Pierre Lallament lived in Ansonia when he got the patent for the first pedaled bicycle in 1886. Then he spent his life in relative obscurity, working for a factory and dying without fame, money or much credit.
Now one Ansonia resident wants to change that — and it starts with a 10-mile bike ride this summer.
As part of the annual International Arts and Ideas Festival in New Haven, a group will bike from the New Haven Green to Ansonia on June 12 to recreate Lallament’s first long ride.
Click here to see the route and the ride details.
Ansonia will host a ceremony, with music and speeches, to honor the man who took his first rides along the banks of the Naugatuck River, and contributed to the history of the bicycle by adding a pedal and crank to an otherwise awkward scooter.
The event is the brainchild of Michael Soberany, an Ansonia resident who hopes to one day expand on the bicycle excitement and use it to bring people to Ansonia, and to make the city more bicycle-friendly.
A Bicycle Lover From Brooklyn
A former New York City bike messenger, Soberany brought his passion for bicycling to Connecticut, when he moved from Brooklyn to Ansonia.
After navigating the steep hills of the Valley for eight years, Sobernay recently learned that Pierre Lallement was living in Ansonia — riding the same routes as Soberany — when he created the design for the modern bicycle and applied for the patent.
“He was an Ansonia resident at the time,” Soberany said. “That’s awesome, just to know that we had such a person living here.”
Soberany started researching Lallement’s life, and was surprised to learn that there was no formal recognition of him in Ansonia.
His research led him to Marion O’Keefe, the curator for the Seymour Historical Society. She had spent several years researching Lallement as well, after seeing his name briefly mentioned in a history book on Ansonia.
“He should have been recognized a long time ago,” O’Keefe said.
A Bicycle Maker From France
Lallement came to Ansonia in 1865 to get work as a mechanic in a factory, O’Keefe said.
While here, he worked on his design to improve a scooter called a “dandy horse.” The dandy horse was essentially a bicycle with no pedal, no crank and no seat, O’Keefe said.
“I don’t know how they sat on it,” O’Keefe said. “It must have hurt!”
Lallement received his patent for the “velocipede,” now called the bicycle, in November 1866. The invention added a pedal, crank and saddle to the dandy horse. Though other similar bikes were being produced around the same time, Lallement had the first documented ownership of the pedal bike.
Before he applied for the patent, he took two known test rides. One was over the covered bridge in Ansonia — about where Bridge Street is now — and up into Derby, O’Keefe said.
The other ride was from Ansonia to New Haven, where Lallement was reportedly arrested, O’Keefe said.
“He got arrested for scaring a horse, or making a nuisance of himself. Nobody had ever seen anything like this,” O’Keefe said.
Then Lallement moved back to France, and started making bicycles with Pierre Michaux, who is often credited as the inventor of the bicycle.
Lallement died when he was 47, after moving back to the states. He is buried in Boston.
Due Recognition
The bike ride is foremost about recognizing Lallement in his hometown, Soberany said.
Boston — where Lallement lived and worked before his death — has a commemorative trail named in Lallement’s honor. And New Haven, the city in which Lallement received his patent, has a plaque in his honor. Bikers from New Haven recreated his ride once in 1998.
But other than a brick at the Derby Greenway, and a memorial page on the Electronic Valley website, there isn’t any Ansonia memorial to the famous former resident, Soberany said.
“We joked around that the City Hall does not even have a bicycle rack in front of it,” Soberany said. “Maybe we can have one donated with a plaque.”
Soberany said when he approached Mayor James Della Volpe about hosting the ceremony, the mayor was receptive and got on board, offering to host an event after the ride in the park next to City Hall.
The event will be co-hosted by the International Arts and Ideas Festival, the City of Ansonia, Ansonia’s cultural commission, and Mobile Spokes, Soberany’s local bike club.
At the ceremony, Boston author David Herlihy, who spent several years researching the history of the bicycle and fighting to recognition for Lallement, will speak to the participants.
“We want to encourage people to bring their old bicycles, show them off,” Soberany said. “Make it a bicycle day. Forget about your car. Come down and enjoy your bicycle.”
Soberany hopes the city takes the next step and names its new Riverwalk after Lallement, and creates bicycle friendly lanes on its streets.
And, Soberany hopes the recognition of the famous resident will lead bicycle enthusiasts to visit Ansonia.
“Maybe in the future we’ll see a bicycle shop in Ansonia,” Soberany said. “Maybe in the future we’ll see a bike lane. There’s endless opportunities. It will bring people from all over the place, who will want to come and ride the streets that he rode.”
