{"title":"Vintage Cycling","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eBefore the record player changed everything, music was something a family owned — a piano in the parlor, a cornet in the hall closet, a hymnal on the bench. This collection gathers the commercial ephemera of instrument makers and talking machine pioneers, transforming it into framed wall art that documents an era when music was as much an object as a sound.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","products":[{"product_id":"m-strauss-bicycles-buffalo-1896-framed-print","title":"M. Strauss Bicycles, Buffalo — 1896 | Framed Print","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eM. Strauss Cycle Dealer, Buffalo, New York — 1896\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe \"999\" — Named After the Fastest Machine in America\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA museum-quality framed print of an original 1896 letterhead from M. Strauss Cycle Dealer in Buffalo, New York — a steel-engraved portrait of one of the city's most ambitious bicycle operations, at the peak of the greatest consumer craze America had seen. Includes a companion postcard with QR access to a fully narrated audio story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn 1896, Buffalo's bicycle boom was at full speed — and M. Strauss was building a machine named after the fastest locomotive in America.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt 160 Genesee Street, in the heart of Buffalo's German-American commercial district, Strauss ran one of the city's most ambitious cycle operations. He sold new and second-hand bicycles, handled repairs, and offered nickeling and enameling — electroplating and custom color finishing that turned a standard machine into something personal. Under his own name, he manufactured a bicycle he called the \"999,\" borrowing the name from a New York Central locomotive that had broken the world land speed record at the 1893 World's Columbian Exposition in Chicago.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eBuffalo had seventy-nine bicycle manufacturers by the turn of the decade. Strauss was not content to be one among many. By early 1896 he was developing a wholesale supply circular for sub-dealers and repair shops across Western New York, sourcing components from manufacturers as far as Connecticut and producing illustrated catalogs designed to compete with the major Chicago houses.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis letterhead dates to February 17th, 1896. It is a business letter, written in Strauss's own hand, at the height of the craze.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe art is not inspired by history. It is history.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery image in The Ephemera Collective began as a real artifact. This one was created by a master engraver over 130 years ago, long before computers or any digital tools, at a time when the main instruments of design were a skilled hand, a steel plate, and time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe bicycle illustration at the top of this letterhead is a period engraving of Strauss's own \"999\" model — drop bars and all. It was printed directly onto his business stationery, the calling card of a man who took his product seriously enough to put it at the top of every letter he sent. Pulled from the archive, not conjured from a prompt.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story doesn't stop at the frame.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery print ships with a QR code that unlocks a full narrated audio history — researched, written, and produced by Chronicles \u0026amp; Color. Scan it, and in about three minutes you'll know who M. Strauss was, what Engine 999 meant to a city obsessed with speed, why the bicycle was called \"the freedom machine,\" and what happened to Buffalo's boom when the automobile arrived.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow it feels to own this.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is not only decoration. It's a conversation starter — the kind of wall art that stops guests in their tracks and invites the question: 'What's the story behind this?'\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAnd now you have the answer — researched, documented, and narrated in full. This is a boutique piece, only available from Chronicles \u0026amp; Color, from a collection you won't find on a shelf at any big box store or scrolling through an online marketplace.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWho this is for.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis piece is for people who collect experiences\u003c\/strong\u003e, not just objects.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor those who furnish their homes with intention\u003c\/strong\u003e — who want their walls to tell stories, not just fill space.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor history lovers who appreciate craft\u003c\/strong\u003e. For design enthusiasts who value authenticity. For collectors who know the difference between mass-produced prints and archival artifacts restored by hand.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the cycling enthusiast\u003c\/strong\u003e who knows what the safety bicycle meant to America in 1896 — and wants that story on their wall.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor anyone who believes a home should feel curated\u003c\/strong\u003e, not ordered from a catalog.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAnd for the gift-giver\u003c\/strong\u003e looking for something genuinely rare.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe details.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ctable\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFrame dimensions\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e21¼\" W × 17¼\" H\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eVisible print\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e16\" W × 12\" H\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFrame\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePremium box frame, black finish, Perspex glaze\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMatting\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eSnow white 2\" border mount\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePaper\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eEMA 200gsm archival quality\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIncludes\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eCompanion postcard with QR access to full audio story\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePackaging\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePremium archival presentation\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOwn a piece of the story.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Chronicles \u0026 Color","offers":[{"title":"Black","offer_id":47869379510459,"sku":null,"price":179.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0680\/6487\/0587\/files\/MStraussBicycles_1896_HERO-1x1.jpg?v=1779658922"},{"product_id":"the-monarch-bicycle-company-chicago-1896-framed-print","title":"The Monarch Bicycle Company, Chicago — 1896 | Framed Print","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThe Monarch Cycle Manufacturing Company, Chicago, IL — 1896\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eFrom Thirty-Five Workers to Four Continents in Four Years\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA museum-quality framed print of an original 1896 letterhead from The Monarch Cycle Manufacturing Company in Chicago, Illinois — a steel-engraved portrait of one of America's most ambitious bicycle operations, at the peak of the greatest consumer craze the country had ever seen. Includes a companion postcard with QR access to a fully narrated audio story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn 1892, John Kiser had thirty-five workers, one hundred and fifty bicycles, and a sewing machine factory he was about to repurpose. Four years later, Monarch was competing on four continents.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe Monarch Cycle Manufacturing Company was born from a pivot. Kiser had spent three years running the Chicago Sewing Machine Company, studying the tolerances and tooling of precision domestic machinery, when the bicycle craze hit. He recognized what most people missed — that the same factory floor could build bicycles — and moved fast. By 1896, Monarch had twelve hundred employees and was pushing fifty thousand machines out the door annually, with offices in Chicago, New York, San Francisco, Toronto, and London.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eTheir marketing was as ambitious as their growth. Monarch's lion's head trademark appeared on every letterhead, every badge, every advertisement. Their sponsored trick rider traveled the country performing for crowds while Monarch sold premium playing card decks featuring him through national periodical ads. It was a brand-building operation that looked nothing like what anyone else in the industry was doing.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis letterhead survived.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe art is not inspired by history. It is history.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery image in The Ephemera Collective began as a real artifact. This one was created by a master engraver over 125 years ago, long before computers or any digital tools, at a time when the main instruments of design were a skilled hand, a steel plate, and time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe lion's head at the center of this letterhead is a registered trademark — engraved with a precision that was itself a statement of industrial confidence. The typography surrounding it, the office locations listed across the left margin, the bold declaration of HIGH GRADE CYCLES anchored to the right — every element was designed to project scale and permanence.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003ePulled from the archive, not conjured from a prompt.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story doesn't stop at the frame.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery print in The Ephemera Collective ships with a QR code postcard that unlocks the full narrated audio history — researched, written, and produced by Chronicles \u0026amp; Color. Scan it to hear what Monarch built, how they built it, and what happened when the craze that made them ended.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow it feels.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is not only decoration. It's a conversation starter — the kind of wall art that stops guests in their tracks and invites the question: \"What's the story behind this?\"\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd now you have the answer — researched, documented, and narrated in full. This is a boutique piece, only available from Chronicles \u0026amp; Color, from a collection you won't find on a shelf at any big box store or scrolling through an online marketplace.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWho this is for.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis piece is for people who collect experiences\u003c\/strong\u003e, not just objects.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor those who furnish their homes with intention\u003c\/strong\u003e — who want their walls to tell stories, not just fill space.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor history lovers who appreciate craft\u003c\/strong\u003e. For design enthusiasts who value authenticity. For collectors who know the difference between mass-produced prints and archival artifacts restored by hand.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the cycling enthusiast or student of American industrial history\u003c\/strong\u003e who knows what the bicycle boom meant to this country in 1896 — and wants a piece of it on the wall.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor anyone who believes a home should feel curated\u003c\/strong\u003e, not ordered from a catalog.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAnd for the gift-giver\u003c\/strong\u003e looking for something genuinely rare.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe details.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ctable\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFrame dimensions\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e21¼\" W × 17¼\" H\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eVisible print\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003e16\" W × 12\" H\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eFrame\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePremium box frame, black finish, Perspex glaze\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eMatting\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eSnow white 2\" border mount\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePaper\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eEMA 200gsm archival quality\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eIncludes\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003eCompanion postcard with QR access to full audio story\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePackaging\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd\u003ePremium archival presentation\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOwn a piece of the story.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Chronicles \u0026 Color","offers":[{"title":"Black","offer_id":47869403136187,"sku":null,"price":179.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0680\/6487\/0587\/files\/TheMonarchCycleManfgCo_1896_Hero-1x1.jpg?v=1779661227"},{"product_id":"bettelini-cycle-agency-jacksonville-1897-framed-print","title":"Bettelini Cycle Agency, Jacksonville — 1897 | Framed Print","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eBettelini Cycle Agency, Jacksonville, FL — 1897\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eSix Riders. One Machine. The Peak of America's Greatest Bicycle Craze.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA museum-quality framed print of an original 1897 letterhead from the Bettelini Cycle Agency in Jacksonville, Florida — a steel-engraved portrait of a full-service bicycle dealer at the absolute peak of the greatest consumer craze America had ever seen. Includes a companion postcard with QR access to a fully narrated audio story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn 1897, the bicycle wasn't a hobby. It was a revolution.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eF. Bettelini operated a full wholesale and retail cycle agency on Bridge Street in Jacksonville — selling bicycles, sundries, and everything a rider needed to keep moving. Jacksonville was also a winter destination, and Bettelini's shop served both locals and wealthy Northern visitors flush with leisure money and nowhere particular to be.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe safety bicycle — a newly stable design with equal-sized wheels and a chain drive — had brought the cost of cycling down from six months' wages to thirty dollars. Women were riding. Workers were riding. Susan B. Anthony called it the freedom machine.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThe cycle shops eventually closed. But the roads they fought for stayed.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis letterhead survived.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe art is not inspired by history. It is history.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery image in The Ephemera Collective began as a real artifact. This one was created by a master engraver over 125 years ago, long before computers or any digital tools, at a time when the main instruments of design were a skilled hand, a steel plate, and time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eLook at the illustration at the top of this letterhead: six riders on a single sextuplet tandem bicycle, leaning hard into an invisible wind. Manufacturers like Stearns and Orient built these massive multi-rider machines as racing and promotional showpieces. Bettelini chose it to represent his business at the absolute peak of the bicycle era. We restored it. We framed it. Pulled from the archive, not conjured from a prompt.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story doesn't stop at the frame\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery framed print ships with a companion postcard. On it: a QR code and short URL linking to an in-depth narrated audio story — the story of the Bettelini Cycle Agency, the bicycle craze that made it possible, and the decade that changed how America moved.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eResearched, written, and narrated exclusively for this piece. No subscription. No app. Just scan and listen.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow it feels\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is not only decoration. It's a conversation starter — the kind of wall art that stops guests in their tracks and invites the question: 'What's the story behind this?'\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eAnd now you have the answer — researched, documented, and narrated in full. This is a boutique piece, only available from Chronicles \u0026amp; Color, from a collection you won't find on a shelf at any big box store or scrolling through an online marketplace.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWho this is for\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the collector\u003c\/strong\u003e who wants something on the wall that actually means something — not a print, a piece of documented history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the cycling enthusiast\u003c\/strong\u003e who knows the sport didn't start with carbon fiber — it started with chain drives, steel frames, and a country that lost its mind over the wheel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the design lover\u003c\/strong\u003e drawn to the precision of 19th-century intaglio engraving — six figures, one machine, rendered in ink before electricity changed everything.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAnd for the gift-giver\u003c\/strong\u003e looking for something genuinely rare.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe details\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ctable style=\"width: 100%; font-size: 12px; border-collapse: collapse;\"\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eFrame size\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003e21¼ × 17¼ inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eVisible window\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003e16 × 12 inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003ePrint\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eEMA 200gsm fine art paper\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eMount\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eSnow White 2.4mm, 2\" border\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eGlazing\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003ePerspex — shatter-resistant, UV protective\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eFrame\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eBlack box frame\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eIncludes\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eCompanion postcard with QR audio access\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eShipping\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eFree shipping\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOwn a piece of the story.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Chronicles \u0026 Color","offers":[{"title":"Black","offer_id":47870327423163,"sku":null,"price":179.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0680\/6487\/0587\/files\/BetteliniCycleAgency_1897_HERO-1x1.jpg?v=1779690916"},{"product_id":"northwestern-cycle-co-minneapolis-1898-framed-print","title":"Northwestern Cycle Co., Minneapolis — 1898 | Framed Print","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eNorthwestern Cycle Co., Minneapolis, MN — 1898\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Man Who Sold Bicycles — Then Sold Minneapolis Its First Automobile.\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eA museum-quality framed print of an original 1898 letterhead from the Northwestern Cycle Company in Minneapolis, Minnesota — a steel-engraved portrait of one of the city's most forward-thinking merchants, at the peak of America's greatest bicycle craze. Includes a companion postcard with QR access to a fully narrated audio story.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn 1898, Leslie H. Fawkes was selling bicycles. He was already thinking about what came next.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eFawkes ran Northwestern Cycle Company at 601 First Avenue South in Minneapolis — a full-service dealer selling bicycles and sundries to a city that had fully surrendered to the wheel. Minneapolis in 1898 was in the grip of one of the greatest consumer crazes in American history, and Fawkes was at the center of it.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis letterhead documents a business dispute — Fawkes writing to a bell manufacturer in a small Connecticut town that produced an estimated nine out of every ten small bells sold in North America, demanding his inventory before the spring rush arrived.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eIt is also a document from the final years of the craze. Most dealers didn't see what was coming. Fawkes did. He would go on to become the first automobile dealer in Minneapolis — and the building that bore his name still stands in the city today.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eThis letterhead survived.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe art is not inspired by history. It is history.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery image in The Ephemera Collective began as a real artifact. This one was created by a master engraver over 125 years ago, long before computers or any digital tools, at a time when the main instruments of design were a skilled hand, a steel plate, and time.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAt the top of this letterhead: a woman on a bicycle, moving with the kind of freedom the 1890s were only beginning to allow. It is one of the defining images of the era — not just a product illustration, but a statement. We restored it. We framed it. Pulled from the archive, not conjured from a prompt.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe story doesn't stop at the frame\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eEvery framed print ships with a companion postcard. On it: a QR code and short URL linking to an in-depth narrated audio story — the story of Northwestern Cycle Company, the man who built it, and the decade that changed how America moved.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eResearched, written, and narrated exclusively for this piece. No subscription. No app. Just scan and listen.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eHow it feels\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eThis is not only decoration. It's a conversation starter — the kind of wall art that stops guests in their tracks and invites the question: 'What's the story behind this?'\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003eAnd now you have the answer — researched, documented, and narrated in full. This is a boutique piece, only available from Chronicles \u0026amp; Color, from a collection you won't find on a shelf at any big box store or scrolling through an online marketplace.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eWho this is for\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the collector\u003c\/strong\u003e who wants something on the wall that actually means something — not a print, a piece of documented history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the cycling enthusiast\u003c\/strong\u003e who knows the sport didn't start with carbon fiber — it started with chain drives, steel frames, and a country that lost its mind over the wheel.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eFor the design lover\u003c\/strong\u003e drawn to the precision of 19th-century intaglio engraving — a woman in motion, rendered in ink at the exact moment that motion became possible.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eAnd for the gift-giver\u003c\/strong\u003e looking for something genuinely rare.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThe details\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003ctable style=\"width: 100%; font-size: 12px; border-collapse: collapse;\"\u003e\n\u003ctbody\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eFrame size\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003e21¼ × 17¼ inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eVisible window\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003e16 × 12 inches\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003ePrint\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eEMA 200gsm fine art paper\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eMount\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eSnow White 2.4mm, 2\" border\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eGlazing\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003ePerspex — shatter-resistant, UV protective\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eFrame\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eBlack box frame\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eIncludes\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eCompanion postcard with QR audio access\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003ctr\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary); color: var(--color-text-secondary);\"\u003eShipping\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003ctd style=\"padding: 5px 8px; border: 0.5px solid var(--color-border-tertiary);\"\u003eFree shipping\u003c\/td\u003e\n\u003c\/tr\u003e\n\u003c\/tbody\u003e\n\u003c\/table\u003e\n\u003chr\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003e\u003cstrong\u003e\u003cbr\u003eOwn a piece of the story.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/em\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Chronicles \u0026 Color","offers":[{"title":"Black","offer_id":47870348132539,"sku":null,"price":179.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0680\/6487\/0587\/files\/NorthwesternCycleCo_1898_HERO-1x1.jpg?v=1779693126"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0680\/6487\/0587\/collections\/MStraussBicycles_1896_HERO-1x1.jpg?v=1779660278","url":"https:\/\/chroniclesandcolor.com\/collections\/vintage-cycling.oembed","provider":"Chronicles \u0026 Color","version":"1.0","type":"link"}