Opening of Coney Island Cycle Path

Brooklyn Museum photograph
Object Label
This bicycle path, in the center of the grand Ocean Parkway, is still in use today. Stretching from Prospect Park to Coney Island, it provided easy access to the beach from the central parts of Brooklyn. Around the turn of the twentieth century, a new type of safer bicycle made biking cheaper and easier and contributed to the widespread use of the bicycle by both men and women for leisure and transportation. The bicycle also became a symbol of free, mobile women and was an important tool for female emancipation. By this time, however, many more railroad lines and large steamships linked Coney Island to the city, enabling larger crowds than ever to spend the weekend at the beach.
Caption
Edgar S. Thomson American, active 1890s–1900s. Opening of Coney Island Cycle Path, 1896. glass plate negative. Brooklyn Museum, Brooklyn Museum/Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Collection, 1996.164.7-51. No known copyright restrictions (Photo: Brooklyn Museum, 1996.164.7-51_glass_SL1.jpg)
Gallery
Not on view
Gallery
Not on view
Artist
Title
Opening of Coney Island Cycle Path
Date
1896
Medium
glass plate negative
Classification
Credit Line
Brooklyn Museum/Brooklyn Public Library, Brooklyn Collection
Accession Number
1996.164.7-51
Rights
No known copyright restrictions
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