In the bicycle craze of the 1890’s there were over 100 bicycle clubs in Philadelphia, and 45,000 people attended the national League of American Wheelmen conference there in 1897. Philadelphia was and is a cycling city. One representation of this is the series of narrative bicycle routes published in the Philadelphia Inquirer from 1896 to 1898. The 46 routes in the 1897/98 series routes have been digitized and are now publicly available (libguides.rutgers.edu/historicalbikeroutes). These routes are detailed descriptions, not only of road conditions but also of historical and cultural sites along the way. Most routes start in Philadelphia but venture north to New York City, west to Pittsburgh, south into Maryland, and east to the Jersey Shore. The author, Alphonse Estoclet, was a Frenchman who lived in the UK for about 20 years before immigrating to the United States. He includes snippets of songs, verse, literary allusions, and gossip about the famous, not so famous, and infamous characters who inhabited the places he rides past. Many of the routes also include route coupons — early examples of travel coupons, which guaranteed a discount at listed hotel restaurants. This column is very similar to contemporary travel blogs and provides an important window into cycling history.
About the presenterJulie M. Still
Julie Still is on the faculty of the Paul Robeson Library on the Camden Campus of Rutgers University. She has spoken on a number of topics at local, regional, and international conferences, and published books and articles. Her primary interests are social history, women’s studies, and digital humanities.