Figure 1.--Here we have an undated Maryland cabinet card showing a boy on a tricycle, notice the metal wheels. The mount suggests it was taken in the 1890 which would be consisent with rge boys's Fauntlertoy suit and ringlet curls. The suit is a litl unusual. It is a small jacket, but not a cut-away jacket like the standard Faunrtleroy jacket. The studio was Roy's in Baltimore.

HBC does not have sufficent information on just when the tricycle appeared. We have found quite a few portraits of boys with bicycles and trikes, but most are undated. Judging from the photographic record, it appears to have been the 1880s but we have found one portrait that seems to date to the 1870s. We see many more in the 1890s. Quite a few studiis see to have had these vehicles as props. A good example is Frank Deeds in 1895. Notice the metal wheels and peddals and the gull wing shaped handle bars. The phptographic record may be misleading. The trikes pictured are presumably studio props. The actual number boys really had at home was probably more limited. The photographic archive we are building. This will provide a good record of the evolution of the tricycle over time. American boy, Ivan Eugene Perry is pictured woth a trike in a studio portrait during 1906-07. We note an American boy, Mitchel Murphy, riding his trike in the Bronx during 1912. It still looks to have metal wheels. I can confirm that I had a wonderful red and white trike when I was 5 years old in 1948. It was a solid metal trike with rubber wheels, none of this plastic stuff. It was my pride and joy.

Late-19th Century

HBC does not have sufficent information on just when the tricycle appeared. We have found quite a few portraits of boys with bicycles and trikes, but most are undated. Judging from the photographic record, it appears to have been the 1880s but we have found one portrait that seems to date to the 1870s. We see many more in the 1890s. Quite a few studiis see to have had these vehicles as props. A good example is Frank Deeds in 1895. Notice the metal wheels and peddals and the gull wing shaped handle bars. The phptographic record may be misleading. The trikes pictured are presumably studio props. The actual number boys really had at home was probably more limited. The photographic archive we are building. This will provide a good record of the evolution of the tricycle over time. Many of the earliest tricycles had giant wheels like some early bikes. An early example archived on HBC is an unidentifed American boy, we think in the 1870s. As the trike became increasingly seen as a child's bike, the size of the wheels was reduced. In the late 19th century, only very affluent families could afford them to children.

Early-20th Century

American boy, Ivan Eugene Perry is pictured woth a trike in a studio portrait during 1906-07. We note an American boy, Mitchel Murphy, riding his trike in the Bronx during 1912. It still looks to have metal wheels.

Mid-20th Century

Red trikes were all the rage by the 1930s, rather like the little red wagons. The tricycle played prominent role in post-war childhood. It appears as a matter of course in the general picture of the good childhood. And it is a natural choice of product when the exhibition is to be realized. Many people can show a picture of themselves or their children on a tricycle. Others can talk about an experience where it is a central prop, along the lines of "the time we fooled our little sister into riding down the basement stairs" or "we let the carrier hang and scrape over the paving stones until an adult came rushing up" etc. I can confirm that I had a wonderful red and white trike when I was 5 years old in 1948. It was a solid metal trike with rubber wheels, none of this plastic stuff. It was my pride and joy.

Late-20th Century

Companies in the late 20th century asked parebnrs, "Are you tired of the same old boring red tricyles roaming your sidewalks? Do you want your kid to have a nifty set of three wheels? Well, we've got the solution to making your kid stand out on the block and be the talk of the neighborhood. Aaron's Tricycles will create any size, any style tricyle for your kid. Aaron's Tricyles has been in the tricycle business for over 75 years. We will custom design any tricyle of your choice. BIG or small , we have them all. Choose from a rainbow of colors and patterns -- we have everything from pink polka-dotted to funky floral trikes. If there's something you want, don't hesitate to ask. We can do it. And with every tricycle you order, you get a free matching helmet to keep your kid safe." New colors appeared like: Autumn Leaves, Blueberry Pie, Plutonium Pizza, Sunspot Tongue, and Glacier Ice.

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Created: 9:12 PM 5/18/2020
Last updated: 9:12 PM 5/18/2020