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
Eugene Meyer (financier) Eugene Meyer (financier) Eugene Isaac Meyer (October 31, 1875 – July 17, 1959) was an American financier, public official, and newspaper publisher. He published the "Washington Post" from 1933 to 1946, and the paper stayed in his family throughout the rest of the 20th century. He served as Chairman of the Federal Reserve from 1930 to 1933 and was the first President of the World Bank Group. Born in Los Angeles, California, he was one of eight children of Harriet (née Newmark) and Marc Eugene Meyer. His parents were Alsatian Jews, but he avoided identification as a Jew until later