1899 Iron Velocipede Tricycle

Most children’s tricycles of the Victorian era do not have name plates, so it’s not easy to identify them. It is also very difficult to calculate their ages, because, whereas the quality bicycle manufactures tended to incorporate the latest developments in saddles, pedals, steering heads, children’s tricycles did not. As a result they are often a miss-mash of evolutionary styles.

This one, for example, has a steering head reminiscent of the earliest safety bicycles around 1886/1887. The seat is a wonderful cast iron moulding; I’ve never seen another like it. The front axle is a heavy duty affair and the pedal cranks join in a very unusual fashion. All the above features suggest late 1880s/early 1890s manufacture.

This style of handlebar appears to have come into fashion in the 1890s. The backbone splits below the seat rather than above it, a style from the later part of the 1890s. My estimate of its age is c1899.

c1899 Iron Velocipede Tricycle

Front Wheel 16″

Rear Wheel 12″

Steel Rims, no Tyres

LENGTH: 28″

WIDTH: 15″

HEIGHT: 26″