Thomas Stevens (born 24 December 1854, Berkhamsted, Hertfordshire, England,[1] died London,[2] 24 January 1935, aged 80) was the first person to circle the globe by bicycle. He rode a large-wheeled Ordinary, also known as a penny-farthing, from April 1884 to December 1886.[3] He later searched for Henry Morton Stanley in Africa, investigated the claims of Indian ascetics and became manager of the Garrick Theatre in London.
He wrote a book in two volumes, Around the World on a Bicycle: From San Francisco to Teheran and Around the World on a Bicycle: From Teheran to Yokohama in 1887. I stumbled across this local reporting of his ride's finish. It's worth a read. Prejudices of the day are apparent in the text. What's most exciting for me is that I was able to correlate some photos I found on-line with his visit; they're specifically mentioned in one of the newspaper articles below. These articles are in chronological order, from his arrival in San Francisco after finishing his round the world journey (which began in Oakland in April 1885, almost two years earlier) through to his departure to the east, still the center of American culture and business in 1887, and where he'd go on to profit from his adventure.
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| More about this photo, below. |
ON WHEELS. Sat, Jan 8, 1887 – 3 · The San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America) · Newspapers.comON WHEELS.
The Round-the-World 'Cyclist's Arrival.
Thomas Stevens Completes His Famous Journey.
A Sketch of His Travels and Trials - From Oakland to Yokohama -- Interviewing Under Difficulties.
Interviewing is not always a pleasant feature of newspaper work, and under such circumstances as surrounded an EXAMINER reporter last evening, when he attempted a talk with Thomas Stevens, the wheelman and journalist, who has just completed a circuit of the world on his machine, it becomes positively arduous.Mr. Stevens arrived on the City of Peking last night, but the quarantine regulations forbade him landing, and the restriction the revenue officers placed on any additions being made to the steamer's live freight, presented any very comfortable chat. The reception by the searchers for smuggled goods who met the reporter's boat at the gangway, which was only reached after a long pull against a strong tide, was by no means cordial and rejected the journalist with a stern injunction to keep off. He was backed up by one of the ship's officers, and the visitor was compelled to resume his seat in the stern sheets of the Whitehall and parley over fifteen or twenty feet of water. His errand was disclosed and his identity allayed any fears of his being on the lay for opium, and finally the concession of a rope's end was granted. While the little boat bobbed uneasily against the side of the huge, black iron wall that formed the Peking starboard side, Mr. Stevens was sent for, and a moment later the renowned wheelman made his appearance, using a toothpick in a manner that betokened late discussion of the burden of the cabin mess table.
A PEN SKETCH.
His greeting of the reporter was pleasant and cordial, even while he expressed regret at his inability to attain a more intimate acquaintance. He good-naturedly descended the gangway as far as possible, however, and submitted to as much questioning as possible under the circumstances.But little of Mr. Stevens' personal appearance could be discerned in the dim light and his shrouding of a huge ulster and an immense black, broad-brimmed sombrero. He appeared, however, to be about 5 feet 6 inches in height and well built, judging from a remarkably good pair of shoulders and his full chest. His face is kindly and the exposures and fatigues of his long journey have not left many traces or care marks about it. A pair of clear, steady eyes and an expression of determination about the mouth give evidence of the possession of pluck and determination to carry out such an undertaking as he has just completed, and his letters to Outing, the pleasure magazine he represented on his travels, show that he was not lacking in intelligence to extricate himself from difficulties where courage and fighting qualities would have availed him nothing. A black mustache is the only hirsute adornment of his face, and it contrasts strongly with the clear skin from which the marks of contact with all sorts of weathers have nearly faded way.
THROUGH CHINA AND JAPAN.
After the exchange of greetings Mr. Stevens said that his health was excellent and that he was beginning to feel like a civilized being once more instead of the homeless wanderer he had been for over a year past."Did you get through your troubles with the Chinese all right?"
"Well, yes, with the exception of receiving a few bruises from vagrant rock-throwers. It was pretty rough experience, however, and Dasht-i-Naumid came nearly proving what its name signifies -- a desert of despair -- to me. Two or three times I was about to conclude that my journey was ended, but I pulled through, and after reaching Shanghai my troubles were over. How did you hear of my experiences, by the way? I was not aware that any news of my progress after leaving Teheran had reached you."
The reporter informed him that stray scraps from foreign papers had been translated in America in sufficient numbers to mark out his route, and added that details would prove interesting.
"I would like to oblige you," returned the 'cyclist, "but it is too long a story to tell tonight in such an uncomfortable position, but I will meet you to-morrow with pleasure."
How did you fare efter leaving Shanghai and setting into Japan ?
"Splendidly. I received excellent treatment from the Japs, and while my hatred and disgust of the Chinese peasantry will last through life, I shall ever retain a kindly memory of their neighbors. The bicycle is not wholly a novelty in some parts of Japan, as some of the young men who were educated at American colleges carried machines home with them. They proved rare enough, however, for me to create considerable wonderment. In the larger cities I found a good many people prepared for my coming, mainly from receiving papers containing notes of my progress."
THE START AROUND THE WORLD.
The situation proved too uncomfortable to prolong the interview to any extent, and with a few general questions the reporter cut it short."How long is it since you left us, Mr. Stevens " he asked.
"I mounted my wheel in Oakland in April of 1885," said Mr. Stevens, “and I still retain a kindly remembrance of the hearty good-by given me by a lot of your boys, who rode with me to the city limits. I was 105 days in riding to New York, which was my intended destination when I started. It was April of 1885 when I left New York for Europe, and my toughest wheeling began at Constantinople. But I suppose you have had ample opportunity to learn of my experiences during the main portion of my journey?"
"Oh, yes, your letters have been pretty extensively copied."
"All right, then; I won't have so much to tell you to-morrow."
"How many bicycles did you use up on your trip?"
"Only one," returned Stevens, langhing, “or rather one and parts of several others. I don't think there is a great deal of the original machine left, as the rough country caused a good many repairs.”
"Have you got it with you?”
“Yes, indeed. I wouldn't take a good deal for it, and as for carrying it with me -- that and my faithful pistol constitute about the only baggage I have. I started without anything and have arrived with just as much, as a trip like mine did not afford much opportunity for curio gathering. I depended on purchases to renew my elothing, and sometimes I found I was leaning on a broken reed," and the traveler shuddered at the remembrance of having had to wear one suit of underclothing continuously for seventeen days in a country where luxuries of the sort were unknown.
"I can tell you some interesting things about the different sorts of clothing I have worn,” he continued, "but will have to go through my notebook and refresh my memory regarding localities."
With a renewal of the mutual promise to meet on the morrow the interview closed and the reporter pulled back to shore, leaving the plucky little gentleman still a prisoner on the Peking.
HONORS IN STORE.
He will be landed this morning, however, and during his fortnight of stay here will be the guest of the San Francisco Bicycle Club, which has great honors in store for him. Yesterday evening a committee of the club, consisting of B. H. Patrick, H. A. Greene, Harrison Houseworth and John W. Gibson, went down the bay on the tug Millen Griffith and bade him welcome. They were not allowed to board, but convinced their illustrious brother of the warmth of the greeting awaiting him from the deck of the tug. Chief Consul Welch of the League of American Wheelmen was also of the party. Mr. Stevens will be fittingly escorted to the club's rooms this morning and the first entertainment in his honor will be a banquet given by the Oakland Ramblers this evening. Next Thursday the club will entertain him, assisted by the Olympie Club, at the latter club's rooms, and the officers of the two clubs are to combine in banqueting him. Another banquet is to be given him by the L. A. W., and a score of minor entertainments are being planned to fill in the time of his stay.
AROUND THE WORLD.
Arrival of Stevens, the Bicyclist.
HIS TOUR OF THE GLOBE.
Riding the Silent Steed Through the Empire of the Mikado.
For the past two days the revenue cutter Richard Rush has been bobbing up and down in the rough seas which have prevailed outside the bar. Her officers were becoming disgusted with the irksome and monotonous duty of watching for the City of Peking, which was only relieved by a passing pilot schooner from which a newspaper was obtained, wben yesterday afternoon about 4 o'clock their weary watch was at an end. They then saw the bulky form of the big Chinese steamer, the City of Peking, heaving in sight to the north and west of the Farallones. Captain Hooper and his trusty lieutenants were immediately on the alert, and, under a full head of steam, the Rush went toward the Peking. The cutter kept on the track of the China steamer, following her closely in over the bar. Her men on the lookout to watch for any opium that might be thrown overboard. When the Peking got in toward Point Bonita a boat, with Deputy Surveyor Fogarty and other officers, put off from shore and speedily boarded her. Then the Rush steamed in close proximity to the City of Peking until when off Black point the big steamer came to anchor, and the cutter's duty being ended she returned to her berth.The tug Millen Griffith left Meiggs wharf about 6:30 P. M., having on board a posse of customs officers and a committee of three belonging to the San Francisco Bicycle Club, consisting of Benjamin H. Patrick, H. Green and H. Houseworth, delegated to receive the famous wheel man, Thomas Stevens.
The quarantine officer was absent, as the vessel arrived after sundown, and consequently visitors from shore other than the customs authorities were not allowed to go on board. The purser of the Peking, resplendent in a uniform, the buttons of which glistened in the moonlight, came to the gangway, and the committee of wheelmen, whose feelings were evidently carried away by excitement, shouted with enthusiasm: "Hallo, Stevens, welcome home," but were evidently much surprised when the purser replied: "I'm not Stevens.” Some friendly person on deck then called for Mr. Stevens, and he came tripping down the accommodation ladder with all the aplomb of a sailor. Three cheers from the three committee-men greeted Stevens, and they sought to grasp the wanderer's hand, but with a vision of Dr. McAllister's anger before him, Captain Riley of the tugboat sternly forbade any communication with the ship.
BICYCLING IN JAPAN.
To a CHRONICLE reporter Mr. Stevens obligingly gave a few items concerning his journey through Japan."I left Shanghai on November 19th," he said, "on board of the steamer Yokohama Maru, arriving in Nagasaki on the 21st. I was engaged preparing for my journey until the morning of the 23d, when I left Nagasaki on my silent steed. The bicycle used by me on my travels has a fifty-four inch wheel, and I ask that the CHRONICLE would publish the fact that I am not engaged in advertising any particular make of bicycle, simply using that which I have for my own convenience. Traveling from Nagasaki the roads on the first day were found to be very hilly, and at Omura wet weather retarded my journey. The rain made the ground heavy, and after crossing the Capellen straits, at the entrance to the Suwonada, or inland sea, in a junk, I arrived at Shimonoseki on November 28th. This journey was through the island of Kiu-shu, Leaving Shimonoseki my road traversed the large island of Hondo. Beyond the town of Kuga the roadway runs through a tunnel 500 yards in length.
On Thursday morning, December 2d, Hiroshima was reached, the latter portion of the journey being arduous, owing to the road which skirts the seashore being under repair in consequence of portions of it having been washed away during a recent storm. I did not make a halt in Hiroshima, but continued my journey, staying at different villages at night, and arrived at Okayama on Saturday at noon. I remained there until Monday morning, when I resumed my journey, resting for the night at Himeji. Starting about 8 o'clock next morning, I arrived in Kobe by noon, thus doing the thirty-nine miles between Himeji and that port under four hours.
Along the shores of the inland sea Mr. Stevens states that he saw some of the prettiest scenery he ever gazed upon. There were pine-clad islets rising from the clear blue waters, with villages picturesquely perched upon their slopes, while the tranquil sea was dotted with junks, boats and small steamers conveying passengers and produce to and from the various hamlets.
Leaving Kobe on Thursday, December 9th. Mr. Stevens remained in Osaka till Friday, riding that day to Kioto. On Saturday morning he left Kioto and reached Seki-no-shita in the evening, Miya on Sunday, Hamamatsu on Monday, Okabe on Tuesday, Mishima on Wednesday. Totsuka on Thursday, and Yokohama on the morning of December 17th. Yokohama and Japan were left on December 22d, and Mr. Stevens ended his long journey around the world last evening.
PLEASURES OF THE TRIP.
Mr. Stevens is enthusiastic in his praises of the Japanese. He thoroughly enjoyed his journey through the land of the Rising Sun. Coming direct from China, where he had received such bad treatment, an account of which was published in the CHRONICLE of December 17th last, he found a great difference in the Japanese surroundings, and was much impressed with their clean houses, civility and the general attention paid to his comfort, so different to the dirt and discomfort of the Chinese dwellings that he imagined himself in a kind of paradise. Everything was in marked contrast to his Chinese experiences. His advent had been heralded through the native journals, and the officials and people vied with each other in paying him attention. Deft little waitresses attended upon him at the interior lodging-houses, and the best of provisions were placed before him at the various stopping places. Mr. Stevens is a young, ruddy complexion man, of middle height, and appears to be of a wiry build. The journey across the Pacific had been very enjoyable, Captain Dearborn and the officers of the Peking showing much attention toward him.The famous bicycle is on board the City of Peking and will be landed this morning. During his stay in San Francisco Mr. Stevens will be accorded a reception at the rooms of the Olympic Club by the San Francisco Bicycle Club. He will also be a guest at the annual dinner of that organization, and will be present at a banquet to be given by the League of American Wheelmen.
This evening he will go to Oakland to be introduced to the local wheelinen, who will be present at a distribution of prizes by the Rambler Club of the bay city. After remaining in San Francisco for a few days the great wheelman will return to New York.
ITINERARY OF THE JOURNEY.
Mr. Stevens left San Francisco in April, 1884, and arrived at New York on August 20. Crossing the Atlantic, he left Liverpool May 2d. On his iron steed he went through England and thence proceeded to France, Germany, Austria, Hungary, Servia, Bulgaria, Roumenia and Turkey. Througb Asia Minor to Persia was the road taken, and Mr. Stevens wintered in Teheran. Eastward through Persia he then wended his way, and in Afghanistan, when some 300 miles from the Indian borders, he was imprisoned for nineteen days by the Afghans and reconducted back to Persia.The Russians refused bim passage through Turkestan and he was obliged to take steamer to India. Upon his trusty steed he crossed the great peninsula and reached Calcutta. From that port he took the mail steamer to Hongkong, and after experiencing a number of difficulties in the interior of China, arrived from Canton via Kiukiang at Shanghai.
Mr. Stevens has accomplished a journey extending over a period of nearly three years, and it is his intention to publish a narrative of his adventures in book form, a portion of which has already appeared in magazine form.
STEVENS RIDE.
A Further Interview with the World 'Cycler.
Turned Aside by Indian Jungles and a Russian General.
What the Local Riders Are Doing in Stevens Honor - A Park Spin and a Banquet in Oakland.
Yesterday morning, in the gray dusk of dawn, B. H. Patrick, H. A. Greene, Harrison Houseworth and John W. Gibson congregated on the wharf off which the City of Peking lay, to welcome Thomas Stevens home from his circuit of the world on the bicycle.
According to promise, an EXAMINER reporter further interviewed the gentleman at the San Francisco Bicycle Club rooms, yesterday after noon, and the modesty of the tourist added much to the favorable impression his feat had previously created. In answer to question inviting general confession Mr. Stevens said:
NOTES OF TRAVEL
"Last night I could not tell you much, because it was interviewing under difficulties, and to day I am as busy as a bee in a tar barrel. I shall, therefore, be as brief as possible. You published a very fair sketch of my general travels this morning, and I shall only give you little notes of interest that escaped publication. Through France the roads are excellent. I found a friendly wheelman in fer-off Servia who accompanied me over 100 miles and until I arrived in Bulgaria. There I began to encounter obstacles and I took a metaphorical header. I was cautioned not to proceed, as banditti were hovering around in the hopes of bolding me for ransom. I dodged them, however, by going to Ismidt, which was entirely out of my line of travel. I stopped at Teheran five months on account of the inclemency of the weather. The European system of telegraphy terminates there. On leaving in March I had permission from the Russian authorities to go through Southern Siberia, but after accomplishing 300 miles over miserable ground I was recalled by General Kamaroff, who vetoed the original permit on political grounds.ANONG THE MOHAMMEDANS.
I returned and went to Meshed, one of the oldest cities and elaborately supplied with gold-domed mosques. Meshed is almost another Mecca, as thousands of people flock there to do religious penance for sins committed while conscience slept. In this vicinity I came across a Mr. Gray, telegrapher for European lines, who had an order forbidding me to cross into Afghan territory. This order I politely ignored and wheeled to the Persian side of the frontier some 300 miles, which brought me to Beerjand. Then I struck across the desert Dasht-i-Naumid (Desert of Despair) which had never before been traversed by a white man."At the garrison town of Quetta I was arrested by Yusuph Khan, brother to Ameer Shere Ali, whom the English deposed in favor of the present Ameer. I was carried to Herat under guard and kept there nine days, being finally turned loose in Persia, to which country I was conducted by a guard of twenty-four soldiers with bayonets on their guns. When I awoke at night I would see half a dozen glistening steel points hanging over me, and the fact that to kill one of us is a passport to Paradise for these heathens made matters rather interesting. My next start was for the Caspian sea, from which I made India by steam, owing to the wretched condition of the roads.
JUNGLES AND PAGANS.
In Punjab I used my wheel as far as Calcutta, but from that place to Canton I went by boat, as the jungles are impenetrable, and there are no roads. In Persia there are no roads, but the country is open. In China footpaths are all that is to be found. In the Province of Kiang Tse, Ki-ngan Foo City, I was desperately stoned, but succeeded in escaping without material or serious injury. The mob chased me into the official inclosure, where I was protected from further assault. That night about 12 o'clock I was hustled out and conveyed down the Yang Tse river in a sampan and delivered to the English Consul, & receipt being taken for me just as though I were a parcel.The Japanese are an intelligent people, entirely unlike the Chinese, and although I only remained in Yokohama four days I was much impressed with the push and activity of the people. I left Yokohama on December 22nd and arrived here this morning, and that is about all there is to tell that you have not published. Of course I have had strange experiences and adventures more or less pleasant and unpleasant but it would take a book to describe a tenth part of them.”
ENJOYING HIMSELF AFTER THE JOURNEY.
Yesterday afternoon Mr. Stevens took a spin through Golden Gate Park with a party of local wheelmen. The smooth paths were delightful after so much rough work, and Mr. Stevens expressed himself quite at home, as he had ridden toward the beach quite often preparatory to making his start from here in 1884. The wheel on which the famous journey was acccomplished was an object of veneration almost to the enthusiasts who have made Mr. Stevens their guest. Every patch seemed to have a history, and every scar on the nickel plate of the frame was suspected of being a volume of adventure, and the owner laughingly admitted that his faithful machine was a pretty well stocked notebook.THE RAMBLERS' RECEPTION.
Last night at Montana Hall, Oakland, a reception was tendered Mr. Stevens and the twenty-five mile trophy presented to the winners in the race run November 28th.Mr. Stevens was called on for a speech. He said that he could not make speeches; that he had been compared to Grant, as a man of steel and silence, and was proud to be so likened. In speaking of his reception, he said an EXAMINER reporter had met him miles from shore, showing that enterprise was the watch word of that paper.
The EXAMINER was toasted and its representative honored in a happy manner.
Mr. Yale said that as Grant had made money out of his book, the club hoped that Mr. Stevens would write a book out of which he would make a fortune. This was adopted as a resolution.
The inscription on the trophy won by the Bay City Wheelmen is as follows: Oakland Ramblers' 25-mile road race, club trophy, won November 25, 1886, by the Bay City Wheelmen club team, F. D. Elwell. C.E. Adcock, S F. Booth Jr. Time, 1 hr. 37 min. 2 7/8 sec.
The table was beautified with handsome floral display and conviviality was the password.
Dancing and music concluded the evening, which was enjoyed by nearly 300 wheelmen and their friends.
The following is the programme for Mr. Stevens' further entertainment here:
To-day - Club-room's reception.
Monday night - Presentation of honorary membership
Tuesday - Bay City Wheelmen's banquet at the Baldwin.
Wednesday night - Theater party.
Thursday - San Francisco and Olympic Club reception at Olympic Club rooms.
Friday - Annual dinner S. F. Club.
Saturday - Bay City Wheelmen give a "smoker."
Sunday, the 16th - Run to Haywards, where covers for 150 will be laid: 9:15 A.M. Creek boat to Oakland. Clubs across the bay will meet S.F. Club at foot of Broadway, Montana Hall. Adeline and Seventh streets.
STEVENS' LEVEE.
An Afternoon in the Rooms of the San Franciscos.
The San Francisco Bicycle Club kept open house yesterday afternoon in honor of Thomas Stevens and received scores of wheelmen and non-fraternal admirers of the club's plucky guest. In the morning Captain Houseworth, Lieutenant MeDonald, H. C. Finkler [Finckler] and J. W. Gibson callled on Mr. Stevens and furnished him with a wheel for a ride through the park. Mr. Stevens with some difficulty squeezed himself into the elub uniform of his host, Mr. Green, and the quintet enjoyed a pleasant spin to the Cliff House. Mr. Stevens is as graceful and easy in the saddle as he is experienced, and his pull through the sand and up a bill or two excited the admiration of all beholders.At the Cliff House Adolph Sutro invited the party to visit his home on the Hights, where they were handsomely entertained up to the hour that required them to return in time for the afternoon reception.
Mr. Stevens' wheel was mounted on the center-table, together with the cork helmet he wore through India, China and Japan, and both were the objects of almost as much attention as their owner. The wheel bears much testimony to the roughness of the trip. The broken enamel, the patched handle-bars, the new spokes, worn tires and numerous bandages, all had their stories to tell, and as they gazed many of the wheelmen imagined that they could see Stevens in some of the predicaments he experienced. He started with a cyclometer on his hub, but the unenlightened everywhere took it for a watch, and their endless attempts to steal it were finally crowned with success.
The cork helmet was almost as battered as the wheel, and several dents and breaks were exhibited as being caused by the missiles of unfriendly Chinese.
A crowd raided the machine when it was deposited at the transfer office on Saturday morning, and but for the vigilance and fighting qualities of a couple of self-constituted guardians it would have been torn to pieces for relics.
Yesterday Mr. Stevens' record of 12,500 miles, wheeled on his circumference of the globe, was written on a card and appended to the wheel.
One of the best stories yet told by the tourist was given yesterday. He is an artist of no mean ability, as his sketches in Outing show, and over the greater portion of his journey he was compelled, through not being a linguist, to order his meals by illustrations, generally sketching a bird or small game of some sort peculiar to the clime, and then painting to his mouth. A severe damper was cast on his pride as an artist by a Chinese dame from whom he attempted to secure a supper after a hard day's ride. He sketched rabbit and went through the usual pantomime, at which the woman laughed and expressed comprehension. She soon brought out the raw hind quarters of a plump little animal, which Stevens was about to order cooked when he noticed suspicions claws on the still attached feet. He demanded an explanation as well as he could, and his hostess finally comprehended sufficiently to take away his appetite by pointing to the delicacy with a grin and crying "meow-meow," in imitation of a cat.
The reception was extended until a late hour, the evening being devoted to music, tobacco and story-telling.
Mon, Jan 10, 1887 – 3 · The San Francisco Examiner (San Francisco, San Francisco, California, United States of America) · Newspapers.com
The Bicycle.
Stevens has arrived at last.As there is no track available for the 22d of February, the Bay City Wheelmen have been compelled to postpone their race meet.
A heavy rain that would keep the local riders inactive for one month would be of the greatest benefit to bicycling tins season. It would harden the roads and put them in condition that they would retain for many months, and relieve the riders of tha high pressure they have kept u[ for a year past.
The local clubs were well represented at San Jose on New Year's Day. Among the riders who made the trip were Fahrbach, Adcock, Cummings, Smyth, Robinson, Meeker, Turner, Cook, Milroy, Biederman, Searles, Avery, Euler and others.
The tandems at the Park are not in use at present, too much scorching being the cause.
Elwell "coasted" Mount Tamalpais last Sunday. The distance is about nine miles. He took one fall, but did not injure himself. He rode half way up and walked the rest.
AROUND THE WORLD.
Thomas Stevens Tells of his Journey on a Bicycle.
Thomas Stevens, the bicyclist, who reached this city last week after a complete tour of the world upon his silent steed, gave a very interesting account of his journeyings before a large audience of ladies and gentlemen in the Olympic Club rooms, San Francisco, last evening. President Harrison introduced Mr. Stevens and his bicycle. The adventurous traveler proved himself to be a charming talker, if not an eloquent speaker. He possesses a slow, peculiar method of delivery and strictly original style of humor, which was highly appreciated by his hearers. The idea of making a tour of the world on a bicycle first took possession of him in Denver in 1883. From there he came to this State, bought a bicycle, and practiced riding in Golden Gate Park. After taking chances on breaking his neck about a hundred times he became expert enough to begin his journey. From here he started across the continent. His first discouragement was received at Benicia, where a German offered to bet him $5 that he would never get beyond Boca, where they brew beer. He got beyond Boca, reached the sink of the Humboldt river in Nevada, and followed the old '49 trail. He then described his journey across the plains and Middle States until he reached Boston. Here he made arrangements with the Outing Magazine Company to make the tour of the world. He reached Boston after a trip of 103 days from San Francisco. On the 2d of May, 1882, he was in Liverpool. He crossed England and went to France. The longest run he ever made in one day was from Paris to Nancy, a distance of 100 miles. He crossed the "blue Alsatian Mountains” and the Rhine, passing down the valley of the latter. All along the Rhine he found the shadow of military surveillance.“Why," said the speaker, in his dryest way, "even the scarecrows are dressed in uniform." He pursued his way through the Black Forest, Bavaria, Munich and into Hungary. He found the Hungarians in an enthusiastic mood. They were delighted with his bicycle. They pride themselves upon their love of sports. In Servia he found to his surprise that a bicycle club of twenty members existed. There each owner of a bicycle is proud of the name which his bicycle bears, such as “Joy of the Road" and "Oriental Beauty." By way of Bulgaria, he reached Constantinople on the 2d of July. After leaving Constantinople he found that while in Asia Minor he would have to keep a look out for brigands. Shortly after leaving Angora two merry gentlemen of the road met him. They were armed with huge swords and blunderbuss pistols. However, when he displayed his small pistol with its muzzle on a level with their eyes they suddenly bethought themselves of an engagement elsewhere, and left him in a hurry. Through Armenia be was called upon in various villages to gain the good will of the people by giving exhibitions of bicycle riding. He was well received by the Persians. All that he saw fit to complain of them was their inordinate curiosity. Among the wandering tribes be was treated kindly, reposing at night in the tents of the chiefs. He found that some of them were treacherous, having a peculiar habit of treating their guests well and then, upon their leaving, sneaking ahead of them and robbing them of all they possessed. At Teheran the bicyclist was obliged to winter for five months. This delay gave him an opportunity of learning something about the language. He intended to cross Afghanistan into India, but was forbidden to do so by the English and Russian governments. He made several attempts to cross in spite of orders to the contrary, but was finally seized by the Afghans and detained at Herat nine days, after which he was placed over the Persian border again. He was severely handled by a mob of Afghan fanatics, who objected to white men and strange things such as bicycles. He was at last obliged to go back to the Caspian Sea, where he took the Russian steamer for Batoum. He reached the northern line of India and found a splendid road from there to Calcutta, 1,600 miles distant. It was the Euglish military road, built of cement. His bicycle caused consternation among numberless tribes of chattering monkeys. From Calcutta it was impossible to get across Burmah into China, so he was obliged to go by steamer to Canton. He, however, made a short trip into China, but after being chased by howling mobs of coolies, who insinuated that he was a "faukwia," [Maybe this? - MF] and who enforced their impressions with stones and cobbles, he gave up an extended tour of the Flowery Kingdom and sought Nagasaki, in Japan. He traveled 800 miles from there to Yokohama, and found that the Japanese had made great progress in the matter of building roads. There was a strong contrast between their ideas of progress and the Chinese principle of living as did the contemporaries of Confucius and other heathens who existed in some mythical age, either before or shortly after the flood.
STEVENS' ENTERTAINMENT.
The Bay City Wheelmen's "Smoker" - To-Day's Big Meeting.
At their clubrooms, No. 202 McAllister street, the Bay City Wheelmen tendered Thomas Stevens, the celebrated bicycle tourist, an informal reception. The apartment was profusely decorated with the calla lilies, evergreens and flowers, while the tables were supplied with material calculated to make the heart of man glad.Mr. Stevens sat sedately in his chair with a bouquet of violets in his hand, which he frequently applied to his olfactory organ with apparent relish. He confessed in a guilty manner that it had been transmitted to him from fair hands, which fact detracted nothing from its perfume.
The evening was spent in songs, toasts and other diversions.
The programme of the bicyclists to-day is for the city clubs to leave for Oakland on the 9:15 A. M. boat. They will be met by the Oakland clubs at the foot of Broadway. Then the route will be along Broadway to Fifth street, and along Fifth to Jackson, where a photograph of the body will be taken. [See below. - MF] After that a run will be made to Eighth, and thence along the county road to Haywards, where a banquet will be served. At least 150 wheelmen are expected to be in line.
STEVENS IN THE SADDLE. Mon, Jan 17, 1887 – Page 2 · San Francisco Chronicle (San Francisco, San Francisco, California) · Newspapers.comSTEVENS IN THE SADDLE.
The Wheelmen Have an Enjoyable Run to Haywards.
The creek boat which left the ferry at 9:15 o'clock yesterday morning carried about 120 Bay City wheelmen and members of the San Francisco Bicycle Club to take part in the run to Haywards. The hero of the hour, Thomas Stevens, was one of the party and had with him the identical wheel with which he made his circuit of the globe.At the foot of Broadway, on the Oakland side, some thirty cyclists and a large number of spectators were awaiting the arrival of the San Francisco contingent, and Stevens became the center of an admiring group on landing. At 10 o'clock precisely the bicyclists to the number of 150 formed in line and started on their trip in the following order, riding two and two: Chief Consul R. M. Welch and Thomas Stevens; Representatives of Divisions Beiderman and Booth; Representative Harrison and Secretary of League Haslett: Vice-Consul Mohrig and Consul Bowman of Oakland, Captain Meeker, B. C. W. and Captain Houseworth. S. F. B. C.; Captain Tisdall, Oakland Ramblers, and Captain Donnelly, San Mateo Wheelmen; members of the Senior League Club, Bay City Wheelmen, in command of Lieutenant James; San Francisco Bicycle Club, in command of Lieutenant McDonald; Oakland Ramblers, in command of Lieutenant Havens; San Mateo Wheelmen, in command of Lieutenant Knapp: Highland Park Wheelmen, in command of Captain Rosborough. The rear was brought up by a number of wheelmen who are not attached to any of the local clubs.
A more suitable morning could hardly have been chosen for the ride. The sky was perfectly clear and the air just sharp enough to make exercise enjoyable. Admirable order was maintained by bicyclists as they glided silently up Broadway and turned into Third street, and hundreds watched them until they passed out of sight.
At Jackson and Fifth streets the procession halted while Messrs. Louden and Gibbs, two well-known amateur photographers, trained their camera on the party. An hour was then spent in parading through the streets of Oakland, and everywhere along the line of ride the inhabitants paid homage to the wheelmen and their distinguished guest. The road to Haywards was then taken, and after a smart run San Leandro was reached. At this place the resident ladies were watching for the coming of the bicyclists, and Stevens was the recipient of a pretty tribute in the shape of a bouquet of violets adorned with knots of blue and white ribbon.
I hit paydirt: the Oliver Family Photograph Collections, circa 1880-circa 1920s contains these photos:
The photo above is source material for a drawing in another article, FIRST BIKE ON THE COAST. - The San Francisco Examiner 04 Aug 1895, Sun Page 18. That photo, and its caption:
I hit paydirt: the Oliver Family Photograph Collections, circa 1880-circa 1920s contains these photos:
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| Written on back of mount: Run given to Thos previous hit Stevens next hit / at Oakland / on his return from a / tour around the / world on a bicycle. [That's him in the foreground, right. - MF] |
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| San Jose Bicycle Club in 1886. [The figure holding up the small boy on the left of the group is Thomas Stevens, then on his tour around the world on a wheel.] |
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| General Note: San Francisco Examiner, Jan. 16, 1887, page 5, has a story about a reception for Stevens, and that a picture was to be taken of him with wheelmen in East Bay. This could be one of the pictures referred to. |
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| Cyclist Thomas Stevens and Oakland cyclists. [photographic print] |
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| CALIFORNIA BICYCLISTS GIVING THOS. STEVENS A RUN AFTER HIS WORLD TOUR |
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| Cyclist Thomas Stevens and Oakland cyclists. [photographic print] |
Haywards was reached shortly after the usual dinner hour, but the host of the hotel spared no pains in catering to the wants of the wheelmen.
At 3 o'clock the first detachment started on the homeward journey. There was no order observed on the return trip, the bicyclists returning in groups at different hours throughout the afternoon. Mr. Stevens returned in company with Chief Consul Welch and Messrs. McDonald, Gibson and Letcher.
The run was a most enjoyable one and great interest was evinced in the wheelmen by people along the route. At Haywards the populace turned out en masse and gave the party an enthusiastic reception. Although there were so many bicyclists of all grades in the saddle not an accident occurred to mar the pleasures of the run.
RUN OF THE BICYCLISTS.
Thomas Stevens Honored by the American League Wheelmen.A more beautiful occasion for a run across country of a light footed bicycle could not have been wished than that which broke over the bay yesterday morning. There was a white frost crisping the air early in the day, which vanished as the sun came out, scattering June-like warmth over the heart of January.
Pursuant to programme, the San Francisco Bicycle Club and the Bay City Wheelmen escorted Thomas Stevens to the ferry at 9:15 m., where the creek ferryboat was boarded. The clubs were met at the Broadway pier in Oakland by the "Oakland Ramblers" at 10, and from that point the line wheeled to Jackson street, where photographs were taken.
Mr. Stevens was then escorted around the city and shown its points of interest, after which the road was taken for Haywards, fourteen miles distant.
But one voluntary stop was made and that was for the purpose of refreshing the inner man, but there were a number of complicated headers due to the occasional gravel deposits in the road. On one occasion three wheelmen were mingled in so confused a heap that it was difficult to extricate them. Several falls were attributable to stoppages in the forward portion of the line which blocked those in the rear and sent them several times to grass.
The run was made from Oakland to Haywards in two hours, the start being at 11 a. m. and the finish at 1 p. m. The slow time is due to the heavy condition of the road, many of the riders coming in red in the face and mopping the perspiration from their brows.
At hall-past one the company sat down to a bountiful repast at Haywards Hotel, at which no toasts were made, the entire attention of the one hundred and fifty who were present being confined to the menu.
A lady in San Mateo, an admirer of the great tourist, sent a magnificent bouquet of flowers by express, to be delivered to him on the run, but the person who had it in charge was too late and it was handed to a rider in the rear of the line, who spurred his steed into a 2:40 gait and presented it to the donee before his destination was reached. Mr. Stevens therefore rode into town at the head of the column, with his bouquet in his hand, and the Consul of the League of American Wheelmen on this Coast, Robert M. Welch, sharing the honors with him.
At 2:30 o'clock the riders began leaving, and by 3 nearly all were gone. While turning a corner at the bottom of the hill on which the hotel stands, a wheelman collided with a buggy, throwing himself heavily some distance, but as he remounted and rode away he could not have been more than bruised.
Another wheelman carromed on a horse ridden by a small boy, and it happened again that no one was seriously injured, though the boy was pitched head foremost from his seat. Still another horse ran away with his rider, but as far as he could be distinguished he was keeping his seat.
The run was participated in by members of the League of American Wheelmen, and there were a number of visitors from San Mateo, Sacramento and Stockton.
The appearance of the San Francisco Bicycle Club aud the Bay City Wheelmen was particularly neat; the want of uniformity in the suits of the "Ramblers" detracted somewhat from their corporate unity.
Four or five machines lost spokes and were otherwise wounded, and several riders took the railway home, owing to slight wounds.
The San Francisco Bicycle Club accompanies Mr. Stevens to Sacramento next Saturday on his way East.
The Bicycle.
Stevens weighs 146 pounds in his riding suit.The Oakland Ramblers announce a race meet for the 22d of February, at the Oakland Trotting Park. The track will be placed in the best possible condition.
It is said that Stevens made the circumnavigation of the globe just for a little Outing.
The "smoker" of the Bay City Wheelmen on Saturday evening, in honor of Stevens, was the most successful they have ever held. The rooms were nicely decorated.
Arrangements for the "Cinderella," to be held nt Odd Fellows' Hall on January 27th. by the Bay City Wheelmen, are progressing favorably and the affair promises to be a success.
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More about Stevens and his ride:
Photographs:
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