William Hume (3 April 1862 – 1941The Bicycle, 12 Nov 1941, p6) was an

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

cyclist Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from two ...

. He demonstrated the supremacy of

John Boyd Dunlop John Boyd Dunlop (5 February 1840 – 23 October 1921) was a Scottish-born inventor and veterinary surgeon who spent most of his career in Ireland. Familiar with making rubber devices, he invented the first practical pneumatic tyres for his c ...

's newly invented

pneumatic tyre Pneumatics (from Greek ‘wind, breath’) is a branch of engineering that makes use of gas or pressurized air. Pneumatic systems used in industry are commonly powered by compressed air or compressed inert gases. A centrally located and ele ...

s in 1889, winning the tyre's first ever races in Ireland and then England.Dunlop, What sets Dunlop apart, History, 1889
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Career

In March 1889 Hume, the captain of the Belfast Cruisers Cycling Club, was the first member of the public to purchase a "

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 ...

" fitted with Dunlop's newly patented pneumatic tyres. Dunlop suggested that it would be advantageous to Hume to use them in a race. Thus on 18 May 1889 he won all four cycling events at the Queen's College Sports held on the North of Ireland Cricket Club Grounds, (or Queens College playing fields) at Cherryvale, Belfast.Adam Hart Davis, Birth of the Bike
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/ref> Entrepreneur and paper manufacturer Harvey du Cros was present at the meet, and was so impressed that within six months he had acquired the patent rights (or in 1896) for £3,000 and floated the first Pneumatic Tyre Company. Hume went on to be the person to introduce the new invention to England, when, in 1889, he raced on pneumatics in Liverpool, winning all but one of the cycling events. Hume's achievements were celebrated in 1938 when ''

Cycling Weekly ''Cycling Weekly'' is a British cycling magazine. It is published by Future and is devoted to the sport and pastime of cycling. It used to be affectionately referred to by British club cyclists as "The Comic".

'', then known simply as ''Cycling'' awarded him his own page in the

Golden Book of Cycling The ''Golden Book of Cycling'' was created in 1932 by ''Cycling'', a British cycling magazine, to celebrate "the Sport and Pastime of Cycling by recording the outstanding rides, deeds and accomplishments of cyclists, officials and administrat ...

.The Golden Book of Cycling – William Hume, 1938. Archive maintained by 'The Pedal Club'.
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Patent dispute

Dunlop's patent, which he had sold to Du Cros, was legally disputed. Two years after he was granted the patent Dunlop was officially informed that it was invalid as Scottish inventor

Robert William Thomson Robert William Thomson PRSSA FRSE (29 June 1822–8 March 1873), from Stonehaven, Scotland, was the inventor of the fountain pen and original inventor of the pneumatic tyre. Life He was born on 29 June 1822 in Stonehaven in the northeas ...

(1822–1873) had patented the idea in France in 1846 and in the US in 1847. Dunlop's patent was later declared invalid on the basis of Thomson's prior art.

References

* https://www.roadbikerider.com/who-in-the-world-was-willie-hume-d1/ :: Statement made by John Boyd Dunlop to John B. Purchase of 11 Queen Victoria Street for the Pneumatic Tyre Company, charting the history of his invention of the pneumatic tyre, undated. :: Pages three and four of a statement made by Finlay Sinclair to the same ages one and two not present :: Statement of William Hume of Temple More Avenue, Belfast, manufacturer, attached to the above, in which he claimed to have been the first person to have purchased a roadster cycle fitted with Dunlop tyres. This happened in March 1889. In May 1889 he purchased a Dunlop racer and won four first prizes at the Queen's College Sports, Belfast. This statement is annotated in manuscript by Dunlop. :These statements are in draft form with manuscript alteration
Warwick University, Dunlop patents submissions
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hume, Willie 1862 births 1941 deaths Irish male cyclists Irish people of Scottish descent Sportspeople from Belfast Date of death missing

Career

Patent dispute

References

Further reading

Websites