Humber: Cycles
14 Gent's Roadster with Double-Action Backpedal Band Brake View. 1903 Sunbeam Ladies' Model View. 1904 Cheylesmore Swift Roadster View. 1923 BSA All-Weather Ladies' Bicycle View. 1926 Golden Sunbeam for Gentlemen (28″ Frame) View. 1930 Western Union ‘Messenger Special. Get the best deals for vintage humber bicycle at eBay.com. We have a great online selection at the lowest prices with Fast & Free shipping on many items!
From Graces Guide
Very old Ladies Humber bicycle model 'fifty'. Frame number 608469 cottered bottom bracket and has lovely complete gearcase. Probably rideable as it is but would be an easy restoration!
Humber Ladies Bicycle Shorts
Note: This is a sub-section of the main Humber entry
For the early history see Thomas Humber
1878 Advert: Humber and Co: established 1878: manufacturers of the celebrated Humber cycles[1].
1884 First safety cycle.
1888 February. Stanley Exhibition of Cycles in Westminster. Humber and Co of Beeston are an amalgamation of Devey and Co, Coventry Cycle Co and Townsend and Co. Forty-five machines shown. Some items share a patent with Woodhead, Angois and Ellis. Also a tricycle exhibited. [2][3]
1889 Jan/Feb. Stanley Exhibition. Cycle. [4]
1889 February. The Engineer. [5]
1890 Jan/Feb. The Stanley Exhibition of Cycles at the Crystal Palace. Bicycle. Illustrated. So easy it can be ridden without hands! [6]
1890 Diamond-framed Humber bicycle produced which was essentially the same as modern bicycles[7].
1892 Safety bicycle. Exhibit at Nottingham Industrial Museum.
1896/7 Directory: Listed under cycles. More details[8]
1898 Advert: Humber and Co: manufacturers of the celebrated Humber cycles; Beeston-Humber cycles are recognised as the best; first use of aluminium tubes; Wolverhampton-Humber cycles are exact copies of those made at Beeston; Coventry-Humber cycles at prices within the reach of all[9].
1906 Introduction of Humber-Cordner 3-speed gear[10].
1927 Stand 35 at the 1927 Motor Cycle and Cycle Show at Olympia.
1932 Raleigh Cycle Co acquired the cycle division of Humber
No. 17. [11]
56 inch Beeston Humber racing 'ordinary,' specially built for R. M. Wright, of Lincoln, about 1889, under the personal supervision of Thomas Humber: Wright won many prizes on this machine.
This exhibit shows the 'ordinary' at the zenith of its mechanical development. On identical machines — except in the matter of height — the 1 mile and 1 hour 'ordinary' records were made: these are still unbeaten: the time for the mile was 2 minutes 28.8 seconds by F. J. Osmond at Paddington track on 15th July, 1890 and the 1 hour, 21 miles 180 yards by B. W. Attlee at Herne Hill, 2nd September, 1891.
It has frequently been stated that Attlee used a pneumatic tyred machine: this is not correct; his Humber 'ordinary' was fitted with solid tyres. Accompanying this exhibit is a letter from B. W. Attlee in which he says: 'It seems unlikely that these figures will ever be beaten. My mount was a 57 inch, and was fitted with solid tyres, not pneumatics as stated in some existing lists of records.'
On this identical machine, G. D. Woodley won the 'ordinary' race for the Old Timers Cup at Herne Hill in 1923. Loaned by R. M. Wright. Weight 26 lbs.
No. 18. [12]
56 inch Beeston Humber racing 'ordinary.' This is probably the last example of the old high bicycle made by the Humber Co.: it was specially built for H. D. Faith, London Bicycle Club, for the last of the 'ordinary' championships, held in 1892, and on it Faith ran second to J. H. Adams in the 1 and 25 miles championships that year.
It will be noted that the front wheel has tangent spokes; and old-timers who recall Thomas Humber's antipathy to that system of spoking will guess that 'thereby hangs a tale.' This is the tale. Faith, being a very heavy man, found the original direct-spoked wheel 'give' slightly on the banking of Paddington track: he therefore had the wheel rebuilt, with tangent spokes, by Pollard Brothers, the West London cycle makers, who also replaced the original Humber cranks with 'Southard' patent twisted cranks.
Mr. Humber was very annoyed at this interference with his design, and asked Faith to return the machine, offering to refund the price paid for it. The request was not complied with, and on his retirement from racing, Faith presented the bicycle to the Bartleet Museum. Weight, 30.5 lbs.
The cranks on this 'Humber' are worth noting: they were specially fitted by H. D. Faith's order when the front wheel was rebuilt with tangent spokes. Known as 'Southard's Twisted Cranks,' they were an invention of a Southampton man of that name, under his patent No. 17408/1889, and embody an extremely clever principle. Each crank was forcibly twisted exactly half a turn when cold, the claim being that, after this treatment, the metal would not twist any more on violent pedal pressure being applied to it. Obviously right and left cranks were twisted in different directions and were not interchangeable.
Southard's cranks were stated to weigh only 7 ounces the pair, against 16 ounces, the alleged weight of the standard cranks of the period. For some years after their introduction they enjoyed considerable popularity.
No. 38. [13]
'Humber' safety bicycle, 1891. Made at the Beeston Works of Messrs. T. Humber and Co., vide original transfer on down tube. 28 inch back wheel, 30 inch front: solid tyres. Features to note: swinging bottom bracket for adjusting tension of chain; lamp bracket and head clip combined; steering centres in front of line of forks. Presented by G. W. Mann, F.O.T.C.
No. 42. [14]
Humber bicycle, fitted with 'Boudard' gear. Weight complete 36.25 lbs. Wheels 28 inch back, 30 inch front. Presented by William Armstrong, Middlesbrough.
The 'Boudard' gear was invented by Marcel Boudard and Cornelius Henry Crawley, Peveril Works, Peveril Street, Nottingham. Date of patent application, 26th January, 1893, No. 1779.
The operation of the mechanism is easy to follow but hard to explain: its advantages are even more difficult to appreciate. Instead of the usual chain-wheel on the right side, the bracket-spindle carried an internally-toothed cog-wheel on the left side; this engaged with a small cog-wheel on a spindle which revolved in supplementary bearings placed immediately behind the main bracket. The other end of this second spindle carried a small chain-wheel, from which a chain ran to a larger chain-ring on the hub of the rear wheel. It will be seen that part of this complicated mechanism geared the road wheel up to an enormous extent, the chain and its two sprockets promptly reducing the gear to about normal proportions.
The Gear was taken up by Humber and Co., Ltd., and in 1894 G. P. Mills, then Works Manager at Humber's Beeston factory, beat the Land's End to John O'Groats record on a Humber bicycle fitted with the Boudard gear, his time being 3 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, beating R. H. Carlisle's record by 8 hours 26 minutes. He used a gear of 66. This time still stands as paced record: it was beaten under unpaced conditions by G. A. Olley in 1908, his figures being 3 days 5 hours 20 minutes.
A letter from G. P. Mills is attached to the exhibit in the Bartleet Collection: in this he says: 'My pacemakers, who rode the spare machine, christened it the 'Pushard Gear'!
In October, 1894, a company was floated, with a capital of £45,000, to purchase the Boudard Gear patent. It had a brief and somewhat hectic career, and came to an untimely end.
Note the 'Fairbanks' laminated wood rims, covered with thin canvas, and varnished— 'to keep out the wet.' Also Humber system of spoking, with direct spokes in the front wheel and on the left side of the rear wheel, and tangents on the driven side of the rear wheel.
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑The Times, 9 February 1898
- ↑The Engineer of 10th February 1888 p118 and p161
- ↑The Engineer of 15th February 1888 p131
- ↑1889 Jan/Feb. Stanley Exhibition
- ↑The Engineer of 22nd Feb 1889 p158
- ↑The Engineer of 7th February 1890 p107 and p138-9
- ↑The Story of the Bicycle, by John Woodforde, 1970
- ↑Peck's Trades Directory of Birmingham, 1896-97: Cycles
- ↑The Times, 9 February 1898
- ↑The Times, 6 April, 1906
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
insignia high on the left front wall
Humber is an English brand of bicycle.[1] Thomas Humber made himself a velocipede in 1868. From that time he built a substantial business in manufacturing tricycles and bicycles while continuously improving their design and construction. His products were so well-made and well-designed they were known as 'the aristocrat among bicycles'.
Though Thomas Humber retired from the cycle business in 1892 and went on to other things his brand name remained a high valued trademark for more than ninety years.
History[edit]
Thomas Humber (1841–1910)[2] founded a bicycle manufacturing business at Nottingham which moved about 1878 to Beeston, Nottinghamshire. By 1887, still under his day-to-day management, it was owned by a public listed company, Humber & Co Limited. Thomas Humber improved cycle technology through the independence of his thinking and his practical ability. The reliability of his products arose from his high standards and emphasis on quality. It all led to Humber becoming regarded as the aristocrat among bicycles.[2]
- Velocipede
Thomas Humber, at that time by trade a Nottingham blacksmith, had built himself a velocipede based on a picture in a letter about the Paris-developed machine that was published in the English Mechanic Word to latex grindeq. magazine in late 1868. He sold it and made an improved version—bought by the same buyer. It took him 2 months to make each velocipede, he was concerned to develop improvements: solid rubber tyres, ball-bearings, while maintaining quality and reliability. He instituted races to win public interest.[2]
Ordinary or 'Penny-farthing'[edit]
by Humber, Marriott & Cooper
The Science Museum
Thomas's own design of 'ordinary', now commonly known as a 'penny-farthing', appeared in 1871 and not long after James Starley's metal ordinary. His first price-list contained a testimonial by Fred Cooper, a racing cyclist. Another racing contact was Thomas Marriott.
Safety bicycle[edit]
Thomas Humber developed and patented the safety bicycle (1884) with a diamond-shaped frame and wheels of similar size.
Ownership[edit]
- Humber, Marriott and Cooper
Thomas Marriott joined Thomas Humber as a business partner in 1875 and Fred Cooper joined them two years later. They named their new firm Humber, Marriott & Cooper. Their staff of 80 or so needed more factory space so they built them a new works at Beeston.[2]
Cooper and Marriott left the firm in 1885 but Thomas let them have equal rights to the name Humber. He also let them use the old partnership's patents. They set themselves up as cycle wholesalers and later got Rudge of Coventry to make the cycles for them.[2]
- Humber and Lambert
Thomas Humber took in a new partner, Nottingham lace bleacher dyer and finisher, T Harrison Lambert, and they took charge of the whole Humber business and its Beeston works. Lambert was a cycle-racing friend building a reputation as a successful company promoter.[2]
- Humber & Company Limited, public listed company
The cycle industry was consolidating and Humber and Lambert soon sold the business to speculators: William and Joseph Horton, Edward Alfred Hicks and Christopher Norris Baker, who added a number of other substantial cycle manufacturers[note 1] and then floated the new combine on the stock exchange.[3][4] Such was the public's recognition of Humber products and their high quality and reliability the whole new organisation was named Humber & Co Limited though Humber's was not the largest component.
- Production, deliveries and order book just before combination[4]
| Manufacturer | Production April 1887 | Production May 1887 | Deliveries April 1887 | Deliveries May 1887 | Unexec. orders April 1887 | Unexec. orders May 1887 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Humber & Co Beeston | 237 | 263 | 242 | 328 | 246 | 284 |
| Coventry Cycle Co Ltd | 453 | 416 | 435 | 409 | 593 | 535 |
| Express Cycle Works | 293 | 381 | 483 | 495 | 293 | 278 |
| Wellington Works | 120 | 120 | 218 | 254 | 151 | 192 |
| Total | 1,103 | 1,180 | 1,378 | 1,486 | 1,283 | 1,289 |
Thomas Humber agreed to manage the whole enterprise with its works in Coventry and Wolverhampton as well as Beeston.[2] Aged 51, Thomas Humber retired in 1892 at the end of his 5-year contract.[2]
- Humber and Company (America) Limited, Humber and Company (France) Limited, Humber and Company (Extension) Limited etc.
A period of strong overseas expansion began in 1894[5] followed by an administrative separation of manufacturing from wholesaling and retailing. An 1896 joint venture with major French cycle companies, Clement and Gladiator failed.[6]
There was a cycling boom over 1895-97 —see the enthusiastic move into France— as pneumatic tyres attracted a new class of riders but it was followed by a slump over 1898-99.
- Humber Limited
56 inch Beeston Humber racing 'ordinary.' This is probably the last example of the old high bicycle made by the Humber Co.: it was specially built for H. D. Faith, London Bicycle Club, for the last of the 'ordinary' championships, held in 1892, and on it Faith ran second to J. H. Adams in the 1 and 25 miles championships that year.
It will be noted that the front wheel has tangent spokes; and old-timers who recall Thomas Humber's antipathy to that system of spoking will guess that 'thereby hangs a tale.' This is the tale. Faith, being a very heavy man, found the original direct-spoked wheel 'give' slightly on the banking of Paddington track: he therefore had the wheel rebuilt, with tangent spokes, by Pollard Brothers, the West London cycle makers, who also replaced the original Humber cranks with 'Southard' patent twisted cranks.
Mr. Humber was very annoyed at this interference with his design, and asked Faith to return the machine, offering to refund the price paid for it. The request was not complied with, and on his retirement from racing, Faith presented the bicycle to the Bartleet Museum. Weight, 30.5 lbs.
The cranks on this 'Humber' are worth noting: they were specially fitted by H. D. Faith's order when the front wheel was rebuilt with tangent spokes. Known as 'Southard's Twisted Cranks,' they were an invention of a Southampton man of that name, under his patent No. 17408/1889, and embody an extremely clever principle. Each crank was forcibly twisted exactly half a turn when cold, the claim being that, after this treatment, the metal would not twist any more on violent pedal pressure being applied to it. Obviously right and left cranks were twisted in different directions and were not interchangeable.
Southard's cranks were stated to weigh only 7 ounces the pair, against 16 ounces, the alleged weight of the standard cranks of the period. For some years after their introduction they enjoyed considerable popularity.
No. 38. [13]
'Humber' safety bicycle, 1891. Made at the Beeston Works of Messrs. T. Humber and Co., vide original transfer on down tube. 28 inch back wheel, 30 inch front: solid tyres. Features to note: swinging bottom bracket for adjusting tension of chain; lamp bracket and head clip combined; steering centres in front of line of forks. Presented by G. W. Mann, F.O.T.C.
No. 42. [14]
Humber bicycle, fitted with 'Boudard' gear. Weight complete 36.25 lbs. Wheels 28 inch back, 30 inch front. Presented by William Armstrong, Middlesbrough.
The 'Boudard' gear was invented by Marcel Boudard and Cornelius Henry Crawley, Peveril Works, Peveril Street, Nottingham. Date of patent application, 26th January, 1893, No. 1779.
The operation of the mechanism is easy to follow but hard to explain: its advantages are even more difficult to appreciate. Instead of the usual chain-wheel on the right side, the bracket-spindle carried an internally-toothed cog-wheel on the left side; this engaged with a small cog-wheel on a spindle which revolved in supplementary bearings placed immediately behind the main bracket. The other end of this second spindle carried a small chain-wheel, from which a chain ran to a larger chain-ring on the hub of the rear wheel. It will be seen that part of this complicated mechanism geared the road wheel up to an enormous extent, the chain and its two sprockets promptly reducing the gear to about normal proportions.
The Gear was taken up by Humber and Co., Ltd., and in 1894 G. P. Mills, then Works Manager at Humber's Beeston factory, beat the Land's End to John O'Groats record on a Humber bicycle fitted with the Boudard gear, his time being 3 days, 5 hours, 49 minutes, beating R. H. Carlisle's record by 8 hours 26 minutes. He used a gear of 66. This time still stands as paced record: it was beaten under unpaced conditions by G. A. Olley in 1908, his figures being 3 days 5 hours 20 minutes.
A letter from G. P. Mills is attached to the exhibit in the Bartleet Collection: in this he says: 'My pacemakers, who rode the spare machine, christened it the 'Pushard Gear'!
In October, 1894, a company was floated, with a capital of £45,000, to purchase the Boudard Gear patent. It had a brief and somewhat hectic career, and came to an untimely end.
Note the 'Fairbanks' laminated wood rims, covered with thin canvas, and varnished— 'to keep out the wet.' Also Humber system of spoking, with direct spokes in the front wheel and on the left side of the rear wheel, and tangents on the driven side of the rear wheel.
See Also
Sources of Information
- ↑The Times, 9 February 1898
- ↑The Engineer of 10th February 1888 p118 and p161
- ↑The Engineer of 15th February 1888 p131
- ↑1889 Jan/Feb. Stanley Exhibition
- ↑The Engineer of 22nd Feb 1889 p158
- ↑The Engineer of 7th February 1890 p107 and p138-9
- ↑The Story of the Bicycle, by John Woodforde, 1970
- ↑Peck's Trades Directory of Birmingham, 1896-97: Cycles
- ↑The Times, 9 February 1898
- ↑The Times, 6 April, 1906
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
- ↑Bartleet's Bicycle Book
insignia high on the left front wall
Humber is an English brand of bicycle.[1] Thomas Humber made himself a velocipede in 1868. From that time he built a substantial business in manufacturing tricycles and bicycles while continuously improving their design and construction. His products were so well-made and well-designed they were known as 'the aristocrat among bicycles'.
Though Thomas Humber retired from the cycle business in 1892 and went on to other things his brand name remained a high valued trademark for more than ninety years.
History[edit]
Thomas Humber (1841–1910)[2] founded a bicycle manufacturing business at Nottingham which moved about 1878 to Beeston, Nottinghamshire. By 1887, still under his day-to-day management, it was owned by a public listed company, Humber & Co Limited. Thomas Humber improved cycle technology through the independence of his thinking and his practical ability. The reliability of his products arose from his high standards and emphasis on quality. It all led to Humber becoming regarded as the aristocrat among bicycles.[2]
- Velocipede
Thomas Humber, at that time by trade a Nottingham blacksmith, had built himself a velocipede based on a picture in a letter about the Paris-developed machine that was published in the English Mechanic Word to latex grindeq. magazine in late 1868. He sold it and made an improved version—bought by the same buyer. It took him 2 months to make each velocipede, he was concerned to develop improvements: solid rubber tyres, ball-bearings, while maintaining quality and reliability. He instituted races to win public interest.[2]
Ordinary or 'Penny-farthing'[edit]
by Humber, Marriott & Cooper
The Science Museum
Thomas's own design of 'ordinary', now commonly known as a 'penny-farthing', appeared in 1871 and not long after James Starley's metal ordinary. His first price-list contained a testimonial by Fred Cooper, a racing cyclist. Another racing contact was Thomas Marriott.
Safety bicycle[edit]
Thomas Humber developed and patented the safety bicycle (1884) with a diamond-shaped frame and wheels of similar size.
Ownership[edit]
- Humber, Marriott and Cooper
Thomas Marriott joined Thomas Humber as a business partner in 1875 and Fred Cooper joined them two years later. They named their new firm Humber, Marriott & Cooper. Their staff of 80 or so needed more factory space so they built them a new works at Beeston.[2]
Cooper and Marriott left the firm in 1885 but Thomas let them have equal rights to the name Humber. He also let them use the old partnership's patents. They set themselves up as cycle wholesalers and later got Rudge of Coventry to make the cycles for them.[2]
- Humber and Lambert
Thomas Humber took in a new partner, Nottingham lace bleacher dyer and finisher, T Harrison Lambert, and they took charge of the whole Humber business and its Beeston works. Lambert was a cycle-racing friend building a reputation as a successful company promoter.[2]
- Humber & Company Limited, public listed company
The cycle industry was consolidating and Humber and Lambert soon sold the business to speculators: William and Joseph Horton, Edward Alfred Hicks and Christopher Norris Baker, who added a number of other substantial cycle manufacturers[note 1] and then floated the new combine on the stock exchange.[3][4] Such was the public's recognition of Humber products and their high quality and reliability the whole new organisation was named Humber & Co Limited though Humber's was not the largest component.
- Production, deliveries and order book just before combination[4]
| Manufacturer | Production April 1887 | Production May 1887 | Deliveries April 1887 | Deliveries May 1887 | Unexec. orders April 1887 | Unexec. orders May 1887 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Humber & Co Beeston | 237 | 263 | 242 | 328 | 246 | 284 |
| Coventry Cycle Co Ltd | 453 | 416 | 435 | 409 | 593 | 535 |
| Express Cycle Works | 293 | 381 | 483 | 495 | 293 | 278 |
| Wellington Works | 120 | 120 | 218 | 254 | 151 | 192 |
| Total | 1,103 | 1,180 | 1,378 | 1,486 | 1,283 | 1,289 |
Thomas Humber agreed to manage the whole enterprise with its works in Coventry and Wolverhampton as well as Beeston.[2] Aged 51, Thomas Humber retired in 1892 at the end of his 5-year contract.[2]
- Humber and Company (America) Limited, Humber and Company (France) Limited, Humber and Company (Extension) Limited etc.
A period of strong overseas expansion began in 1894[5] followed by an administrative separation of manufacturing from wholesaling and retailing. An 1896 joint venture with major French cycle companies, Clement and Gladiator failed.[6]
There was a cycling boom over 1895-97 —see the enthusiastic move into France— as pneumatic tyres attracted a new class of riders but it was followed by a slump over 1898-99.
- Humber Limited
Humber Ladies Bicycle Shop
Following these financial difficulties in 1899 Humber & Co Limited's business was transferred to a new incorporation named Humber Limited.[7]
- Raleigh
By 1914 Humber had become Britain's second largest motorcar manufacturer and cycles became less important. In February 1932 renewed financial difficulties in part due to the Great Depression and a brief surge in cycle sales saw Humber's cycle trademarks and patents sold to Raleigh. Humber continued as a premium brand made by Raleigh into the 1960s.
Frame[edit]
Humber also manufactured, at one time, an unusual type of bicycle frame known variously as 'cross frames', 'girder frames', or 'truss frames'. Their variant was also duplex, consisting in part of smaller side-by-side tubes similar to the duplex fork pictured on this page.[8]
Motorcycles[edit]
In 1896 Humber produced the first practical motorcycle by fitting a bicycle with an E. J. Pennington two-horsepower motor.[9]
Gallery[edit]
Badge on a Beeston penny farthing
Badge Humber Limited and royal warrant
Badge Humber by Raleigh
Humber sports Sturmey Archer 3-speed
Humber sports duplex forks
Henri Loste, Champion du Midi, on a Humber bicycle with a Simpson lever chain c. 1894
See also[edit]
Vintage Humber Bicycle
- Raleigh Cycles - Biggest UK manufacture at one period.
Note[edit]
- ^
- Thomas Humber and T Harrison Lambert trading as Humber & Co, Beeston, Nottingham, 350 men*, established 1868 also in London
- Coventry Cycle Company Limited, Whitefriars Lane Coventry, 160 men, established 1871
- Joseph Devey's Express Cycle Works, Wolverhampton, 170 men, established 1873
- George Townend's Wellington Works, Coventry, which held 'a practical monopoly' of machines for juveniles
- Details such as production quantities were audited by London chartered accountant John R Ellerman
- * Humber alone made all the components for its machines instead of buying them
References[edit]
Humber Bicycle History
- ^Brown, Sheldon. 'The Golden Age of 3 Speeds'. Sheldon Brown. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
- ^ abcdefghPaul Freund, 'Humber, Thomas (1841–1910)', Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, May 2012
- ^Money-Market and City Intelligence. The Times, Friday, 17 June 1887; pg. 11; Issue 32101.
- ^ abPublic Companies. The Times, Saturday, 18 June 1887; pg. 4; Issue 32102
- ^The Times, Thursday, 13 December 1894; pg. 15; Issue 34446
- ^Clément, Gladiator, And Humber (France), Limited. The Times, Monday, 12 October 1896; pg. 13; Issue 35019
- ^International Bank Of London (Limited).-The. The Times, Friday, 9 March 1900; pg. 3; Issue 36085
- ^'Cross Frames: Historical Evolution'. Retrieved 27 April 2007.
- ^'Humber'. Retrieved 6 July 2008.
