# Need help getting information on antique bike



## hcron (Jun 19, 2006)

Many years ago my husband inherited a very old bike that was in an old hotel probably fron the late 1800's.  It has the name " Rambler" and a crest on the front.  I would appreciate any information.


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## 37fleetwood (Jun 20, 2006)

Hi, Rambler made bikes very early and was the same company that made the Rambler cars sort of. the company was Gormully and Jeffery and was a sewing machine company before the bike boom and then they made bikes when the car boom happened they sold the bike division and started making cars. the date the company was sold was around 1906 or so and the cars and bike production overlaped a few years. Rambler safety bikes (both wheels the same size) are very beautiful and had very ornate lugs (where the tubes connect). much later there were bikes made not related to these but called Rambler. you can tell the general date by the headbadge and other characteristics such as the lugs. is it a Ordinary (large front wheel small rear) or standard? post pictures if you can. 
thanx


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## MartyW (Jun 20, 2006)

*Nice Scott*

Great reply Scott, 
         I've seen a few of these Ramblers but never realized that they were made by G&J (Gormully and Jeffery). My reproduction 54" HiWheel was based on a G&J and there is an original 52" G&J at my friends shop here in San Diego.
         I believe that there is at least one Rambler standard "saftey" bicycle in his shop that I can post some pictures of if that would help?

           Marty W


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## JOEL (Jun 20, 2006)

Westfield also used the Rambler name later on...


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## sam (Jun 25, 2006)

Gormully & Jeffery's most famous model was the Rambler bicycle,in 1900 they started the American Motors Company,in 1903 they sold their bicycle division to Pope which owned Westfield and others.The American Motors begain building the Rambler Auto--in 1903 it was the second auto to compleat the transcontinal trip.I think White consolidated(washing machines)owned American Motors or it was the other way around,before it was sold off.---sam


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## 37fleetwood (Jun 26, 2006)

Ok, now you've made me look it up! AMC was formed in 1954 

Gormully and Jeffereys made bicycles from 1878 to 1900 when they sold their bike company to the American Bicycle Company, or Bicycle Trust, which was owned by col. Pope who made bikes, motorcycles, and cars among other things. his bike brand name was Columbia, and the cars and motor bikes were called Popes. you can track the rest by looking up columbia, or Pope.

here is a short history of the rambler cars, 
1902-1918   
The Thomas B. Jeffery Company begins building one-cylinder Ramblers in a converted 19th-century bicycle plant in Kenosha, Wisconsin. By 1914, the cars are quite sophisticated and luxurious. Jeffery dies in 1916 and the children rename the Ramblers, "Jeffrey's" in his honor.	
1919
Charles W. Nash leaves the presidency of Billy Durant's General Motors with the intention of taking over Packard. That deal falls through and Nash buys the Jeffery Company, which becomes Nash Motors. By 1928, he was making 138,169 cars each year. 	
1937
On January 4, Nash merges with the Kelvinator Corporation, makers of home appliances. Kelvinator President George Mason becomes president of Nash-Kelvinator and Nash is elected chairman of the board. 	
1938
Nash introduces the first "conditioned air" in its cars. 	
1940
Nash pioneers the single-unit, all-steel car body with the Nash 600. 	
1941
Nash reaches 9.7% of the market. 	
1942-1944
Nash's Kenosha factory turns to building Pratt & Whitney R-2800 engines under contract for Navy planes. 	
1945
Nash gets a jump on the other companies for postwar production, selling 6,148 cars. This makes the company, fleetingly, the #3 U.S. auto maker. 	
1950
Nash introduces the first compact car, a convertible Rambler. A Nash Ambassador finishes third in the Mexican Road Race. 	
1954
On May 1, the American Motors Corporation is formed through a merger of Nash-Kelvinator Corporation and the Hudson Motor Car Company. On October 12 following George Mason's death, George Romney is named AMC chairman, president, and general manager. 	
1956
A limited-edition Rambler Rebel is made for the 1957 model year. It has the Nash-Hudson V-8 and many modern features and luxury amenities. One thousand cars are built. 	
1957
The Nash and Hudson nameplates are put to rest by the newly introduced 1958 models (Hudsons had been merely dressed-up Nash's since the 1955 model year and were known by some as "Hashes"). The Ambassador, basically a Rambler stretched from the windshield forward, is introduced for the 1958 model year. 	
1960
AMC, having concentrated on small car production since 1955, reaches 7.5% of the domestic auto market with 485,745 cars sold. The 1961 Ambassador is the last with a 117" wheelbase (from 1962-1964 it was a dressed-up Classic). 	
1961
Renault and AMC enter into an agreement to build Ramblers and Ambassadors in Belgium. IKA Renault exported Ramblers to Argentina from 1961-1967. 	
1962
Romney resigns in February to run for, and is elected, governor of Michigan. He is succeeded as AMC president by Roy Abernathy, who reintroduces luxury models -- a move some say helped lead to the company's downfall. 	
1963
3,922 "Mitey Mites," miniature jeeps for airborne transport, had been produced for the Marine Corps since 1960. AMC Classics and Ambassadors are named Motor Trend Car of the Year. 	
1964
The longer wheelbase Ambassador returns for 1965. It's extended from the windshield forward, but otherwise is still a Classic except for trim and amenities. 	
1965
AMC pays its last stock dividend ($.11/share down from $2.06 in 1962) until 1974. AMC had sold 246 "Rambulances" since 1960. 	
1966
The Classic is rebodied and renamed Rebel for the 1967 model year. Convertibles are reintroduced. AMC reports a $30 million loss for the fiscal year, compared to a $7 million gain in 1965 and a $44 million gain in 1964. 	
1967
AMC reports a net loss of $76 million for the fiscal year. The Javelin is introduced for the 1968 model year, followed by the AMX the next February. 	
1968
Kelvinator division is sold and AMC is back in the black, for a while. 	
1969
On June 30, the last U.S.-produced Rambler (an American) rolls off the line in Kenosha. A total of 4,204,925 had been made.


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