Day Trip From Knoxville: Little Congress Bicycle Museum
Sixty miles from Knoxville, the Little Congress Bicycle Museum in Cumberland Gap, TN, is a must-see. Founded by Ralph E. McClanahan II, a sitting Kentucky district judge, former movie theater owner and operator, and curator and historian, the museum is a tribute to rare bicycles and the cultures that inspired them. Of the seventeen rare bikes on display, the museum's oldest bike, an 1895 Penny Farthing, might be the most intriguing. Known as the "Widow-Maker," the Penny Farthing is the first bicycle design, sporting an over-sized front wheel and a tiny rear wheel. The nickname, Widow-Maker, comes from the "pivotal point of this bicycle" which guaranteed a head-first tumble if the "rider hit anything, a rock, chug hole, animal, or other obstruction."
Several 1950s art deco bicycles are on display; the 1951 Western Flyer, the 1951 Black Phantom, and the 1950 Schwinn Panther hang on the museum's wall before a midnight blue background with lighting that is reminiscent of an art gallery. Little Congress's rarest bike is "an 1934 Quadrocycle that sat four riders and was used as a pacer vehicle for the six-day bicycle races that were all the rage during the Great Depression." There were only five Quadrocycles produced and "only two of the five still in existence today. The other one is in Disney World and is occasionally ridden through the park by a barber shop quartet." A few modern bicycles are available as well: the 1963 4-Speed Alex Moulton offered efficient, user-friendly design by the creator of the British Mini-Cooper; the 1970 Schwinn Lemon Peeler is one of the banana seated, wheelie bikes that you may remember well; and the 1986 Hutch, which never took off in the market, was designed to be the world's fastest bike, said to reach 30-35 mph "on level ground with no headwinds" by employing an aerodynamic design.
The drive from Knoxville to Cumberland Gap is an enjoyable hour through the East Tennessee mountains and countryside, perfect to take in the region's beauty. With an easy drive and such a great destination, the Little Congress Bicycle Museum is sure to become a weekend favorite. Admission to the museum is free.