Electric Bike History
Electric bikes could not even be imagined when Baron von
Drais invented a wood “walking machine” in 1817 to be used in the royal
gardens. The Draisienne or hobby horse was propelled by pushing the feet
against the ground. Next was the wooden velocipede or Boneshaker in 1865 with
the pedals applied directly to the front wheel. The first all-metal bike, the
High Wheel Bicycle, so named because the front wheel was made according to the
length of the rider’s leg length, was created in 1870 with pedals still
attached to the front wheel and had solid rubber tires. As the bikes became
more sophisticated, the front and back wheels became the same size with hard rubber
tires. The pneumatic tire came next, invented by a young doctor named Dunlop.
Bicycling became popular in the 1880’s and 1890’s and
brought about social changes. Working men began to use it for transportation
and ladies gave up the bustle and corset in order to use the two- wheeled
bicycle more easily. During 1960 and 1970, the “English 3-speed” became popular
followed by the 10-speed drailleur bikes and in the 20th century, mountain and
battery-powered bicycles.
