"I'm half crazy, over my love for you,
"I want a stylish marriage,
"But you'll look so sweet upon a seat.
"Of a bicycle built for two."
By the late 1880's Harlan had secured another mans of travel, the bicycle. Up until then the old dependable horse and buckboards or hacks were the only facilities of travel.
Word spread fast that Bob Asher, who lived at Wasiota, near Pineville, was going to ride a two-wheel cycle through Harlan to Pennington Gap. It caused a great deal of excitement for days.
At the scheduled hour of arrival in Harlan, people turned out and lined the road side to see "this wonderful trick." When the rider was passing through Harlan an excited girl called to a fiend.
"It Ain't A Horse"
"Come quick," she said, There goes a man riding something and it ain't a horse." The two girls ran after it to get a closer view. The mystery was, how was it holding up with just two wheels. The riding feat from Wasiota to Pennington Gap took days and days.
W.Z. Gregory, who owned a hardware and furniture store on the corner where the new flower shop on Central and Second Street is today, sold the first bicycles in Harlan.
Gregory had his first bicycles hauled across the mountains from Hagan. He rented then out for 15 or 20 cents an hour. The only place smooth enough to ride was from the Gregory store on Second Street to Clover Street.
The girls rented the cycles as well as the boys. Miss McCartney, a school teacher at the Presbyterian Academy, had one of the first ones. Many old timers recall seeing her ride along with her sweeping skirt flying behind and a neat little hat on her head to hold her hair in place.
Handy With Tools
Gregory was a carpenter and handy with tools. The bicycles couldn't run very long on the bumpy ground without repairs.
"We always come leading our cycles back to the store for Mr. Gregory to fix," one of the riders said.
Among the first ones to buy their own "cycles" were Mr. and Mrs. W.C. Clemens, Bill Lewis, Ollie Lewis, Lee Creech and John Carter.
The short space on Second Street wasn't enough to do much riding so the riders formed a club. One day they decided to go "down in the field" and clear off a place to ride.
Field Now Cumberland Avenue
The field at that time was uninhabited, but today is Cumberland Avenue. From Cumberland Avenue near Black Motor, a wide circle was cleared of rocks and brush so they had a wide circle in which to ride.
A few years later when the roads were a little better, groups met and rode in parties. One day a group peddled all the way to Baxter and back. That was an accomplished trick.
Many times Crit Jones was heard to remark, "Well, there's another cycle on the road."
Mr. and Mrs. W.C. Clemens lived in the Presbyterian Academy. their niece, Pearl English lived with them. Another young girl shown in the picture is Ollie Lewis, oldest child of Judge and Mrs. A.B. Cornett. They lived for many years across the street from the Methodist Church.
Lee Creech was one of the pioneer merchants of Harlan. His store was located on Central Street where Kays store is today. One of the other riders, John Carter, boarded with his brother-in-law, hamp Howard, third Street.
Thus began a new era of travel in Harlan
Sunday December 7, 1952
Volume 51 Number 287
Pages 1 & 8
