Ladies cycling down Bushey High Street
in about 1904

At the HALH Symposium on Sport in Hertfordshire, held in November 2012, John Pearson gave an enthralling talk on "Cycling in the Edwardian Period" illustrated with a large number of pictures of bicycles and their riders. These helped to explain the way that the coming of the bicycle encouraged people to come out into the countryside around London, especially Hertfordshire, in the period prior to the First World War.

Evidence of this can often be found in early post cards such as this one of the Old Manor Farm House at Little Berkhampstead. All the cyclists touring the countryside would require refreshments - and sometimes overnight accommodation - and signs welcoming cyclists started to appear in the towns and villages of Hertfordshire. At the time there were few cars - but after the war the amount of motorised traffic increased and the signs were replaced by signs welcoming cars.

Other References on this Site

Frank Patterson (1871-1952) was a cycling artist who regularly had his sketches printed first in Cycling, starting in the 1890s  and later in Cyclists Touring Club Gazette from 1925.He is said to have produced about 26,000 drawings, including the one of the River Gade at Water End on the right.

Kinghams Cycle Shop, Western Road, Tring