{"id":13354,"date":"2018-09-10T09:14:10","date_gmt":"2018-09-10T16:14:10","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/?p=13354"},"modified":"2025-07-25T15:49:59","modified_gmt":"2025-07-25T22:49:59","slug":"draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/","title":{"rendered":"Diamond Chain, its Influence on the World from Indianapolis 1890 to 2023. &#8211; leader of  Industrial Revolution"},"content":{"rendered":"<p class=\"p2\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 24pt;\"><b>Diamond Chain<\/b><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p2\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13355\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-10-36-42-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.36.42-AM.png?fit=515%2C607&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"515,607\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.36.42 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.36.42-AM.png?fit=515%2C607&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-13355 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.36.42-AM.png?resize=631%2C744\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.36.42 AM\" width=\"631\" height=\"744\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.36.42-AM.png?w=515&amp;ssl=1 515w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.36.42-AM.png?resize=509%2C600&amp;ssl=1 509w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 631px) 100vw, 631px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\"><strong><span style=\"font-size: 24pt;\">A<\/span><\/strong><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">s the first United States manufacturer of chain that a man\u2019s legs could not break, called block chain, Indianapolis Chain &amp; Stamping, as Diamond Chain was first called, led the bicycle explosion of the Gay 90\u2019s. As the principal supplier of chain\u2019s next evolution, roller chain that machines could not break, it was then Diamond Chain that led the fledgling automobile industry. In the chapter ahead, you will learn about something we all rely upon daily to move\u00a0many things, including our physical selves, about. You will also acquire a deep appreciation for the company that put Indianapolis on the leader board as it continues to make endless miles of something we all take for granted &#8211; load bearing chain!<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">While chains have been around since before the time of Christ and were used in the form of heavy iron rings connected to each other to draw water out of a well, for example, two thousand years would pass before the steel they would need to engage continuously with gears would be invented. In 1855, when Charles Bessemer made it possible to mix different metals with iron to not only make it stronger, he also made it possible for the alloy that resulted, called steel, to be thinner. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13356\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-10-50-28-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.50.28-AM.png?fit=374%2C345&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"374,345\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.50.28 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.50.28-AM.png?fit=374%2C345&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13356 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.50.28-AM.png?resize=374%2C345\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.50.28 AM\" width=\"374\" height=\"345\" \/>An unstoppable wave of machines resulted. By 1869, shapeable and strong, steel, for example,<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>became the handlebars, rims, spokes, hubs, frames, pedals, and crank arms of the first bicycle, the big wheeled Penny Farthing. On the HiWheel, or Ordinary, as it is also called, one pedals the same wheel he or she steers. Direct drive, this design made no use of chain.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">These tall bikes ruled the mostly dirt roads of the day for the next decade and a half until Hans Renold invented the block chain in Manchester, England.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Renold\u2019s method of putting a tiny bushing on every other link was the magic that gears needed to be able to repeatedly deliver a human\u2019s power to wheels. His 1880 contrivance, while seminal, was also expensive and little known in America because it had to be imported from England.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13357\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-10-54-05-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.54.05-AM.png?fit=587%2C253&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"587,253\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.54.05 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.54.05-AM.png?fit=587%2C253&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13357 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.54.05-AM.png?resize=587%2C253\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.54.05 AM\" width=\"587\" height=\"253\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13358\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-10-56-13-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.56.13-AM.png?fit=343%2C312&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"343,312\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.56.13 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.56.13-AM.png?fit=343%2C312&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-13358 alignright\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-10.56.13-AM.png?resize=241%2C219\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 10.56.13 AM\" width=\"241\" height=\"219\" \/><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">It also did not not achieve widespread recognition until 1885. It was then that Renold made his patent<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>free to the bicycle industry. Seizing upon this development, John Starley brought the first chain driven bicycle, the<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>Rover Safety, to the European market. It featured two wheels a person could stand over. Since, in Renold\u2019s spirit, the Rover was also not protected by a patent, the chain driven bicycle industry exploded in the United Kingdom.\u00a0<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">In America, however, the price for a chain driven bike remained out of reach for most people. In 1890, a small company formed in Indianapolis, called Indianapolis Chain &amp; Stamping, to change all this by mass producing chain and soon, Renold\u2019s invention. And change it they would as bikes with equal sized wheels exploded in popularity all across America, from Boston to Chicago, Indianapolis and San Francisco. etc.. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Because they helped to make bicycles affordable to the masses, Indianapolis Chain &amp; Stamping, was a key player in the Gay 90\u2019s, when pedal machines had become the kings of the roads they brought about. Because of the equal sized wheels made possible by chain, the young and the old could enjoy bikes that allowed them to easily stop with both feet landing on the ground. No longer being such a test of agility and breakneck daring, the safety bikes became attractive to women as well.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">In 1899, Col Albert Pope, the man who brought bicycling to America when he began importing the HiWheel bike from England (in 1878), bought Indianapolis Chain &amp; Stamping. His plan was to put all of the various parts of the bicycle industry he had come to own, 50 different businesses, under one roof. He also changed the name to Diamond Chain, using the catch phrase that nothing outlasts a diamond.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">As the 20th Century approached, however, the bicycle began to wane in the face of an all new attraction &#8211; the motorized contraptions that were coming into favor. In the face of this, though, until 1903<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>the only product Pope\u2019s company made was bicycle block chain. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">This despite the fact that in 1898, superior roller chain had come about. Invented in Germany by the Nevoigt brothers of the Diamant Bicycle Company, it was quieter and smoother, than block chain. It also performed better when gear sizes had to be changed quickly because there was a tiny bush bearing on every roller, instead of on every other one.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13359\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-11-04-17-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.04.17-AM.png?fit=559%2C389&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"559,389\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 11.04.17 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.04.17-AM.png?fit=559%2C389&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13359 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.04.17-AM.png?resize=559%2C389\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 11.04.17 AM\" width=\"559\" height=\"389\" \/><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Roller chain was also well suited for machines that moved at high RPMs and with great force. So Pope sat back and watched as he let president, Lucius Wainright explore the options available to his company with fuel powered contrivances. It wasn\u2019t long before Diamond Chain was caught up in the next wave that was sweeping the world &#8211; the automobile.<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>By 1905, for $400,000 Pope had sold out of the business. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Pope was still around, however, when Diamond Chain powered the first flight. When Lucius Wairwight took over the reins of Pope\u2019s company at the beginning of the 20th Century, from Indianapolis, he already had deep roots in the bicycle business, He even manufactured a line of safety bicycles called the Ben Hur that a couple of brothers in Dayton, a little over a hundred miles away, sold for him. Also Diamond Chain dealers, they had begun to experiment with fight. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Even though no one the Wright Bros. approached said they would build a motor for their plane, Wainwright told them his company would help in whatever way they could. He offered Diamond Chain\u2019s resources for all the different chains they would need as his engineers went on to customize product for the Wrights. In the end, the power plant the brothers ended up having to make themselves required seven chains!<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">The 1903 Kitty Hawk success that resulted would go on to change the world forever. It would shrink the size of the planet and put most anywhere within a day or a few<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>days reach instead of weeks and months. 16 years later, one of the Wright\u2019s was still so grateful to Diamond Chain that, in a letter dated May 24, 1919, Orville Wright wrote to L. M. Wainwright,<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p8\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">\u201cI have never forgotten the interest you took and the<br \/>\nhelp you gave us when we were building our first flying machine.\u201d <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Going back to the very beginning of Diamond Chain, they<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>incorporated on Christmas Eve in 1890. They started out with four machines on the second floor of a tin-smith\u2019s shop. Their original location, 26 E South, is now a public parking lot.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p1\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Even though they did not sell block chain originally, the demand was so huge for the chains they did make that in two years they moved to the third floor of a steam laundry where they started mass producing Renold&#8217;s invention. It was here that they stayed for three more years even though they had to send pins and link plates to Cleveland for hardening.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">In 1895, they built their own factory, a two story brick building that they stayed in until 1918. When they opened their new plant, quickly they grew to 500 employees!<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>A large percentage of their work force was women.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13360\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-11-14-24-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.14.24-AM.png?fit=583%2C314&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"583,314\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 11.14.24 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.14.24-AM.png?fit=583%2C314&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13360 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.14.24-AM.png?resize=583%2C314\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 11.14.24 AM\" width=\"583\" height=\"314\" \/><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">Once located at 241 W Georgia St,<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>the above building has since given way<br \/>\n<\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 12pt;\">to the sprawling Indiana Convention center.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p10\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">About their 1895 factory, an April 1905 article in Iron Age Magazine describes it in this way:<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p10\" style=\"padding-left: 30px;\"><em><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">\u201cThe factory is a model one, system, cleanliness, accuracy and quality being the foundation for all of its product. The plant is filled with automatic machinery operated by 28 motors. Thousands of feet of chain are used throughout the mill in addition to over four miles of leather belting. An independent gas plant is operated for case hardening and tempering, and the uniformity of the heat treatment is gained by a thorough system of pyrometry, scientifically operated, such as is used by the twist drill manufacturers. A thorough experimental and testing department is maintained, and the whole plant shows prosperity and progress.\u201d<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<div id=\"attachment_14913\" style=\"width: 566px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-14913\" data-attachment-id=\"14913\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2019-08-29-at-11-07-03-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2019-08-29-at-11.07.03-AM.png?fit=426%2C426&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"426,426\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2019-08-29 at 11.07.03 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2019-08-29-at-11.07.03-AM.png?fit=426%2C426&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"wp-image-14913\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2019-08-29-at-11.07.03-AM.png?resize=556%2C556\" alt=\"\" width=\"556\" height=\"556\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2019-08-29-at-11.07.03-AM.png?w=426&amp;ssl=1 426w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2019-08-29-at-11.07.03-AM.png?resize=150%2C150&amp;ssl=1 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 556px) 100vw, 556px\" \/><p id=\"caption-attachment-14913\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">The first is of their building that still stands today on Kentucky (near the Lucas Oil football stadium) as it appeared in 1918 when it was built (note the street car lines). In the second picture, you see women sorting chain. In 1895, when there were 500 employees, most of them were women. The last two pictures show how machines got their power back in the day. From overhead belts!!<\/p><\/div>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><span class=\"s1\">While Edward Fletcher, Glenn G. Howe and Arthur Newby were the three men who formed Diamond Chain, Newby would go on to become a huge part of the Indianapolis landscape. Besides being a very good friend of the legendary Carl Fisher because of the Zig Zag Bike Club he formed where the two met, Newby was also one of the fathers of the still highly esteemed <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Butler University,<\/span><span class=\"s1\"> as well as the Indy 500 Motor Speedway. Newby also built the oldest still standing structure in the US that made motorcars, the cavernous and widely respected <\/span><span class=\"s2\">National Motor Vehicle Company (located next to the Monon Greenway at 22nd in Indianapolis). He even built <\/span><span class=\"s1\">the <\/span><span class=\"s2\">Newby Oval<\/span><span class=\"s1\">, a short lived velodrome (1898-1902)<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>in Indianapolis that was lighted and once one of the best in the world.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p11\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0<img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13361\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/screen-shot-2018-09-10-at-11-22-58-am\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.22.58-AM.jpg?fit=523%2C280&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"523,280\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1536578588&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 11.22.58 AM\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.22.58-AM.jpg?fit=523%2C280&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"size-full wp-image-13361 alignleft\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/Screen-Shot-2018-09-10-at-11.22.58-AM.jpg?resize=523%2C280\" alt=\"Screen Shot 2018-09-10 at 11.22.58 AM\" width=\"523\" height=\"280\" \/><\/span><\/span><span style=\"font-size: 18pt;\"><span class=\"s1\">As for the Newby Oval, it was a quarter-mile board track that had a football gridiron in the infield. Located at E 30th<\/span> <span class=\"s1\">St and Central Ave, it had a 15,000 seat grandstand and the famous six-day bicycle races were originated here. Marshall Walter (Major) Taylor, the famous black bicycle racer born in Indianapolis, for whom the present Indianapolis Velodrome is named, raced at this velodrome for three of the four years it was open.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">It would take seven years before Newby would invest in another race track. When the Indy 500 Motor Speedway opened in 1909, even though Newby was long gone from\u00a0Diamond Chain, the new speedway he had helped to form, would go on to establish the efficacy of\u00a0his old\u00a0company&#8217;s products. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Newby had also been good friends with Henry Ford. And the Diamond Chain company benefitted from that association as well in 1908 when it became the chain supplier for every engine in the first mass produced Model-T automobiles.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13326\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/08\/04\/diamond-chain-company-tour-founded-in-1890\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?fit=1745%2C1820&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1745,1820\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?fit=982%2C1024&amp;ssl=1\" class=\" wp-image-13326 aligncenter\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?resize=1040%2C1085\" alt=\"39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o\" width=\"1040\" height=\"1085\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?w=1745&amp;ssl=1 1745w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?resize=575%2C600&amp;ssl=1 575w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?resize=768%2C801&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39149925_2135876463366721_108710716092973056_o.jpg?resize=982%2C1024&amp;ssl=1 982w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1040px) 100vw, 1040px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">In<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>1913, when the first moving assembly line at Henry Ford&#8217;s Model T factory in Highland Park went into operation on Oct. 7, 1913, one hundred and fifty feet of rope was used. With the help of a winch the rope pulled each chassis across the floor to each station along the way where 140 assemblers installed parts on it. Four months later, in early January 1914, the rope was replaced with an endless Diamond Chain.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">By 1918, Diamond Chain had outgrown its Georgia St. location and built a building so large that if all of its four floors were placed end to end on the ground, it would have made a building 60 feet wide and almost half a mile long. That was still not enough.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" data-attachment-id=\"13362\" data-permalink=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/5-3\/\" data-orig-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?fit=1500%2C796&amp;ssl=1\" data-orig-size=\"1500,796\" data-comments-opened=\"0\" data-image-meta=\"{&quot;aperture&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;credit&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;camera&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;caption&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;created_timestamp&quot;:&quot;1535547864&quot;,&quot;copyright&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;focal_length&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;iso&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;shutter_speed&quot;:&quot;0&quot;,&quot;title&quot;:&quot;&quot;,&quot;orientation&quot;:&quot;0&quot;}\" data-image-title=\"5 (3)\" data-image-description=\"\" data-image-caption=\"\" data-large-file=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?fit=1024%2C543&amp;ssl=1\" class=\"alignnone size-full wp-image-13362\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?resize=1100%2C584\" alt=\"5 (3)\" width=\"1100\" height=\"584\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?w=1500&amp;ssl=1 1500w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?resize=600%2C318&amp;ssl=1 600w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?resize=768%2C408&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/5-3.jpg?resize=1024%2C543&amp;ssl=1 1024w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 1100px) 100vw, 1100px\" \/><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">The demand for bicycle chain was so great that by 1920, even with their big new building, all the\u00a0orders for it\u00a0 couldn\u2019t be met.\u00a0 The\u00a0call for floor space continued, particularly for more ground flooring for the installation of heavy machinery so the company could make al the new and different kinds of chains it was being asked to produce.\u00a0<\/span><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">In the fall of 1928, a four story addition was added to the east end of the building with the first two floors for factory and the top two for offices.<\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">By the time of World War II, the needs of war machines replaced the needs of cyclists. During the Second World<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>War, the plant operated day and night turning out chains and sprockets (they made sprockets from 1911 to 1976) for badly needed military equipment. On aircraft alone, for example, chains performed more than 30 different functions. Diamond Chain was also used on ships, ammunition hoists, diesel engines, trains, fork-lift trucks, cranes and various material handling implements. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">Even after the war, the company kept bursting at the seams. From 1947 to 1980 the company nearly doubled in size adding another 236,000 square feet for everything from production to packing, shipping, storage and office space. In sum, after four separate additions, the total number of square feet under roof now exceeds half a million square feet!!. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">At this enormous facility, Diamond Chain, now owned by AMSTED Industries Incorporated, produces what is known as the best chain money can buy for a widely diverse range of different markets. These include industrial plants, oil and gas exploration and production, agricultural equipment, special industrial machinery, construction and mining equipment, recreational vehicles, and material handling equipment. <\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"p4\"><span class=\"s1\" style=\"font-size: 18pt;\">An international<span class=\"Apple-converted-space\">\u00a0 <\/span>business concern with worldwide influence, it all started with making premier chain for the bicycle. This as Diamond Chain continues to have a massive impact on the world of today. From Indianapolis!!<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Diamond Chain As the first United States manufacturer of chain that a man\u2019s legs could not break, called block chain,&#8230; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/10\/draft-indianapolis-based-diamond-chain-its-influence-on-the-world-from-1890-to-now\/\">read more<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[129,83,128,73],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13354","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-diamond-chain","category-indianapolis","category-indianapolis-history","category-uncategorized-2"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p3VuuR-3to","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":13333,"url":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/08\/indianapolis-chain-stamping-as-diamond-chain-promo-piece\/","url_meta":{"origin":13354,"position":0},"title":"Indianapolis Chain &#038; Stamping, as Diamond Chain, 1935 Promo Piece","author":"awakeagainmartin@gmail.com","date":"September 8, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"From \"How Indianapolis Built America and H\u0010ow it will Rebuild it with the National Bicycle Greenway\": As the first United States manufacturer of chain that a man\u2019s legs could not break, called block chain, Indianapolis Chain & Stamping, as Diamond Chain was first called, led the bicycle explosion of the\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Diamond Chain&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Diamond Chain","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/category\/diamond-chain\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"39169691_2135422913412076_1655157692957720576_n","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39169691_2135422913412076_1655157692957720576_n.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39169691_2135422913412076_1655157692957720576_n.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39169691_2135422913412076_1655157692957720576_n.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13320,"url":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/08\/04\/diamond-chain-company-tour-founded-in-1890\/","url_meta":{"origin":13354,"position":1},"title":"Diamond Chain Company Tour (Founded in 1890)","author":"awakeagainmartin@gmail.com","date":"August 4, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"Diamond Chain Company\u00a0today. Mandy McSherry and\u00a0Jalaine Smith Kanespent over two hours helping me learn about their legendary business. There was a Power Point, antique photographs and a tour of their ginormous factory. So much to see and talk about, I lost track of time and could easily have remained mesmerized\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Diamond Chain&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Diamond Chain","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/category\/diamond-chain\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39060307_2135876760033358_4874123062972252160_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39060307_2135876760033358_4874123062972252160_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39060307_2135876760033358_4874123062972252160_o.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39060307_2135876760033358_4874123062972252160_o.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39060307_2135876760033358_4874123062972252160_o.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/39060307_2135876760033358_4874123062972252160_o.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":13284,"url":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2018\/09\/07\/diamond-chain-company-1890-present\/","url_meta":{"origin":13354,"position":2},"title":"Diamond Chain Company, 1890 &#8211; inside the old factory","author":"awakeagainmartin@gmail.com","date":"September 7, 2018","format":false,"excerpt":"As my writing work continues about the legendary\u00a0Diamond Chain Company (from 1890), still going strong here in Indianapolis, I just got these pictures from them. The first is of their building that still stands today on Kentucky (near the Lucas Oil football stadium) as it appeared in 1918 when it\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Diamond Chain&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Diamond Chain","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/category\/diamond-chain\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/40322949_2149596448661389_3170989747799588864_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/40322949_2149596448661389_3170989747799588864_o.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/40322949_2149596448661389_3170989747799588864_o.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/40322949_2149596448661389_3170989747799588864_o.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/40322949_2149596448661389_3170989747799588864_o.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2018\/09\/40322949_2149596448661389_3170989747799588864_o.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":17951,"url":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2025\/07\/26\/nbg-indianapolis-history-index\/","url_meta":{"origin":13354,"position":3},"title":"NBG Indianapolis History Index","author":"awakeagainmartin@gmail.com","date":"July 26, 2025","format":false,"excerpt":"Athenaeum (Das Deustsche Haus) Built 1893 Bicycle Stair Ramp at the Athenaeum Boston based Sasaki Associates Transformation of the Indianapolis Riverfront! Cadillac Co. of Indiana\/Automobile College Carl Fisher\u2019s original bike shop on Pennsylvania Ave Carl Fisher saturated Indianapolis with the Eagle HiWheel Indianapolis and the Nation, the Houses that Carl\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Indianapolis History&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Indianapolis History","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/category\/indianapolis-history\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":14401,"url":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2019\/05\/31\/old-time-bicycle-stair-ramp-at-the-athenaeum\/","url_meta":{"origin":13354,"position":4},"title":"Bicycle Stair Ramp at the Athenaeum","author":"awakeagainmartin@gmail.com","date":"May 31, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"Long time Indianapolis cyclist, Larsen Perry,\u00a0 told me about the bicycle ramp that is still on the stairs at the Athenaeum that lead down to the popular Rathskeller Restaurant there. When this began as a German athletic club in 1893, Indianapolis was a prosperous city swimming in the wealth of\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Eagle&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Eagle","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/category\/eagle\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/IMG_1227.jpg?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200,"srcset":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/IMG_1227.jpg?resize=350%2C200 1x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/IMG_1227.jpg?resize=525%2C300 1.5x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/IMG_1227.jpg?resize=700%2C400 2x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/IMG_1227.jpg?resize=1050%2C600 3x, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/05\/IMG_1227.jpg?resize=1400%2C800 4x"},"classes":[]},{"id":16251,"url":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/2021\/10\/19\/indianapolis-long-has-led-the-way\/","url_meta":{"origin":13354,"position":5},"title":"Indianapolis Long Has Led the Way","author":"awakeagainmartin@gmail.com","date":"October 19, 2021","format":false,"excerpt":"This is how my chapter about Indianapolis as being home to the NBG ends.\u00a0 ------ In sum, with a transportation legacy that opened the frontier where there were no roads, with its National Road Wood Covered Bridge over the White River of 1834, Indianapolis set in place the momentum that\u2026","rel":"","context":"In &quot;Indianapolis&quot;","block_context":{"text":"Indianapolis","link":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/category\/indianapolis\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/10\/Screen-Shot-2021-10-19-at-8.43.13-AM.png?resize=350%2C200","width":350,"height":200},"classes":[]}],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13354","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=13354"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13354\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17984,"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/13354\/revisions\/17984"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=13354"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=13354"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.bikeroute.com\/NationalBicycleGreenwayNews\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=13354"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}