The Last Ride of Frank Lenz

its equally-sized wheels provided more stability than the high-wheel models that had domi- one of In 1892, nated the previous decade, and newly-invented inflatable tires added a more cushioned ride America’s early cyclists set than earlier designs. out for the trip of a lifetime, Although the quality of the era’s roads left much to be desired, the early cyclists began seeking fame and adven- to push the limits via long-distance races and pleasure rides organized by “wheelman” clubs ture. He found both — and that sprang up from coast to coast. Among the legion of early bicycle fanatics by Geof Koss paid with his life. was Frank Lenz, a clerk and amateur photog- In the fall of 1894, Alexander W. Terrell, a rapher from . The son of German grizzled Civil War veteran serving as the U.S. immigrants, Lenz took up cycling at the age of ambassador to Turkey, received a curious let- 17 and spent much of his free time exploring ter. Writing from the faraway Pittsburg suburb the mountains of southwest Pennsylvania with of Allegheny, Pennsylvania, the sender was other members of his home club, the Allegheny desperately seeking word of a young American Cyclers. traveler named Frank Lenz. Driven by a powerful case of wanderlust, “If possible kindly advise me if Mr. Lenz Lenz’s cycling journeys soon led him farther has arrived in your city,” wrote T. P. Langhans, and farther from home. In 1889 he made a solo whose letter identified him as the treasurer trip to New York City and the next year visited for a lumber company. “I am anxious to St. Louis with a friend. In 1891 the pair jour- know something about my friend, as I have neyed through the Deep South to New Orleans not received any word from him since he left on their high-wheelers, and Lenz also traveled Bunder Abbas, Persia.” as far west as . Terrell was about to be drawn into a mystery Notably, he recorded these early tours with that would captivate the American public for a heavy camera carried in a special backpack more than a year and echo through the halls of he designed himself. In surviving photos from Congress and the White House for even longer. this era, Lenz is seen in a cap and a tight black But only an unusual postscript in Langhan’s outfit as he and his friends posed with their note foreshadowed events to come: “P.S.: Mr. high-wheelers. Lenz is attempting to make a complete circuit “I had become so familiar with my ‘bike,’ of the Globe, on a bicycle.” that to ride it, laden like a packhorse, had In the early 1890s, Americans and become second nature,” he wrote. “Still, I Europeans went wild over the introduction of yearned, like Alexander, for new fields to con- the modern “safety” bicycle, so-called because quer.” MAP: CASEY GREENE

The longing for adventure soon mani- “People crowded around me in such num- characters he encountered. Word of Lenz’s short detour of the first foreign country of with baggage, canteen, revolver, the Indian fully loaded. fested itself in a bold new plan: an around- bers that I found it impossible to mount my journey often preceded him by telegraph his trip. Upon reentering the United States bow and arrows, and an old buffalo horn But tougher days lay ahead, and it the-world bicycle tour. Although at least wheel, much less make the start,” he wrote and newspapers, and he was greeted by at Detroit, he pressed on to Chicago where from the plains, was a curiosity to the mass was with some trepidation that he sailed one person — an English-born American of the 100 cyclists who accompanied him local wheelmen as a long-lost cousin, feted he observed the busy preparations for the of business men, clerks and workmen, for in late October. However, Lenz named Thomas Stevens — had already from City Hall on June 4. with club dinners and accommodations. He World’s Fair of 1893. and soon the crowd swarmed about me, sounded a confident tone in a letter home, circled the globe by bicycle, Lenz’s trip was The early Outing articles detail the three soon found himself a minor celebrity, and Lenz’s first brush with serious dan- trying to hear me answering a newspaper in which he urged his uncle to calm his to be unique for two reasons: he would be months Lenz spent crossing the North notwithstanding the occasional downpour ger occurred while he was en route to the first to attempt the journey from east to America continent; which included such or mechanical troubles, appeared to be hav- Minneapolis. A train suddenly emerged west, and he would bring his camera. joys and travails as variable road and ing a blast on his “world tour awheel.” from around a bend as he was crossing a Lenz pitched his plan to a popular rec- weather conditions, the quest for meals Twelve days out from New York, Lenz steep ravine on a railroad bridge. Lenz nar- reation magazine called Outing, which, to and lodging, and descriptions of the many crossed into Canada at Niagara Falls for a rowly escaped death by dangling his legs his surprise, agreed to pay him to serialize and heavy bicycle over the bridge’s edge. his adventures from the road. The Overman “The train fairly flew by within two feet of Wheel Company of Massachusetts threw in a me causing the bridge to tremble and groan Victor safety bicycle and supplies, and Lenz’s as if it were ready to go down,” he wrote. series of articles for Outing, “Around the “My feelings at this moment can be better World With Wheel And Camera,” was born. imagined than described.” He hit the road that spring on a Sunday The spectacular scenery of the American morning after a goodbye bash thrown by West awed Lenz, who spent five days his wheelman pals. “Mr. Lenz will have a exploring Yellowstone National Park by long but pleasant trip, and will doubtless wheel. He later tumbled 30 feet down a have some interesting stories to tell the Montana pass after being distracted by gor- boys upon his return home,” wrote the geous mountain views, but he escaped with Pittsburgh Dispatch. The date was May 15, only a few cuts and bruises. Grand Trunk Road. Lenz pauses along the famous route in northern . 1892, Lenz was 25 years old, and expected Upon crossing the Cascade Range of the to be gone for two years. Pacific Northwest, Lenz rested a few days reporter who was on hand to do the usual worried mother: “Always try to drive the The first stop was Washington, DC, in Portland, which was bike-crazy even interviewing.” fear from her, as I will no doubt get through where Lenz gathered a passport and a let- in 1892, before he pushed on to his final By Lenz’s estimates, he had pedaled everywhere without trouble.” ter of introduction from Secretary of State American destination of San Francisco. 4,587 miles in 107 days, a respectable Following a brief stop in Hawaii, Lenz’s James G. Blaine before heading to Outing’s There he immediately drew a crowd after 45-mile-a-day pace considering that his steamship pulled into Yokohama harbor New York City offices for a proper sendoff. India. Lenz was deeply moved by the Taj Mahal near Agra, India. arriving October 20: “My wheel, loaded single-speed bicycle weighed 110 pounds in mid-November. He was anxious to see

28 adventure cyclist january 2009 adventurecycling.org adventure cyclist january 2009 adventurecycling.org 29 Japan, a country he had studied exten- lowering her veil to view him better as at his uncharacteristic silence and began reputation, but in early 1894 it had become sively before leaving home. The three- he passed: “A row of rosy-tipped fingers to contact U.S. diplomats and missionaries even more treacherous as long-simmer- week journey across the island did not clutched the white gauze veil and, for one in Persia and Turkey for word of his fate. ing tension between the Islamic Turks of disappoint. In Outing he proclaimed Japan’s instant, revealed a picture I shall never for- Newspapers from Hawaii to Canada ran sto- the and their Christian exotic culture and good roads to be “some- get. The complexion was exquisitely fair. ries about the mystery, spawning numerous Armenian subjects began to boil over. Tens thing akin to an Earthly Eden and an ideal No wanton ray of old Sol had ever kissed theories. One popular belief was that Lenz of thousands of Armenians are estimated land for travel.” He praised its people as that bloodless cheek, which seemed as if it had been kidnapped and was being held to have died at the hands of Turkish sol- clever and industrious. had never known the crimson of a blush.” for ransom. diers and their nomadic Kurdish allies in However, Lenz admitted he found Lenz found Teheran so pleasant that it The mystery was exacerbated by Outing, 1894–95, as Ottoman Sultan Abdul Hamid Japanese cuisine underwhelming. “The was hard to leave, but he was anxious to which erroneously reported in July that sought to crush a growing Armenian resis- fish and meats were cooked in a fearful cross Turkey before the heat of summer, so Lenz had arrived at , and tance movement. kind of liquid sauce, which I could not rel- he reluctantly departed on April 1 for the later that fall by the receipt of a long- It was into this environment that Lenz ish, no matter how hungry I was.” He also Persian city of Tabreez, 375 miles away. delayed letter from Lenz to a friend, which wandered in early May of 1894 and he van- eschewed chopsticks in favor of his own Later that month from Tabreez, Lenz led to newspaper stories that he was alive ished days later. Alexander Terrell, the U.S. knife and fork. confessed to being profoundly homesick. “I and well. However, it was soon determined minister to Turkey, was sure of Lenz’s fate. In China Lenz first encountered serious long for the day which will see me again on that the letter was sent before Lenz’s final “I have not doubt that he was killed by the difficulties. Chinese roads were completely my native hearthstone and my wanderings correspondence with Outing. wild ,” he wrote to Secretary of State unsuitable for cycling, and he soon found Out West. Lenz at Sentinel Butte, North Dakota, which then marked the border between the at an end,” he wrote to Outing, just shy of Lenz’s friends and family scrambled Walter Gresham in November 1894. But himself walking for weeks on end while Dakotas and the Montana Territory. the two-year anniversary of his departure to organize a search party, but the efforts the sultan had sealed the region’s borders hired opium addicts carried his bicycle over from Pittsburgh. He identified his next stalled as would-be rescuers dropped out to Westerners, and the Ottoman govern- endless mountain ranges. Wintry weather months behind schedule, but confident him wearing an enormous pith helmet to destination as Erzeroum in eastern Turkey, and funds failed to materialize. American ment claimed to have no knowledge of Lenz also stalled his progress, stranding him for that the worst was behind him. cope with the oppressive heat. a distance of almost 300 miles. and British diplomats began to fear the when it was pressed by the Americans. days in small villages where he struggled “After a bath and a change of clothes, I He explained his touring philosophy in It was the last that Outing or anyone worst, speculating that Lenz may have Stung by growing public sentiment that with boredom and a never-ending stream felt the happiest man on earth,” he wrote. Outing: “I have found it better not to ride would hear from Lenz. fallen victim to the lawlessness of eastern it had sent Lenz on a death mission, Outing of nosy visitors. The three months in which The jungles of Burma offered new trou- more than 50 to 65 miles a day, if stopping As the summer passed, Lenz’s family Turkey, also known as . turned to another famous American cyclist Lenz had expected to cross China stretched bles. Heavy rains made the roads impass- places can be procured at those distances. and friends became increasingly alarmed This region had long had a dangerous to investigate. William Sachtleben of Alton, to six. able, and once again Lenz turned to natives Riding from 70 to 100 miles day after day Adding to the strain, he became increas- to carry the bicycle. Ominously, one hired is fatiguing and would soon wear out the ingly unnerved by the unruly mobs that peasant drowned while ferrying Lenz’s strongest of riders.” It took Lenz one month greeted him as he penetrated the interior. belongings across a stream. Shortly after, to ride the 1,303 miles from Calcutta to Although bicycles had already infiltrated malaria waylaid Lenz for several weeks, but , including ten days of rest. Japan, Lenz was among the first to cycle upon recovering he continued on to the cap- At Lahore, Lenz faced a dilemma. in China, and his presence caused great ital of Rangoon, where he was delighted to Should he continue on the more direct — and often hostile — excitement among encounter six members of the Burma Cycling route through and face its the superstitious natives. Many peasants Club waiting for him along the road. fierce inhabitants and winter weather, or simply fled at his appearance; others threw The monsoon rains continued to plague should he head south 800 miles through stones and threatened him with clubs. On his travels, and Lenz ended up depart- rugged desert to , where he could several occasions, Lenz fired his pistol into ing for India by boat rather than bicycle. meet a steamer to carry him to Persia? He the air to disperse menacing crowds, and he The rains forced another two-week delay chose the later, although he lamented the began traveling at night after losing part of at Calcutta, but it gave Lenz a chance to boring terrain and lack of clean water and his ear in one attack. rest and build up a “new mount” from a good food. Upon his arrival, Lenz calcu- But the kindness of Christian missionar- spare frame and trunk of bicycle parts he lated he had ridden the 2,175 miles from ies helped boost his sagging spirits, and had shipped ahead. He also enjoyed the Calcutta in 53 days. telegraph workers advised him on passing company of the many British wheelmen of After a 600-mile steamer ride during safely through the most dangerous regions. the city, who threw a large banquet in his which he claimed to see only a single Despite the hardships, Lenz remained opti- honor before his departure. tree on shore, Lenz arrived at Bushire in mistic about humanity, telling a British In early October, Lenz found himself Persia, where he departed for the capital of journalist who interviewed him in China again pedaling alone in a strange land, Teheran on February 13, 1894. He enjoyed in 1893 that his journey was intended to although this time he traveled along the the desert scenery and ubiquitous ruins promote “a more sympathetic appreciation smooth surface and clear weather of the along the 800-mile ride, but he was dis- of fellow men among all nations.” Grand Trunk Road, an ancient trade route mayed by more poor roads, deep sand, and Still, Lenz was overjoyed when he traversing the subcontinent. Monkeys and swarming insects. reached Burma, part of the vast British camels were among the exotic fauna Lenz In Outing, Lenz described being moved Empire. He was filthy, exhausted, and saw daily, and photos from this era show by the unusual sight of a young woman

30 adventure cyclist january 2009 adventurecycling.org adventure cyclist january 2009 adventurecycling.org 31 for years, but the U.S. government intensi- recalled the relief that swept over him as he fied its efforts after the wheelmen person- departed Kurdistan for Constantinople and ally lobbied President William McKinley in then headed home: January 1900. “I felt as if I were riding out of the ‘val- The sultan finally agreed to the U.S. ley of death,’” he wrote. “Every mile west- demands after the Americans refused to ward brought me in contact with a higher sell him a warship until the matter was civilization, and only those who have lived resolved. The Turks finally paid $7,500 to among barbarians can conceive what a Lenz’s grieving mother, who had begged pleasure it was for me to recognize each him not to go on the trip, nearly eight years new object which I had not seen for many after her only child’s disappearance. months.” Lenz’s disappearance prompted a debate in the cycling community over the merits of Bicycle historian David Herlihy’s The Lost round-the-world tours. A columnist for the around the globe, although she is sus- Cyclist: The Untold Story of Frank Lenz’s popular cycling journal Bearings derided pected of making liberal use of trains and Ill-Fated Around-the-World Journey, will such trips as dangerous stunts and the rid- steamers during her journey. be published May 2009 by rBooks.co.uk. ers as mere imitators of Thomas Stevens, As late as 1904, a German cyclist reported the first to circle the globe. being denied entry into Asia Minor because Geof Koss has spent many hours research- But other thrill seekers followed Lenz’s of the “Lenz affair.” The government “did ing the long-forgotten story of Frank Lenz Share the road. Lenz, seen holding his enourmous pith helmet, often encountered camels along the Grand Trunk Road. lead, even after the details of his brutal not want to take any more risks of that kind. in the various libraries and federal archives murder became known. Just weeks after So we went on without the passports.” This of Washington, DC. He’s also partially Illinois, had traveled through Kurdistan with the following morning as he crossed a river Kurd had already escaped from prison and Sachtleben sailed to Europe to search for was after Bedouins had already killed one of retraced, on a mountain bike, the first leg of college classmate Thomas Allen during their several miles outside of town. According fled, never to be seen again. Two of the Lenz, a Chicago man and his wife started his traveling companions. Lenz’s round-the-world trip from Pittsburgh own round-the-world bicycle trip complet- to Sachtleben’s account, one of the Kurds Armenians died in prison while they were an around-the-world attempt, following Sachtleben, who personally witnessed to Washington, a 300-plus-mile journey ed in 1892. The 29-year-old Sachtleben was slashed Lenz on the hand with a sword. waiting to be tried, and the others also fled in part Lenz’s ill-fated route. And Annie several horrific slaughters during the year that can now be made completely off-road. still hungry for adventure and sailed for Bleeding, Lenz begged for his life, even after posting bail. Londonderry, a housewife from , he spent investigating Lenz’s fate, was only He writes about environmental issues in Europe in March 1895. It had been nearly offering to convert to Islam, but he was The American public felt cheated, and soon became the first woman to cycle too happy to leave the troubled region. He Congress. ten months since Lenz had disappeared. killed and buried in the riverbank. Lenz’s story became a rallying cry for Upon arriving in Turkey, Sachtleben Further, Sachtleben learned that the League of American Wheelmen, then 29th Annual forged papers to gain entrance to Kurdistan. the Turks had covered up the crime. emerging as a powerful lobby for improved He immediately traveled to Erzeroum, Confronted with the evidence, the Turks roads. The group and their congressional Lenz’s last known destination, and with brought charges against the Kurd, but allies sought an indemnity for Lenz’s griev- the help of a friendly missionary and an to Sachtleben’s dismay, they also charged ing mother, charging that the Turks had Florida Bicycle Safari Armenian merchant, began to piece togeth- innocent Armenians who had aided his failed to protect Lenz upon his arrival in er Lenz’s last days. investigation. He returned to the United the country and had failed to investigate 3 or 6 day supported bicycling tour He learned that a notorious Kurdish States bitter over his failure to recover his disappearance in good faith. chief had ordered Lenz robbed and mur- Lenz’s body for his grieving mother. The U.S. State Department acquiesced dered after the cyclist had inadvertently After a lengthy series of trials and appeals, and formally sought $40,000 from the in rural and scenic North Florida insulted him during a chance encounter in the Kurdish chief and the Armenians were Turks, who resisted, arguing the killers had a small village. The bandits ambushed Lenz convicted of Lenz’s murder; however, the already been convicted. The request lagged April 18 – 23, 2009

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