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This wheelman grew up in Johnstown, New
York, which is located in the Mohawk Valley about 35 miles west of
Albany. Prior to his ride he was living on Cayadutta Street with his
widowed mother Nancy Bradt, sister Nanna who was a clerk, and a brother
John who managed the Western Union Office. Nelson was listed as selling
fire insurance.
It is not known when he purchased his Eagle bicycle or if he belonged to
the Johnstown Bicycle Club. He was an avid cyclist, however, since he
had covered 2,500 miles on his machine in the first three months of
1891. We do not know his age or size, but most likely he was another
young man who rode fast and long on an Eagle.
Most of the information about his ride that began from New York City on
April 9, 1891 is contained in an article that appeared in the San
Francisco Morning Call on Sunday July 5th.
"Yesterday as the grand military and civic parade was disbanding a lone
cyclist arrived from New York, fresh and hearty to all appearances,
after a ride which from start to finish, lacked but a few days of
filling three months of his history.
 "The wheelman was Nelson A. Bradt. He made the trip partly for pleasure
and partly for business, is connection with the Eastern press offering
him opportunities for correspondence, of which he availed himself
largely on his transcontinental ride. He was favored with fair weather
from first to last, and his journey was made particularly pleasant by
the friendliness of the wheelmen's clubs en route.
"Mr. Bradt left New York on April 9th, and traveled by way of Buffalo,
Chicago, Kansas City, Topeka, Denver, Salt Lake, Ogden, and Sacramento.
He completed the first stage of his journey, Chicago (980 miles) in ten
days. Resting there for six days he resumed his journey on April 25th
and pushed his way by Quincy, Ill., to Kansas City, where he arrived
nine days later. He spent four days at this place and on May 8th made a
fresh start via Topeka over the prairie to Denver, riding through five
inches of snow on the way when about twenty or thirty miles east of
Colorado Springs.
"He put up at Denver on the 23rd of May, and next morning pushed forward
for Leadville. It took him eight days of hard work to cross the
mountains, which, besides being very steep, were covered with a thick
mantel of snow, and then another eight days were spent in the saddle
before he gave his wheel a rest in Salt Lake. This was the most trying
portion of his trip, as he had to sleep outdoors during all of the
sixteen days.
"On June 4, after a five days' rest, Mr. Bradt bade good-bye to Salt
Lake. He reached Ogden next day and was there stricken down with fever
and ague. Recovering after a nine days' siege he set out again on June
24th, crossed the Sierras, dropped down by Sacramento into the land of
gold and climate and pursued his course without stop to the Golden Gate.
(He reached San Francisco July 4th)
"The venturesome wheelman's outfit consisted of a full riding suit, one
extra suit, shirts, collars and toilet necessaries, pair of revolvers,
fishing-tackle and blankets - weighing in all about twenty pounds. He
stopped at every likely stream and fished with plenty of success. On
very warm days he rested during the midday and pushed forward at night."
"On January 1 (1891), instead of resolving to turn over a new leaf, as
many young men do, Mr. Bradt determined to make a 10,000-mile record
with his bicycle during the year. Between New Year's and his start on
his present trip his cyclometer registered 2485 miles, to which he has
just added 4420 miles in his meandering across the continent, a total of
6904 miles so far."
Based on this account it appears that Mr. Bradt was a very fast rider
who averaged over 71 miles per day on the 62 days of the 86-day trip
that he was in the saddle. Some Wheelmen of the era, however, viewed his
time/mileage claims with suspicion. It seems that he was not trying to
set a new record for the crossing or he would not have tarried in
Chicago, Kansas City, and Salt Lake City, devoted time to fishing, or
take a circuitous route. He was interested in mileage that would help
him reach his goal of a 10,000-mile year.
The comment about his connection with the Eastern press and his availing
himself of that opportunity suggests that there is a series of newspaper
accounts of his ride waiting to be discovered.
After a number of days sightseeing in the San Francisco region Bradt
traveled by train to see a brother in Denver and then continued "riding
the cars" to Johnstown. The American Athlete of February 9, 1892
reported that Bradt did achieve his goal of riding 10,000 miles in 1891.
In 1892 and 1893 he was listed in the Johnstown Directory as a clerk in
the Western Express Office. He does not appear in the Directory after
1893.
Photo: Eagle Advertisement of Bradt's Ride. Source:
Bicycling World And L.A.W. Bulletin, July 31, 1891.
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