THANKS the first link is fantastic.
Thank you. Well it had the wrong rear hubs on it so I had some new ones machined coping them from an old one. I build new wood wheels. I found the correct front fork and hub. I am repainting it since it had been brush painted. Lastly I had all the parts nickeled. I have done a ton of research on it to bring it back to as manufacted condition. It has been a blast.I love it, very nice design. What are you planning on next with it?
Historically speaking, there were more trikes in the late 1890's than two wheelers as the were touted as a status symbol and more stable for riding. So even the United States had bought into the idea and got them for postal carriers.
Sadly WWI found a better use for them as scrap for metal and doubled down for WWII.
The other failure was the advent of true bearings in two wheel hubs for smoother rides. This was a problem that most companies didnt want to sort out in trikes as trikes became less fashionable in the early 1900's.
All said there are trikes that look like they should have been built in the 1920's and are actually from 1880's and some high-wheel models that made it into the 1910's for "snobs" and "lovers" as they could carry two people side by side.
But as parts ran out and people didn't or couldnt even recognize a trike frame by the 1950's and again most were turned to scrap.