sales catalogue. As you can see from the advertisement on its final page (below), he had now moved two shops along the road to No 14, Strand.
“The French Velocipede Company, with a view of encouraging the use of this beautiful machine, are making arrangements to supply on a large scale and at short notice VELOCIPEDES suited to the various districts of the country and town and the requirements of riders of various heights and weights. They are also prepared to give information to amateurs and inventors, clubs, schools, regiments, gymnasiums, etc. and to make special terms where numbers are required.
The prices of velocipedes are according to their qualities. The best kinds are all forged from iron and steel with self-lubricating apparatus and the company’s own patent gunmetal roller anti-friction bearings. The company propose to charge less than will be in the power of any private firm, and buyers will do well to inspect their velocipedes. Patterns are constructed on the American, English, German, French and Swiss models. The velocipede for children can be especially constructed for safety. Three-wheel velocipedes are made convertible into two wheels. For ladies, light and easy velocipedes are made with luxurious couches. For night use, lanterns can be fitted; for travelling, valises; for muddy roads, special protectors are made; reckoners to calculate the distance and speed travelled; umbrella supporters. A special velocipede is being constructed for artists, photographers, commercial travellers and all riders having to carry luggage.”
THE FIRST CYCLING BOOK (1868) by A. DAVIS
(Extracts from a reprint. You can order your own for £1.50 via the link at the bottom of the page)
EDWIN RAYNER RANSOME
“Edwin Rayner Ransome (1824-1910) was a London businessman who lived at Wandsworth Common and was connected with the firm of S. & E. Ransome of 10 Essex Street, Strand, London, which advertised Ransome’s patents, grindstones, artificial stone, lawn mowers, cranes, engine fittings, cement etc.” [from a prospectus for a Quaker school in Tasmania that he helped to establish]
S & E Ransome supplied a wide variety of products. The letter above is from 1856.
The article below was found by Philip Boys and published on his Wandsworth Common history page * recording a race between two wheel and four wheel velocipedes on The Common. Edwin Rayner Ransome lived in Wandsworth and was closely involved with the preservation of Wandsworth Common at the time. As his company had recently started selling velocipedes (the month before) I would speculate that he was involved with the event.
Ransome’s shop was at 10 Essex Street. Here is 10 Essex St in a recent photograph (I think the original building was redeveloped).
S & E RANSOME RANTOONE
During the 1860s, S & E Ransome had supplied a tricycle known as The Rantoone, as you can read in the following article by S. Russell in Cycling magazine of 2 July 1892. It was propelled by either hand or foot levers.
The Rantoone’s hand levers were an adaptation of those used on a contemporary style of children’s tricycle known as a ‘propellor.’ You can see mine below.
TO SEE THE
1870s BOYS PROPELLOR TRICYCLE
PLEASE CLICK HERE
THE FRENCH VELOCIPEDE COMPANY’S
CLUB RULES
Information about The French Velocipede Company, A Davis and Tangye thanks to Ray Miller’s ‘An Encyclopedia of Cycle Manufacturers.’
* Information about Edwin Rayner Ransome and Wandsworth Common thanks to Philip Boys – https://www.historyofwandsworthcommon.org/chronicles/04/04-2022.html
Further reading about Edwin Rayner Ransome – https://www.historyofwandsworthcommon.org/chronicles/06/06-2021.html
Further reading about Tangye – https://imagearchive.royalcornwallmuseum.org.uk/museum-objects/social-history/bicycle-velocipede-boneshaker-18833317.html
Further reading about Tangye – https://www.tangye.org/tangye_hist3.html
‘The Velocipede & How to Use it’ by A Davis (1868), a reprint from the National Cycle Archive – https://www.chpublishing.org.uk/shop/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=2
