The Lady Cyclists' Association was the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

's – and probably the world's – first

cycling organisation A cycling club is a society for cyclists. Clubs tend to be mostly local, and can be general or specialised. In the United Kingdom, for example, the Cyclists' Touring Club, (CTC) is a national cycling association; the Tricycle Association, Tan ...

expressly for women, set up to provide rides, tours and social gatherings for women cyclists.

History

The association was established in 1892, 12 years after the admission of the first woman into the 'Bicycle Touring Club', later renamed the

Cyclists' Touring Club Cycling UK is a trading name of the Cyclists' Touring Club (CTC), which is a charitable membership organisation supporting cyclists and promoting bicycle use. Cycling UK is registered at Companies House as "Cyclists’ Touring Club", and is co ...

. Its headquarters were at 35 Victoria Street, London. The annual membership fee was three shillings and sixpence.Dictionary of British women's organisations, 1825-1960
p80, by Peter Gordon and David Doughan It was affiliated to the

National Cyclists' Union The National Cyclists' Union (NCU) was an association established in the Guildhall Tavern, London, on 16 February 1878 as the Bicycle Union. Its purpose was to defend cyclists and to organise and regulate bicycle racing in Great Britain. It merge ...

, which was a sporting rather than leisure organisation. Some of its members wore '

rational dress Victorian dress reform was an objective of the Victorian dress reform movement (also known as the rational dress movement) of the middle and late Victorian era, led by various reformers who proposed, designed, and wore clothing considered more ...

' and advocated women's right to wear comfortable clothing while cycling. The organisation published a handbook (priced 4 d), containing details of reasonably priced places to stay while cycle touring, and a monthly journal, the ''Lady Cyclists' Association News''. The founder and early driving force behind the association was Miss

Lillias Campbell Davidson Lillias Campbell Davidson (1853–1934) was an American-born British writer. She founded the Lady Cyclists' Association. In 2018, the New York Times published a belated obituary. Life According to Elizabeth Robins Pennell, another American cycl ...

, who saw cycling as a path to the emancipation of women from restrictions imposed by society, opining that cycling offered "the greatest boon that has come to women for many a long day". Davidson was the author of the best-selling ''Hints to Lady Travellers'' (1889) and later the ''Handbook for Lady Cyclists'' (1896). She also wrote the ladies' column in the Cyclists' Touring Club ''Gazette''.
JHU Press, 2003, by Julie Wosk, pp98-99

References

{{Reflist Julie Wosk, Women and the Machine: Representations From the Spinning Wheel to the Electronic Age (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2001, 2003).

History

References

See also