Nelsonians’ fascination with cycling dates back to ‘bone shaker’ days
MR JOHN AKERSTEN. NELSON PROVINCIAL MUSEUM, DAVIS & NAIRN COLLECTION: 6305
Naming new inventions can be a tricky task but, back in the late 1800s, when deciding what to call one of the earliest forms of the modern-day bicycle, inventors arrived at a literal solution: the Latin words vēlōcitās, meaning speed, and pedālis, meaning pedal, were combined into the word ‘velocipede’, which literally translates into 'fast feet', 'foot speed' or 'foot power'.
Only a limited number of velocipedes, also known as ‘bone shakers’, remain in museums and private collections around the world – and Nelson is home to two of them, which are part of historic collections at both the Nelson Provincial Museum and Founders Heritage Park.
“The frames of the modern velocipedes varied, some had a horizontal frame which straddled the two wheels or, as with the museum example, the frame extends from the handles bars to the rear wheel in a V-shape,” said Nelson Provincial Museum Collections Leader Shae Trewin.
“The seat on the museum’s velocipede sits on top of the frame like a contemporary bicycle, unfortunately the handlebars are missing. With solid iron rim or solid rubber tyres and no suspension, it is not surprising that velocipedes were nicknamed ‘bone shakers’.”
VELOCIPEDE. NELSON PROVINCIAL MUSEUM COLLECTION: A2645
Just over 150 years ago, in August 1869, the Nelson Evening Mail published a story proposing that locally made velocipedes were contributing to “velocipede mania”, also noting that plenty of tumbles had been observed.
In one case, the reporter writes, “The unfortunate man was hurled from his seat as though he had been thrown from a bucking horse instead of from an inanimate piece of machinery.”
Trewin said “clearly the skill of local riders began to improve” because a month later, in September 1869, the paper reported men on velocipedes riding from Richmond to Nelson in 55 minutes.
Then, on New Year’s Day in 1870, a velocipede race took place as part of the Caledonian Sports; a dispute over second place was contested by a follow-up race from the Trafalgar Hotel (at the corner of Bridge and Trafalgar Street) to the wharf and back, with the winner Henry Wimsett completing the course in 11 minutes and 5 seconds.
Wimsett and his brother Thomas were local blacksmiths who reportedly made their own velocipedes for racing.
While we do not know who built the two velocipedes that still exist in Nelson, we do know they were made in Richmond and Nelson in the late 1860s.
Frederick William Holdaway (b.14/4/1857, d. 24/4/1895) owned the velocipede in the museum’s collection while Henry Baltrop, who with his wife Mary Ann, brought nine sons and three daughters into the world, owned the velocipede now on display at Founders.
Holdaway’s daughter Gladys Alberta Papps (nee Holdaway, b.15/7/1888, d. 26/8/1969) donated the velocipede that belonged to her father to the Nelson Provincial Museum in 1968. Winn Bros donated the Baltrop’s velocipede to Founders Heritage Park in 1986.
It’s possible that Holdaway and some of Baltrop’s nine sons might have ridden the velocipedes. Although they are large and heavy (weighing about 25kg), teenagers in the late 1800s embraced this novel form of transport that didn’t involve a horse.
MR F HOLDAWAY, FEBRUARY 1879. NELSON PROVINCIAL MUSEUM, W E BROWN COLLECTION: 13942
The evolution of the bicycle
The earliest versions of a self-propelled vehicle, called a “Dandy Horse” or “Hobby Horse”, were made around 1810. A Dandy Horse was used by straddling the frame and walking while seated like a contemporary “balance bike” for children. As a leisurely contraption for wealthier classes, they were often mocked and ridiculed because they looked so strange.
Dandy horses evolved into velocipedes with the introduction of cranks and levers to propel the vehicle along using either the feet or arms.
Various three- and four-wheeled designs emerged for children, ladies, and those with limited mobility. Many were also designed to hold two or more passengers.
The “modern velocipede” then appeared in the late 1860s in France and, a short time later, here in Nelson. Their two-wheel design resembled the original dandy but with the addition of integrated pedals on the axle of the front wheel.
VELOCIPEDE. NELSON PROVINCIAL MUSEUM COLLECTION: A2645
The big difference between the velocipede and today's bike was that you pedalled the front wheel directly. But they didn’t necessarily move in a straight line; there are reports that pushing down on each pedal made the velocipede veer in each pedal’s direction.
However, velocipedes were soon considered a safety menace to people and horses with incidents of horses shying from the noise (and vibration) of a velocipede on the road.
In 1883, Nelson City councillor Little resolved that velocipedes be “compelled to carry a whistle or a bell to give notice of their approach, in addition to lights.” Needless to say, similar laws came into effect by 1900 when the first cars started to appear on New Zealand roads but this time to keep cyclists safe.
Velocipedes, as with Penny Farthings, quickly disappeared after the introduction of contemporary bicycles fitted with chain gears, which were first known as “safety bicycles”. Complaints of “cads on casters” continued but this time it was because their “silent” rubber tyres frightened unaware pedestrians and horses.
Then, from the early 1900s, New Zealand embraced the motor vehicle, and the humble bicycle was relegated to the garden shed, until the more recent resurgence of cycling.
Cycling today
The bicycle has always been a lightning rod for the culture wars, according to bike enthusiast Jody Rosen, who wrote Two Wheels: The History and Mystery of the Bicycle.
Today, some cultures around the world view the bicycle as an essential form of transport while in others – including here in Aotearoa – car culture still reigns supreme.
Despite the efforts of cycling organisations, the boom in mountainbiking, and the rapid roll-out of new cycle trails around the motu, drivers and riders still seem to remain at odds about who naturally “owns” the road – and cycling in this country, at least for now, seems to be primarily considered sport rather than transport.
However, as modern bicycles continue to evolve, there are signs this is changing. While the overall design of the bicycle hasn’t changed significantly in 150 years, new battery powered technology gives cyclists the freedom (and confidence) to travel further, over more varied terrain, and in more comfort than ever before.
Note: The Nelson Provincial Museum velocipede is currently in storage but can be viewed via collections online or appointment. Locals and visitors can see the second velocipede on display at Founders Heritage Park.
PLEASE NOTE: this object is not currently on display. For more information about this object, please contact us.
Article prepared by Nelson Provincial Museum curator Shae Trewin, with additional reporting and editing by Kerry Sunderland. The article was originally published in The Nelson Mail on Saturday 3rd September, 2022. To view the story please click here.