Big Business Supplying Police Bicycles in Ireland 1870s – 1960s | Season 4 – Episode 43
Wheels Jun 14, 2024
From the 1870s numerous companies and manufacturers from across Ireland and Britain competed to sell all shapes and sizes of bicycle to the various constabularies of Ireland. The bicycles which were best suited for the poor Irish roads of the time were initially the long-distance Penny Farthing, followed by specially designed and highly robust ‘police specials’ such as the all steel Raleigh X-frame.
IRELAND’S POLICE FORCES
The Irish Constabulary later known as the Royal Irish Constabulary (R.I.C.) was Ireland’s police force from 1836 to 1922. Derry (Londonderry) and Belfast had their own special R.I.C. divisions and a second force, the Dublin Metropolitan Police (D.M.P.) patrolled Dublin and parts of County Wicklow.
As a result of the Anglo-Irish Treaty and the partition of Ireland, the R.I.C. was disbanded in 1922. It was replaced by An Garda Síochána “the Guardian(s) of the Peace” in the Irish Free State and the Royal Ulster Constabulary (R.U.C.) in Northern Ireland.
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BIG BUSINESS
In the 1870s the Penny Farthing bicycle was invented. The bicycle’s name comes from the British penny and farthing coins, with the larger penny resembling the front wheel and the smaller farthing the rear. The large front wheel allowed the cyclist to ride faster and provided better shock absorption on poor roads. By 1893 this design was in widespread use by the R.I.C. for long-distance police patrols for example in Swalinbar, County Cavan.
With the 1890s boom in cycling, numerous bicycle manufacturers sprang up across Ireland and agents for brands were appointed. These companies offered all kinds of specially designed police bicycles, related clothing and equipment. In these early days of cycling, selling to the police forces of Ireland developed into a big business as by 1900, the R.I.C. alone had over 11,000 officers stationed in 1,600 barracks. As a long-standing rule, individual R.I.C. officers bought their own bicycles for official duties and post-independence An Garda Síochána continued to uphold this regulation.
THE CONSTABULARY GAZETTES
The Constabulary Gazette launched in April 1887, was the official publication of the Royal Irish Constabulary (R.I.C.). Published each Saturday, it had a substantial weekly readership. Another publication that came out each Friday was the Police Gazette also known as ‘Hue-and-Cry’ (a loud cry calling for the pursuit and capture of a criminal).
Well-known bicycle manufacturers such as Rudge-Whitworth of Coventry, Penrose-B.S.A., Royal Enfield, Raleigh, Rover and the Triumph Cycle Company completed with each other to attract the spending power of individual officers and advertised in both Gazettes.
There were also a plethora of smaller Irish-based manufacturers and agents spread across the island who used the gazette to reach out to potential customers, such as R.B. Baker of 44 King Street, Dublin who sold Raleigh, Sunbeam and Sparkbrook police bicycles. Mulligan Brothers & Todd of Limerick, Ennis and Tralee were also cycle agents and Frank Herbert from Dublin offered for sale the 3-gear ‘Nubian’ bicycle claiming that it was developed especially for the constabulary.
DESIGNED FOR IRISH ROADS
With a regulation height requirement of 5 feet 9 inches minimum to become a member of the Irish Constabulary and An Garda Siochana, these big men needed robust bicycles to transport them safely over the rough roads of Ireland. In the 1920s, R.W. Stevens of Dublin enlisted the endorsement of the 6 ft 7 inch and 17 stone Constable Maurice Wolfe of the Dublin Metropolitan Police (D.M.P.). to market the robustness of their 32-inch frame ‘Star Cycle’.
R.W. Stevens marketing pamphlet stated that they had supplied a Star Cycle “of the first magnitude” to Constable Wolfe and that they had also previously supplied bicycles to The Royal Horse Guards, Grenadier Guards, North Devon Regiment, 20th Bengal Infantry, Royal Irish Constabulary and Provincial (English, Welsh, Scottish) Constabularies.
The ‘Sparkbrook R.I.C. Roadster’ made similar claims to the Star Cycle and was also advertised as designed to convey “tall and heavy riders over rough roads” by means of the triangulated frame and was offered in 25 inch and a 27-inch frame with strengthened front forks. In advertisements in the Police Gazette a Sergeant Callaghan endorsed the Mead R.I.C. Flyer built by Mead Cycles of Chicago, founded 1889 who also manufactured their bicycles in England.
SPECIAL OFFERS
In the early 1900s there were free offers aplenty as manufacturers scrambled for police business. In an early example of data-base building, Rudge-Whitworth of Coventry with depots located Dublin, Belfast, Londonderry (Derry) and Belfast promoted their ‘Cyclist’s Encyclopaedia’ with the statement that “Every cyclist should have one. Every cyclist can have one.” All you had to do was write to them, including your return address and they would post you a copy.
Each manufacturer had their own marketing pitch and R.W. Stevens of 8 Aston Quay, Dublin was no exception and marketed their R.I.C. Star bicycle as being able to “withstand all weather and road conditions” and all for just £8.00. There were other packages offered by the company who sold each of their bicycles with a lamp, bell, cycling outfit and pump. They also offered to dispatch your constabulary bicycle “carriage paid and crated free to your nearest Railway Station”.
H.S. Huet of 27 South Anne Street joined with R.W. Stevens of 8 Aston’s Quay to jointly offer the ‘Famous James’ bicycle “specially manufactured for the R.I.C. and the D.M.P. (Dublin Metropolitan Police)” at a favourable weekly rate.
RELATED PRODUCTS
And it was not just bicycle manufacturers angling to cash in on the lucrative police market, tyre makers like Dunlop and The Midland Rubber Company of Dublin and Belfast offered a “practically puncture proof” R.I.C. Tyre.
The Great Western Railway advertised heavily in the Constabulary Gazette with special deals for the Irish constabulary, offering 2 ¾ hour passage on ‘turbine’ steamers between Ireland and England. And using Nugget Polishes would “double the life of your (Police) boots”.
HUGE PROFITS
According to Peter, writing on The Royal Irish Constabulary Forum (Research, Genealogy and History of the old Irish Police Forces); “There was a shortage of new bicycles after war was declared in August, 1914, because most bicycles were supplied for military use….. BSA bicycle fittings were top quality components but could be purchased through the cycle trade at much cheaper prices than that of a finished bicycle, allowing an Irish cycle shop to make a decent profit margin while the regular R.I.C model was unavailable from the Sparkbrook Manufacturing Company in England”.
ACCIDENTS
With the widespread use of bicycles and the poor condition of the roads, accidents were common and sometimes fatal.
A newspaper report from the Midland Counties Advertiser (26th April 1888) referenced Sergeant McPhillips of the Royal Irish Constabulary, stationed at Falcanagh, County Donegal who died from injuries sustained by a fall from his Penny Farthing bicycle.
Fifteen years later the roads were still in a poor condition and The Weekly Irish Times, 7th February 1903 recorded a judgement against the Triumph Cycle Company. “Recently in the King’s Bench Division an application was made to serve a writ on the Triumph Cycle Company to recover damages for the death of Constable John Kerrigan, R.I.C. On the 5th of July last he was riding from Stonyford, and when near Mullingar (County Westmeath) the front fork of the bicycle broke, throwing him to the ground, and receiving injuries from which he died next morning. The motion which was made on behalf of the deceased’s mother, was granted”.
AN GARDA SIOCHANA
With the foundation of the Irish Free State in 1922 An Garda Siochana took over policing in the south of Ireland while the Royal Ulster Constabulary (R.U.C.) policed Northern Ireland.
The long-practised regulation of police officers buying their own bicycles continued and manufacturers and agents then shifted their advertising to the Garda Review, published since 1923 and now Ireland’s longest-established magazine.
RALEIGH GARDA BICYCLE
In the early 1930s the Raleigh Bicycle Company were focussed on securing a large share of the Irish Free State market and their advertising claimed to have a robust bicycle that could withstand the poor Irish roads.
Their all steel ‘Model Superbe’ cross-frame was first introduced in 1900 and in 1933 in a bid to secure an Irish government contract the bicycle underwent a name change to the ‘Irish X-Frame’ (later rebranded as the “Service Model 3”). According to, Diarmuid Considine, Group Expert on the Vintage Bicycles of the World Facebook page, “It seems the Garda chose Raleigh to provide their service machines even before they were made in Ireland”.
The ‘police features’ of the ‘Irish X-Frame’ as listed by Raleigh were hardened bearings in the headstock and pedals, high-quality chrome plating, paint/ enamel and improved brakes. From 1936 assembly of the ‘Irish X-Frame’ took place at Raleigh’s factory at 35 Lower Abbey Street, Dublin. ‘
GARDA BICYCLE
Diarmuid also shared with us his recent restoration of a Triumph Garda Siochana bicycle. From Diarmuid’s own research the Triumph bicycle was bought in 1960 by Garda John Maughan stationed in Ennis, County Clare. Garda Maughan used his own money to buy the Triumph for official use as it was cheaper at that time than a Raleigh.
Diarmuid tells us that you can still buy an X-frame design bicycle in Holland, where it’s known as a Pastoorsfiets (Priest’s bike). Apparently, it’s easier to ride while wearing a cassock!
Our catalogue of bicycles supplied to the police forces of Ireland is by no means complete – if you can add to our list of manufacturers, assemblers and agents, please let us know.
Information sources and photo credits:
About Aran
Cian Molloy
Galway Memories Facebook page – photo of Garda Mick Lernihan (1956) by Mick Lernihan Jnr
Garda Review
Garda.ie
Irish Genealogy Toolkit
Joe McKeown
Mark O’Brien
Mary Evans Picture Library
Mickey O’Sullivan
National Library of Ireland – Waterford and County Museum – Richard Edward Brenan on His Penny-Farthing Bicycle
Online Bicycle Museum
Police Service of Northern Ireland (PSNI) Museum
Rosemary Gifford
Royal Irish Constabulary 1816 – 1922 – A forgotten Irish Police Force Facebook page: John McDonald, Phil Harding
Royal Irish Constabulary Forum
The British Newspaper Archive
The Royal Irish Constabulary Forum – Peter Mc
The Royal Irish Constabulary: a short history and genealogical guide (2016) – Jim Herlihy
University of Limerick, Glucksman Library the Garda Review digitised archive
