classic motorcycle history

  • Wearwell: The Wolverhampton Motorcycle Pioneer Brought Down by Scandal

    Wearwell: The Wolverhampton Motorcycle Pioneer Brought Down by Scandal

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    From bicycle manufacturing to early motorcycles, Wearwell looked set to become a major name in the British motorcycle industry. But financial wrongdoing brought the company’s promising future to an abrupt end. Like so many, Wearwell started out as a bicycle manufacturer. The Cogent Cycle Co was founded by Henry Clarke and the business included his…

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  • Swan Motor Manufacturing

    Swan Motor Manufacturing

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    The Swan Motor Manufacturing began life in Frodsham High Street in Cheshire in around 1910 and exhibited its first motorcycle at the Olympia Show in 1911. This was an open-frame machine with, unusually for the time, front and rear suspension. The founder of the company was FH Thornton who lived in a large house opposite…

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