Penny-farthing term and "hi-wheel" (and variants) are preferred by many modern enthusiasts. Following the popularity of the boneshaker, Eugène Meyer, a Frenchman, invented the high-wheeler bicycle design in 1869 and fashioned the wire-spoke tension wheel. Around 1870 English inventor James Starley, described as the father of the bicycle industry, and others, began producing bicycles based on the French boneshaker but with front wheels of increasing size, because larger front wheels, up to in diameter, enabled higher speeds on bicycles limited to direct drive. In 1878, Albert Pope began manufacturing the Columbia bicycle outside Boston, starting their two-decade heyday in America. Although
Billy Meyer brewery in Knoxville. Meyer started playing baseball in grade school when his father bought him a catcher's mitt to catch his older brother. His hero was catcher Johnny Kling. He was a good student until high school when baseball became such a primary focus that it even resulted in a school suspension. His father also owned a brewery in Smithton, Pennsylvania, for a time and the younger Meyer worked there during vacation. During his sophomore year of high school, Meyer was offered $75 per month to catch for a Lakeland, Florida, team, but he was expected to inherit the brewery