Tribune Bicycle - Black Mfg Co 19th and Liberty 1896 Erie PA

The Black Manufacturing Company, a nationally-known maker of high grade bicycles, had a factory at 19th and Liberty Street in Erie, Pennsylvania in 1896. The company's owner, W. T. Black, also owned Germer & Black, which had a factory at 16th and German Street. The former company made its mark with the Tribune Bicycle, which is now a highly sought after collectible bike.

1900 Mueller map detail of 19th and Liberty.

The Black Mfg. Co. made the cover of Scientific American magazine on January 4, 1896, quite a feat for an Erie-based company.
W. T. Black was the president of the Black Mfg. Co. George I. Black was treasurer, and Leonard B. Gaylor was vice president of the company.

George Black and Leonard Gaylor held U.S. patent no. 564,301 issued July 21, 1896 for a bicycle pedal.

The Tribune Bicycle was made by the Black Mfg. Co. in Erie approximately 1894 to 1899.

Scientific American close-up drawings of Tribune Bicycle parts.

Here's an article about bicycle clubs in Erie in 1897:

http://oldtimeerie.blogspot.com/2012/10/bicycle-cycling-clubs-1897-erie-pa.html

And one about the bicycle craze in Erie in the 1890s:

http://oldtimeerie.blogspot.com/2012/10/bicycle-races-and-cycling-craze-1890s.html

The factory formerly owned by the Black Manufacturing Company on 19th and Liberty Street was purchased by Continental Rubber Works in 1903: http://oldtimeerie.blogspot.com/2012/10/continental-rubber-works-19th-and.html