Whether you take to the trails, the sea wall, or the specified road lanes, there’s no denying that Vancouver is a bicycle town. From heavy duty shock absorbers to fixies and colourful cruisers, bikes pepper our urban landscape and are a large part of life in this city. As such, this week’s theme from the Vancouver Archives photo collection is: bikes.
1896 – Terminal City Bicycle Club. Archives item# Sp P16. Photographer: A. Savard.
1898 – Men in bike race outfits. Archives item# Out P262.05.
1890s – Bicycle racers and friends at Brockton Point. Archives item# Sp P15.1.
1915 – Jack Davidson on a tricycle in the backyard of “Braeriach” at 2119 West 42nd.
Archives item# CVA 660-32. Photographer: John Davidson.
1932 – Acrobats at the Vancouver Exhibition (now, PNE). Archives item# CVA 99-2735.
1943 – July 1st celebration in Richmond. Archives item# CVA 586-1301. Photographer: Don Coltman.
1943 – Canadian Youth Hostel bike hike through Lumberman’s Arch. Archives item# CVA 586-1336.
Photographer: Don Coltman.
1943 – Pro Rec bike hike at Douglas Park. Archives item# CVA 586-1344. Photographer: Don Coltman.
1940s – A boy examines his new bicycle license. Archives item# Trans P113.1.
Browse my “archives photo” tag to view more historical photo collections (from the Vancouver Public Library and Vancouver Archives) in this series.
3 Comments — Comments Are Closed
Wow why did they not try and keep the old Lumberman’s Arch? The portion that stands in Stanley Park today is a total joke compared to that one!
Love the shot of the PNE acrobats.
Bicycle license??? Why do we not have this anymore?
@Tyler – A litle more background: http://www.flickr.com/photos/37908073@N04/4665282432/
@C_Ohara – I had a license for my bike in Burnaby in the early-to-mid 70s. It wasn’t a ‘license’ in the tradtional sense, it was more of a registration (kind of like a dog license). You got a sticker that you stuck on your bike, which replaced the ‘plate’ that that kid has.