Cycling in California's Central Valley Back in the 1800's
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10-30-20, 03:14 PM
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Very cool. To think, all that riding without disc brakes! I recently finished reading East of Eden, set in the same era and close to same location and didn’t once occur to me that someone would be riding bikes on those roads.
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N = '96 Colnago C40, '04 Wilier Alpe D'Huez, '10 Colnago EPS, '85 Merckx Pro, '89 Merckx Century, '86 Tommasini Professional, '04 Teschner Aero FX Pro, '05 Alan Carbon Cross, '86 De Rosa Professional, '82 Colnago Super, '95 Gios Compact Pro, '95 Carrera Zeus, '84 Basso Gap, ‘89 Cinelli Supercorsa, ‘83 Bianchi Specialissima, ‘VO Randonneur, Ritchey Breakaway Steel, '84 Paletti Super Prestige, Heron Randonneur
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10-30-20, 03:39 PM
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I wouldn't call 1898-1910 the 1800s.... and too much After Effects motion zoom....overused.
But very nice album!!
But very nice album!!
10-30-20, 04:15 PM
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They must've roasted in 105 degree heat, with those wool outfits. And I don't see those guys carrying any water. Fancy pantaloons though, plus fours? Plus zeros maybe.
Those tires look like 35's.
Those tires look like 35's.
Last edited by Lemond1985; 10-30-20 at 04:44 PM.
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10-30-20, 05:06 PM
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Nice album, and thank you for sharing! My father's family has been living in the San Joaquin Valley since the early 1870s and I still study local history with enthusiasm - based on your title I'd hoped you might have found something from a bit further south. However, it's still quite illuminating!
Not sure if I have anything concerning bicycles, but we have a photo of my great-great-grandfather astride his Excelsior motorcycle on top of a local hill from about 1910!
-Gregory
Not sure if I have anything concerning bicycles, but we have a photo of my great-great-grandfather astride his Excelsior motorcycle on top of a local hill from about 1910!
-Gregory
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10-30-20, 05:59 PM
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...that's winter. Maybe very early spring during the rainy season, Those annual plants would be brown and dead otherwise.
We've had various incarnations of levee along the American River since the 1860's, but they didn't stop the big water year flooding here until they built out Folsom Dam in the 1950's. I'm not sure about what roads they might have had along the American at this time, but a lot off people still ride the levee tops, which at this point are mostly gravel maintenance roads. Same with all the levees down in the Delta.
To the OP, thanks. These are quite remarkable photos (in my experience). If you think about it in terms of the settlement of this area on a large scale by Americans as only dating to the gold rush in 1848-49, those photos of the bike shop in the 700 block of K street are of great interest. If you remember that the transcontinental RR was only completed in 1869, the photos dating to the end or the 19th Century are gems.
If that album is in your possession (not sure if you are the guy who made the Youtube video), it's the sort of thing that the City Archivist over at the History Center would be overjoyed to see.
10-30-20, 06:39 PM
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Yep, I have the album and I shot the video. Maybe I'll take it over there, or shoot them a link to the video just to see if they'd be interested in doing something with the album. I figured that I'd eventually donate it somewhere, possibly the cycling museum in Davis, but it may be of more historical significance here in Sacramento.
10-30-20, 09:57 PM
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Very nice. What a great piece of history. I worked in the 800 block of K St. for 20 years.
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10-30-20, 10:07 PM
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That is absolutely fantastic! Being a Californian, and having ridden many roads around the state, watching that gave me the chills. I was especially impressed by the huge number of bikes for sale in their Stockton bike shop.
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10-31-20, 07:43 AM
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Such a cool era in history. Compared to modern bikes, these are a challenge to ride. Thanks for posting!
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10-31-20, 11:30 AM
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The shot of the shop in Stockton looks like where the old Schwinn shop was on the main street....wood floors and all.
Best, Ben
Best, Ben
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