A Short History of Vintage Schwinn Bicycles

From helmets and gloves to bike locks and lights, we prioritize safety without compromising on style. Plus, our expert staff are on hand to provide personalized recommendations and ensure you have everything you need for a smooth ride. Embark on an schwinn electric bike adventure like no other with our extensive selection of bikes and cycling gear. Whether you’re a seasoned cyclist or just starting out, we have everything you need to hit the road or trails in style and comfort. Schwinn did come back with a bike that assembled in the USA called the Homegrown, which is well-known in the mountain biking community, but it has since been discontinued. Starting in 2005, Schwinn also marketed Motorscooters under the Schwinn Motorsports brand.[69] Production ceased in 2011 (approx).

The brochure contains four interesting safety bicycles, including two for racing and two for everyday use. Because of the development of the safety bicycle, women had become avid bicyclists in the 1890s. The Schwinn women’s everyday model has a rear fender and webbing seemingly designed to prevent skirts from getting caught in the wheel or the chain.

Frank W. Schwinn also was constantly innovating on thefactory floor by investing in new manufacturing techniques. He also turnedSchwinn from a private label maker of bicycles sold in retail stores to aniconic national brand backed by an exclusive dealer network. His contributionswere not only beneficial for Schwinn but also for the entire bicycle industry. To meet this European competition, Schwinn developed a lineof middleweight bicycles.

Frank W. Schwinn made it a point to know the factoryworkers by name. Workers trusted Schwinn and did not require a detailed writtencontract. An element of paternalism was evident between Schwinn and its employeesbut it was always correctly assumed that Schwinn would take care of itsworkers. This tradition was eroded in the 1960s and 1970s with the rise in thevolume of Schwinn sales.

The Schwinn Bicycle Company emerged during the bicycle boom of the 1890s, a period where over 200 cycle manufacturers and small shops operated in Chicago alone. The company began operations in a factory at the northwest corner of Peoria and Lake Streets in Chicago. With the collapse of the bicycle market around the turn of the century, the company purchased March-Davis, a competitor which was operating on what was then the city’s far west side, and moved operations there. At this time, very few of the bicycles being produced by Giant bore their own brand name.

Dorel intends toannounce specific details regarding the use of the net proceeds from the saleat the time of closing. Martin Schwartz, Dorel’s President and CEO, made the following observations about the sale of its bicycle division. Relying heavily on the Schwinn archives and artifacts available through the museum, Pridmore and Hurd have done their best to document the highs and lows of Schwinn production. In 1971, Taiwanese eel farmer King Liu had his livelihood wiped out in a typhoon. Rather than rebuild, he decided to take an entirely new tack and venture into the world of bicycle manufacturing.

These Varsities and the Continentals were road bicycles madefrom the traditional heavy steels, the same material used in producing the kids’bicycles. They relied on existing factory technology to weld the frame for theVarsity and Continental. The frames were built with innovative electro-forgedwelding techniques which gave the bicycle frame very strong with a smooth lookat the joints. The problem was that this technique could not be used with thenewer, lighter chrome molly tubing.

Schwinn made a last gasp effort to correct the problems withthe Greenville plant. Edward Schwinn, Jr.’s brother Richard Schwinn volunteeredto move to Mississippi to oversee the factory. He made significant progress inimproving the quality of bicycles coming from the plant but it was too littleand too late. The new factory in Greenville Mississippi never generated apositive cash flow and also was destined to be closed.