Photographs of Child Bicycle Messengers Working in the Early 20th Century
#1
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Photographs of Child Bicycle Messengers Working in the Early 20th Century
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Thanks for posting that it was great to look at. There is a movie called Ithaca that chronicles a young bike messenger delivery telegrams. It's worth watching.
#5
Interocitor Command
Looks like some hard living back then. Most of those bikes looked way too big. I suppose having a properly fitted bike was a luxury.
I especially liked the pic where the kid was smoking a pipe.
I especially liked the pic where the kid was smoking a pipe.
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No ink, skinny jeans or ear flap hats.
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Those are some tough kids...makes me appreciate how easy my childhood was. I'm pretty sure that when my grandpa was that age, he was a delivery driver!
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I grew up in an agricultural area. Many kids worked on home farms from an early age. They had winter months free to play sports at school but harvest seasons were work times.
#9
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The hardcore teen bike messengers of the early 1900s
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Let's keep this thread on topic of cycling. It looks like it's destined for P&R though by the last couple posts.
#13
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I just saw some kids on bikes and thought it was neat, Thought it may have been posted before, but put it up anyway and someone comes on here and post a pic of coal miner kids? What does that have to do with messenger boys on bikes in the early 20th century?
Another internet forum.
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I'm removing the pics for being off-topic AND disruptive.
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See, this is why we can't have nice things. - - smarkinson
Where else but the internet can a bunch of cyclists go and be the tough guy? - - jdon
#15
Calamari Marionette Ph.D
With all due respect. The OP was about kids working at the turn of the century (on bikes). I didn't know it was disruptive to add to the conversation about working kids at the turn of the century.
The above posts have nothing to do with bikes. One has nothing to do with working children at the turn of the century. Yet my post was disruptive?
^^ Ironically, a little farther up, I made the best contribution to the thread by providing a link to the complete story about the bicycle messengers which includes all the photos. That goes unnoticed and not added to the OP.
Just saying.
This link is a more complete version of the story and pics.
The hardcore teen bike messengers of the early 1900s
The hardcore teen bike messengers of the early 1900s
Just saying.
#16
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Would be cool making money at a young age tho.
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The bikes themselves did not have any gears at all. They were either fixed or single speed bikes. I wonder how they locked them since none carried any kind chains? I didn't see anyone carry repair tools or even a frame pump!
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Those kids have those bikes stripped down and tweaked up good.
Hardly any flat tires back then. Maybe not as much theft as well.
Hardly any flat tires back then. Maybe not as much theft as well.
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Politics & Religion?
I just saw some kids on bikes and thought it was neat, Thought it may have been posted before, but put it up anyway and someone comes on here and post a pic of coal miner kids? What does that have to do with messenger boys on bikes in the early 20th century?
Another internet forum.
I just saw some kids on bikes and thought it was neat, Thought it may have been posted before, but put it up anyway and someone comes on here and post a pic of coal miner kids? What does that have to do with messenger boys on bikes in the early 20th century?
Another internet forum.
#25
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With all due respect. The OP was about kids working at the turn of the century (on bikes). I didn't know it was disruptive to add to the conversation about working kids at the turn of the century.
The above posts have nothing to do with bikes. One has nothing to do with working children at the turn of the century. Yet my post was disruptive?
^^ Ironically, a little farther up, I made the best contribution to the thread by providing a link to the complete story about the bicycle messengers which includes all the photos. That goes unnoticed and not added to the OP.
Just saying.
The above posts have nothing to do with bikes. One has nothing to do with working children at the turn of the century. Yet my post was disruptive?
^^ Ironically, a little farther up, I made the best contribution to the thread by providing a link to the complete story about the bicycle messengers which includes all the photos. That goes unnoticed and not added to the OP.
Just saying.