Certain adventurous women chose a different path to freedom and independence by riding bicycles and motorcycles. Riding these machines challenged social mores and led to a change in how society viewed women. It also changed the way women viewed themselves. In the late 1800s, early 1900s “The New Woman” started riding these “freedom machines” and could for the first time venture out without a male chaperon. Now women could exercise in fresh air in public. These new activities necessitated a change in women’s dress. Long Victorian dresses, corsets, and bustles were replaced by form fitting outfits. Lady motorcyclists wore leather pants and jackets. The bicycle became a symbol for the struggle for the vote.
An East End Libraries program hosted by North Shore Public Library.