League of American Bicyclists
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| Founded | May 30, 1880 |
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| Founder | Kirk Munroe and Charles Pratt |
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Area served
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United States |
| Website | www.bikeleague.org |
The League of American Bicyclists (LAB) is a non-profit membership organization which promotes cycling for fun, fitness and transportation through advocacy and education. A §501(c)(3) nonprofit, the League is one of the largest membership organizations of cyclists in the United States.
Founded in Newport, Rhode Island, on May 30, 1880, as the League of American Wheelmen by Kirk Munroe and Charles Pratt, it soon became the leading national membership organization for cyclists in the United States. The League was also the governing body for amateur bicycle racing in the U.S. during the late 19th century. Membership peaked at 103,000 in 1898.
The League was a prominent advocacy group for the improvement of roads and highways in the United States long before the advent of the automobile. The Good Roads Movement in the late 19th century was founded and led by the League, which began publishing Good Roads magazine in 1892.
In the mid-1890s, bicycling became accessible to the population at large with the advent of the mass-produced, chain-driven safety bicycle. A huge boom in bicycle sales occurred, then collapsed as the market became saturated. Bicycle manufacturers were no longer able to support the League financially, and the interest of its members, largely well-to-do hobbyists, turned elsewhere.
In 1894 the League voted to prohibit membership by non-white people. Since the League was the governing body for bicycle racing at that time, the League's action effectively banned non-white people from most races in the United States. In 1999, the League disavowed the 1894 action.
At its height in 1898, the League had over 103,000 members. Early members included three of the wealthiest men of the Gilded Age: Newport socialites John Jacob Astor, Diamond Jim Brady, and John D. Rockefeller.
Amateur bicycle racing declined with the rise of professional racing. League membership declined to 76,944 in 1900 and only 8,692 in 1902. The League dissolved that year, when there were still only a very few motorized vehicles on the roads. The American Automobile Association was founded the same year, 1902, and was, to an extent, a successor organization. It provided—and still provides—route information to members, as the League had provided. The League's Secretary, Abbott Bassett, produced a monthly publication under the League's name until 1924, but there was no League organization. Bassett's Scrap Book covered topics such as Frank W. Weston's role in developing cycling in Boston.
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