Western Wheel Works was a

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bicycle company started by Adolph Schoeninger in 1866. It was one of the largest bicycle makers in the world. In 1899 it joined a trust which controlled 95 percent of the bicycle manufacturing market.

History

In 1865, Schoeninger and his partner F. Westermann started out manufacturing toys and other novelties under the name Western Toy Company. The factory burned down in 1866. In 1866 Western toy Works took over another factory which produced toy and baby carriages. The Western toy Company specialized in toy wagons. The toy company operated until the

Great Chicago Fire The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left more than 10 ...

of 1871. By 1872 Schoeninger obtained financing from European banks and rebuilt. In 1887 The Western Toy Company purchased the Vergho Rubling Co., a former toy dealer. The company began making

safety bicycle A safety bicycle (or simply a safety) is a type of bicycle that became very popular beginning in the late 1880s as an alternative to the penny-farthing ("ordinary") and is now the most common type of bicycle. Early bicycles of this style were kno ...

s bicycles in the late 1880s, under the

Crescent A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself. In Hinduism, Lord Shiva is often shown wearing a crescent moon on his ...

name. It also manufactured

tricycle A tricycle, sometimes abbreviated to trike, is a human-powered (or gasoline or electric motor powered or assisted, or gravity powered) three-wheeled vehicle. Some tricycles, such as cycle rickshaws (for passenger transport) and freight trikes, ...

s and children's bikes in 1890. By 1890 it was among the largest bicycle manufacturers in the world. It is known as a pioneer in the mass production of bicycles: rather than machining bicycle "parts such as hubs,

sprocket A sprocket, sprocket-wheel or chainwheel is a profiled wheel with teeth that mesh with a chain, track or other perforated or indented material. The name 'sprocket' applies generally to any wheel upon which radial projections engage a chain passi ...

chain guard A gear case, also known as a chain case or chainguard, is an enclosure for the bicycle chain and sprocket assemblages commonly employed by utility bicycles. It serves to protect the cyclist from being soiled or trapped in the chain rings and ten ...

s, fenders, and rims", it employed the much faster process of stamping them, thereby more than doubling the output of the factory in 1891. In 1893 Schoeninger transferred his ownership of the company to his two sons-in-law and he started a new company called the Home Rattan Company. By 1897 the company employed 1,500 people and produced 350 bicycles a day.

American Bicycle Company (1899-1903)

In 1899 the company joined a

trust Trust often refers to: * Trust (social science), confidence in or dependence on a person or quality It may also refer to: Business and law * Trust law, a body of law under which one person holds property for the benefit of another * Trust (bus ...

which was set up to control the bicycle market in the United States. Forty-two factories were part of the trust; the major barrier to organizing it was the manufacturer of rubber tires. It was decided that tires would be purchased from the "Rubber King", Charles R. Flint. The trust which formed under the name

American Bicycle Company American Bicycle Company (1899-1903) was an American bicycle company (Trust) led by Albert Augustus Pope. The company was formed to consolidate the manufacturers of bicycles and bicycle parts. In the 1890s the advancements in bicycle design led ...

only lasted a few years. Historians have not determined why the company failed but they have several theories. One idea was that the company was poorly organized, and another theory is that the various manufacturers involved in the company had different objectives. After the breakup the many different companies went back to competing.

Gallery

File:Crescent July 1896.png, Crescent bicycle advertisement, July 1896 File:The Procession of Crescent riders is increasing daily .png, "The Procession of Crescent riders is increasing daily" File:Western Wheel Works Crescent Bicycles advertisement 1896.png, 1896 baby ad File:1896 Woman's bike Western Wheel Works Crescent Bicycles advertisement.jpg, 1896 marketing to women File:Western Wheel Works Family.png, Advertisement for 1894 model Crescent bicycles File:Hills riding 1895 Western Wheel Works Crescent Bicycles advertisement.jpg, 1895 hill climbing File:1895 Crescent Bicycles, Western Wheel Works advertisement 75.jpg, 1895 ad File:1895 Western Wheel Works Crescent catalog.jpg, 1895 catalogue advertisement File:1899 photos of inside the Western Wheel Works Crescent Bicycles factory.png, Inside Western Wheel Works, 1899 File:Creepy baby ad from 1896 Western Wheel Works Crescent advertisement.jpg, Baby advertisement for Western Wheel Works, 1896

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Western Wheel Works 1892 introductions History of cycling Manufacturing companies based in Chicago ">Manufacturing companies based in Chicago">Manufacturing companies based in Chicago Cycle manufacturers of the United States History of cycling in the United States Companies based in Chicago