Click on the pictures to see a larger version.
Photographs by Matthew Bigwood
|
|
Click on the pictures to see a larger version. Photographs by Matthew Bigwood |
|
This page is by no means intended to be a source of historical reference about the Dursley Pedersen bicycle!
I have included some of the pictures I took at the Pedersen Pilgrimage in Dursley, Gloucestershire, in 1993. The event was held to commemorate the 100th anniversary of Danish inventor Mikael Pedersen's first patent application for his unique bicycle design.
Pedersen enthusiasts from across Europe - many from the inventor's native land - joined the weekend of celebrations.
 |
 |
 |
These pictures were taken for the Dursley Gazette - the paper which carried the first reports about the bicycle's invention.
'Mr M Pedersen of Dursley, with that ingenuity for which he is known, has recently constructed a safety bicycle of remarkable character. Its weight is only nineteen pounds and the maker has tested the strength in an extra-ordinary way, he having ridden it up Whiteway.' 21st October 1893
 |
 |
|
Riders tackle the Broadway, a hill which climbs out of Dursley and in places has a gradient of 1 in 4.
During their visit to Dursley the Pedersen enthusiasts visited landmarks associated with Mikael Pedersen including his former home and the (now empty) bicycle factory. A plaque was unveiled in Dursley in 1979 by the Danish ambassador to Britain to commemorate Mikael Pedersen's achievements.
 |
 |
 |
 |
Scenes from Long Street, Dursley. The picture of the left shows one of Mikael Pedersen's descendants with a modern bicycle. In the background is Raglan House, Mikael Pedersen's former home. The picture on the far right shows riders with a portrait of Mikael Pedersen next to the commemorative plaque on Raglan House.
The Dursley Pedersen Bicycle - contains other links to Pedersen sites
For a detailed history of the Pedersen read David E. Evans' excellent book The Ingenious Mr Pedersen
(Alan Sutton Publishing, ISBN 0 7509 0064 4)
Contact me: matt@bigwoodm.freeserve.co.uk
All pictures by Matthew Bigwood, 1993. Copyright Newscom plc.
