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Shelby Hiawatha - my first Ballooner

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Regarding so-called "Shelby Hiawathas"... There is no such thing as a "Shelby Hiawatha." It is either a Shelby... or a Hiawatha. Can't be both. This is a bicycle collector's myth. Just like there is no such thing as an "Edsel Mercury" automobile.

Hiawatha was its own brand and was not part of the Shelby line. Nor was it part of the Shelby Cycle Company. Nor did Shelby make all Hiawathas. Some, yes for certain years and certain models. All? No way.

Biggest mistake made by people attempting to do DIY history on Hiawathas is to look for Shelby stuff (like old ads) and then expect/assume one to be exactly like the other. Using "if this, therefore that" logic. It just does not work that way.

Also it is a mistake to think that Hiawatha bicycles were sold only by "Gambles Department Stores"... they weren't. They were sold by lots and lots of stores, coast to coast.

Finally Hiawatha bicycles were made by numerous bicycle companies. "Hiawatha" was not Shelby Cycle Company, nor was it any particular bicycle company. Nor was it a model name. "Hiawatha" was a brand name... in itself. SOME– not all– were sold in Gambles stores. Many were not.

Adult analysis of these bicycles and attempts to rationalize their performance and gearing into what makes sense to an adult in 2023 will always prove to be frustrating. These bicycles were not made for touring or adult style riding. They were primarily made for kids. And most kids in the era when these bicycles were made tended to live in cities. And tended NOT to ride in streets or nicely paved roads. A bicycle might have been used for a paper route (as mine was) or to ride to school or the local park (as mine was). Otherwise, these bicycles cruised the sidewalks on the block where one lived. Things were very different back then.

National Bicycle History Archive of America has extensive files on Hiawatha bicycles. My friend, the late Brooks Stevens, designed many of the Hiawathas. And yours truly began collecting Hiawatha bicycle literature in the 1950s. So we know these bicycles.

Leon Dixon
National Bicycle History Archive of America
(NBHAA.com)
Thanks for the clarification, but now I am even less sure what this is based on "Finally Hiawatha bicycles were made by numerous bicycle companies. "Hiawatha" was not Shelby Cycle Company, nor was it any particular bicycle company. Nor was it a model name. "Hiawatha" was a brand name... in itself. SOME– not all– were sold in Gambles stores. Many were not." Any help regarding year, manufacturer, etc would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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Thanks for the clarification, but now I am even less sure what this is based on "Finally Hiawatha bicycles were made by numerous bicycle companies. "Hiawatha" was not Shelby Cycle Company, nor was it any particular bicycle company. Nor was it a model name. "Hiawatha" was a brand name... in itself. SOME– not all– were sold in Gambles stores. Many were not." Any help regarding year, manufacturer, etc would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.

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Hello...

If you are asking about the bicycle in the last photo and who built it, you would need to post a full set of photos. Including serial stampings.

Again... any company could have made bicycles for the Hiawatha brand. AND the bicycles made under the Hiawatha brand were almost never identical to other bicycles made by the source. For instance, while I cannot clearly see the bicycle in the photo, what I can make out appears to have been manufactured by Evans Products Company (they made Evans-Colson bicycles).

Yes, Evans also made bicycles for the Hiawatha brand. These Hiawathas differed in details (and often greatly) from the Evans-Colson brand of bicycles.

AND yes again, National Bicycle History Archive of America has company records from Evans-Colson and Evans Products Company. All of the catalogues and dealer books, even factory photos. Yours truly even knew some of the designers and we have mint original and NOS Evans-Colson bicycles.

Hope this helps,

Leon Dixon
National Bicycle History Archive of America
(NBHAA.com)

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