Antique Narragansett Machine Co. stationary bike and odometer, 1890-1900 Reportedly, used on a turn of the century passenger liner. With brown leather seat stamped "Troxel Elyria, Ohio Made in USA of Genuine Leather", cast iron and pipe platform over pedal wheel, adjustable metal handlebars, freestanding odometer pole and platform (driven by leather strap to stationary bicycle, strap is not present), circular platform marked "Narragansett Machine Co. Providence, Rhode Island 440 yards to one lap", with yardage calculator (four laps per mile) From the University of Texas Austin, The H.J. Lutcher Stark Center for Physical Culture and Sports: Narragansett Machine Co. Standard Bicycle Trainer Manufactured by Narragansett Machine Company of Providence, R.I. around the turn of the twentieth century, this pair of stationary exercise bikes are relics of the “bike boom” that swept the country in the 1890s. Each bike connects to a color-coordinated hand on the nearly 4-foot diameter dial measuring distance; the first rider to cover the four laps equaling one mile was the winner of bragging rights and, it is easy to imagine, a friendly wager or two. Retailing for $200 at a time when the average wage in the United States was 22 cents per hour, these trainers were most likely to be found in private or institutional gyms, such as YMCA or university facilities. 46"H x 25 1/2"W x 32"D (bike), 66 1/2"H x 16 1/2"Diam. (guage)