Premier Cycle Co
of Premier Works, Coventry
See also -
1891 July. The Premier Cycle Co Ltd was formed for the purpose of purchasing Hillman, Herbert and Cooper as a going concern. Directors are: [1]
- Alexander Rotherham (chairman),
- Henry H. C. Horsfall,
- T. H. Lowthian,
- William Hillman,
- William Henry Herbert and
- George Beveley Cooper.
1891 September. Company wound up. 'The Premier Cycle Company Limited....Resolution was duly confirmed, viz.:— "That the Company be wound up voluntarily under the provisions of the Companies Acts, 1862 and 1867." And at such last mentioned Meeting Stephen Herbert Norton, of Coventry, was appointed Liquidator...' T. W. Hargeaves is Chairman.[2]
1893 Production plant also at Nuremberg and Egger to serve markets outside UK[3].
1896 The New Premier Cycle Co was registered on 29 June to acquire the business of the Premier Cycle Co. Directors are: [4] [5].
- Warington Baden-Powell,
- Colonel C. E. MacDonald,
- Alexander Rotherham,
- George Francis Twist and
- William Henry Herbert.
1896 The cycle boom was at its peak, with improved road surfaces and the introduction of the pneumatic tyre. Employment in the industry almost quadrupled, to 30,000. It was reported that "agents hurried from factory to factory, cash in hand, pleased if they could secure even a couple of machines"[6].
1896/7 Directory: Listed under cycles as New Premier Cycle Co. Limited, of Premier Works. [7]
1902 Reverted to the original title of Premier Cycle Co.
1912 Listed in Spennell's directory of Coventry as Cycle Manufacturers. [8]
1912 Premier Cycle Co listed at Hertford St. and Lincoln St (Tel. 796), Read St (Tel. 514), Coventry and as manufacturers of motorcycles.
c.1912 Introduced Premier Cycle Car
1913 The German operation went into receivership and the Japanese operation was in trouble. [9]
1915 Further losses mainly due to operation in Japan. [10]
1914 Changed the name to Coventry Premier Ltd
1920 Company acquired by Singer.
Bicycles
Premier Cycle Co in Nuremberg, Germany[11]
1887, Oct. 1: Hillman, Herbert and Cooper take over the "Nuremberg Velociped-Depot" one of the oldest bicyle-retailers in Nuremberg.[12]
At the same time they start building their own bicycle plant in Nuremberg-Doos.[13] (Doos at that time was a little village west of Nuremberg which was suburbanized to Nuremberg in 1899).
1888, April 17: Hillman, Herbert and Cooper enrolled at the Professional Register stating they employ 1 director, 3 white collars and 30 workers.[14]
1890 Hillman, Herbert and Cooper are members in the “Association of German Bicycle Manufacturers”[15]
1892 Hillman, Herbert and Cooper set up another bicycle-plant in Eger/Bohemia to avoid paying high import-taxes to the Austrian-Hungarian Empire.[16]
1897, Dec. William Hillman received German imperial patent no. 98652 for a production process of double-tubes from sheet metal (so called Helical-tube)[17]
| Year | No of bicycles | No of workers |
| 1890 | 1500 | 100 |
| 1892 | 4000 | 200 |
| 1894 | 8500 | 350 |
| 1896 | 18,000 | 790 |
| 1898 | 28,800 | 940 |
| 1900 | 22600 | 700 |
| 1902 | 22700 | 580 |
| 1904 | 36000 | 540 |
| 1906 | 47800 | 510 |
| 1908 | 44500 | 485 |
1907 Long article on the history of the company.[19]
1911, Sep. H., H. & C., meanwhile The Premier Cycle Co. Ltd. Nuremberg, merge with "Nürnberger Feuerlöschgeräte und Maschinenfabrik vorm. Justus Christian Braun" (Nuremberg Fire Extinguishing Devices- and Machine Works former Justus Christian Braun) in order to start a joint automobile production. The company name is changed to "Justus Christian Braun - Premier-Werke Aktien-gesellschaft." (Aktiengesellschaft means public company)[20]
1913, Aug. "Justus Christian Braun - Premier-Werke AG." is in liquidation.[21]
Notes:
- Der Velocipedist: German Bicycle Magazine
- Fränkischer Kurier: Daily newspaper in Northern Bavaria
- Festschrift zum 50-jährigen Bestehen des Vereins Deutscher Fahrradfabrikanten 1938: Publication issued on the 50th anniversary of the Association of German Bicycle Manufacturers in 1938
- Paller: Book written by Rupert von Paller: Die bayrische Fahrrad-Industrie. Eine geschichtlich-statistische Betrachtung, Nürnberg 1908 (The bavarian bicycle-industy. A historic-statistic reflection, published in Nuremberg 1908)
- DEPATISnet: Database of German Patent and Trade Mark Office
See Also
Sources of Information
- The British Motorcycle Directory - Over 1,100 Marques from 1888 - by Roy Bacon and Ken Hallworth. Pub: The Crowood Press 2004 ISBN 1 86126 674 X
- [2] A-Z of Historic, Classic, Vintage and Veteran Motorcycles web site
- [3] Miscellaneous A-Z Classic and Vintage Motorcycles web site
- Miller’s Price Guide to Classic Motorcycles
- Trademarked. A History of Well-Known Brands - from Aertex to Wright's Coal Tar by David Newton. Pub: Sutton Publishing 2008 ISBN 978-0-7509-4590-5
- [4] Wikipedia
- ↑ The Times, Saturday, Jul 25, 1891
- ↑ [1] Gazette Issue 26207 published on the 29 September 1891. Page 23 of 58
- ↑ Lloyd's Weekly Newspaper, 22 January 1893
- ↑ The Stock Exchange Year Book 1908
- ↑ The Times, Wednesday, Jul 01, 1896
- ↑ The Story of the Bicycle, by John Woodforde, 1970
- ↑ Peck's Trades Directory of Birmingham, 1896-97: Cycles
- ↑ Spennell's Annual Directory of Coventry and District, 1912-13
- ↑ The Times, Monday, Oct 13, 1913
- ↑ The Times, Saturday, Dec 11, 1915
- ↑ Collated by Peter Ullein (March 2018)
- ↑ Der Velocipedist, Nr. 20, of Oct. 25, 1887, p. 209
- ↑ Fränkischer Kurier of Oct. 7., 1887, Nr. 512
- ↑ Municipal Archive Nuremberg, C22/V, Nr. 40, entry of 17.4.1888
- ↑ Festschrift zum 50-jährigen Bestehen des Vereins Deutscher Fahrradfabrikanten 1938
- ↑ Paller, p. 26 f
- ↑ DEPATISnet DE0000098652
- ↑ Paller, p. 28
- ↑ Athletic News - Monday 22 July 1907
- ↑ Fränkischer Kurier of Sep. 1, 1911, Nr. 446, p. 6
- ↑ Fränkischer Kurier of Aug. 22,1913, Nr. 427, p. 6