Saving the Black Country’s unique “Viking” heritage
WOLVERHAMPTON was once one of the main bicycle manufacturing centres in the country. In the latter part of the 19th century the traditional metal bashing skills in the area were ideally suited to the new craze of bicycling. A total of over 80 manufacturers existed at one time or another, and the longest lasting, and for many years the largest, was Viking Cycles.
Viking was started by Alfred Victor Davies, a railway clerk who had been moved to Heath Town from North Wales. He started a sideline of repairing bicycles, and then became the first motor-bike repairer in the town.
Railway employees were not supposed to have part time jobs, and he was ordered to
stop. Instead, he took the brave option of leaving the railway and in 1908 setting up Viking Cycles to repair and manufacture them, with his first shop at 5, Wolverhampton Road,
Heath Town, and his business prospered. In 1928 it was moved to Broad Street, and then in 1934 the shop moved on to 34 Princess Street, with the workshop down Princess Alley.
Alfred retired just before the war and was succeeded by his son, Reg, who turned the firm into a limited company in 1939, and was making 800 bicycles a year.
During the war they made munitions, but afterwards they were soon making 2,000 bikes annually, and in 1948 formed a racing team, managed and captained by Bob Thom, who had pioneered British road racing with Percy Stallard. The team was a big success, and in 1951 the first Tour of Britain was won by team member, Ian Steel.
Demand
Racing success increased demand immensely and by 1955 there were 12,500 Viking dealers across the country, with many more queuing up to take on the brand. Viking moved to larger premises in the Merridale Works in Russell Street and by 1963 reached a peak as the 70 employees were building 20,000 bikes a year.
After this there was a slump, and the company suffered cash-flow problems. The inevitable was delayed for a while when they marketed children’s tricycles, but in 1967 the factory closed down. The name was bought by two Americans who opened a factory in Londonderry assembling Viking bikes from imported parts. The venture struggled on into the 1980s, and then the Viking name went into hibernation for a while, until bought by India’s Hero Cycles in 2018 with the intention of moving production to India and marketing the bike in Europe as a premium brand.
One of these modern Vikings, a Clubmaster Retro, has just been acquired by Wolverhampton’s Tettenhall Transport Heritage Centre to further illustrate the Viking story.
At the same time, their volunteers have been restoring a rather special ladies Viking, which had been given by Reg Davies to his granddaughter. She donated the frame to the Heritage Centre, and it has now been restored. They have now turned their attention to another Viking frame, and are seeking suitable parts to help make it up.