Bicycles were developed to add another transportation option that multiplied human efficiency by a factor of approximately five. Many people claim credit for inventing the first bicycle. The answer to the question often depends upon the nationality of who you ask; French claim it was a Frenchman, Scots claim a Scotsman, the English an Englishman, and Americas often claims an American. Since early 1990 the International al Cycling History Conferences, with proceedings Cycle History, has worked to get past the jingoism. Our current understanding of the history of the bicycle suggests that many people contributed ideas and developments.
Year - 1418
Giovanni Fontana built the first human powered land vehicle which it had four wheels and used an endless rope connected via gears to the wheels.
Year - 1943 
A sketches showing a primitive version of bicycle, purported drawn by Leonardo da Vinci, surfaced in 1974. Further examination of the drawings indicates these are not by da Vinci’s hand. The speculation that these are sketch by a pupil after a lost drawing by da Vinci is also considered false. An age test was performed, but the library in Milan conceals its negative outcome.
Year - 1791 
Comte de Sicrac is credited with building the “celerifer”- purportedly a hobby horse with two wheels instead of a rocker. This is now considered a patriotic hoax created by a French historian in 1891. It was debunked by a French researcher in 1976.

Year - 1817
Baron von Drais invented a walking machine that would help him get around the royal gardens faster than walking. A two same size in-line wheels, front one steer able, mounted in a frame which you straddled. The device was propelled by pushing your feet against the ground, thus rolling yourself and the device forward in a sort of gliding walk. The machine became known as the ‘Hobby Horse” or “Draisienne”.
Year - 1893
Kirkpatric Mcmillan, a Scottish blacksmith adapted a treadle-type pedals to a bicycle, this considered a hoax.
Year - 1863 
“Bone Shaker” or “Velocipede” was invented by a French father-and-son team of carriage-makers, Pierre and Ernest Michaux. “Bone Shaker” or “Velocipede” made of stiff material, straight angles and steel wheels make this bike literally a bone shaker to ride over the cobblestone roads of the day. The improvement is a front wheel peddles- direct drive, fixed gear, one speed. This machine was known as the velocipede (fast food), but was popularly known as the bone shake. It also became a fad and indoor riding academies, similar to roller rinks. The early tires were made by wood.
Year – 1870 
“High Wheelers” is more comfortable to ride than its predecessor but it requires an acrobat so they popularity has always been limited. This was the first all metal machine to appeared (The previous to this metallurgy was not advanced enough to provide metal which was strong enough to make small, light parts out of). The pedals were still attached directly to the front wheel with no free-wheeling mechanism. Solid rubber tires and the long spokes of the large front wheel provided a much smoother ride than its predecessor. The front wheels became larger and larger as makers realized that the larger the wheel, the faster you could travel with one rotation of the pedals. These bicycles enjoyed a great popularity among young men of means (they cost an average worker six month's pay), with the hey-day being the decade of the 1880's. Because the rider sat so high above the center of gravity, if the front wheel was stopped by a stone or rut in the road, or the sudden emergence of a dog, the entire apparatus rotated forward on its front axle, and the rider, with his legs trapped under the handlebars, was dropped unceremoniously on his head. Here the term "taking a header" came into being. This machine was the first one to be called a bicycle ("two wheels").

Year – 1880 (High Wheel Tricycle)
While the men were risking their necks on the high wheels, ladies confined to their long skirts and corsets, could take a spin around the park on an adult tricycle. These machines also afforded more dignity to gentlemen such as doctors and clergymen. Many mechanical innovations now associated with the automobile were originally invented for tricycles. Rack and pinion steering, the differential and band brakes to name a few.
The High Wheel Safety 
Improvement to the design began to be seen, many with the small wheel in the front to eliminate the tipping-forward problem. One model was promoted by its manufacturer by being ridden down the front steps of the capitol building in Washington, DC. These design became known as high-wheel safety bicycle. Since the older high-wheel designs had been known simply as bicycles, they were now referred to as “ordinary bicycles” in comparison with the new-fangled designs, and then simply as “ordinaries”.

Year – 1888
Pneumatic tire was first applied to the bicycle by an Irish veterinarian who was trying to give his sickly young son a more comfortable ride on his tricycle. This inventive young doctor’s name was Dunlop. Now that comfort and safety could be had in the same package, and that package was getting cheaper as manufacturing methods improved, everyone clamored to ride the bicycle.
Year - 1890
Safety bike was safer than the ordinary. The further improvement of metallurgy sparked the next innovation, or rather return to previous design. With metal that was now strong enough to make a fine chain and sprocket small and light enough for human being to power, the next design was a return to the original configuration of two same-size wheels, only now, instead of just one wheel circumference for every pedal turn, you could through the gear ratios, have a speed the same as the huge high-wheel. Initially, the bicycle still had the hard rubber tires, and the absence of the long, shock-absorbing spokes, the ride they provided was much more uncomfortable than any of the high-wheel designs. Many of these bicycles of 100 years ago had front and / or rear suspensions. These designs completed with each other, your choice being the high-wheel’s comfort or the safety’s safety but next innovation tolled the death of the high-wheel design as standard contemporary bikes. The safety bike allowed large numbers of people to take up cycling. Bike were relatively expensive so use was somewhat restrict to the elite.
Year – 1903
Internal hub geras invented by Sturmey Archer. By 1930 these were used on bikes manufactured around the world. These dominance lasted until the 1950 the parallelogram derailleur was introduce.
Year – 1920 (Kids Bikes)
Kids bikes were introduced after the First World War by several manufacturers to revitalize the bike industry (Schwin made its big splash slightly later), these designs now called “classic”, featured automobile and motorcycle elements to appeal to kids who presumably would rather have a motor.
For more information please log in to :
1.http://hrsbstaff.ednet.ns.ca/starr/Andrea/History%20of%20the%20bicycle/history_of_the_bicycle2.htm
