DID YOU KNOW? – Connecticut Historical Society

In the late 1800s, bicycles were trendy and Connecticut was the place to get one. Entrepreneur Albert Pope founded the Pope Manufacturing Company in Hartford and became a leading producer of bicycles. At first, Pope made “ordinary” bicycles, which got their speed from very large front wheels. These were popular, but hard to ride. Connecticut author Mark Twain purchased a bicycle from the Pope Manufacturing Company (which you can see in the exhibition!) and tried to learn how to ride it. “Get a bicycle,” he later wrote, “you will not regret it, if you live.”

Learn more about the history of bicycles in Connecticut at the Connecticut Historical Society’s newest exhibition The Bicycle Game. Solve puzzles, play games and take history for a ride! Learn more at chs.org.