Joe Steinlauf Gangster Gun Bike
Guns and Bicycles Fire Imagination of Collector
By Henry Greene Jr. — Chicago Daily Tribune — September 12, 1954
⸻
Proprietor of more than 350 guns without ever having fired a shot himself is Joe Steinlauf, 3851 Ogden Avenue.
His museum in his tire and bicycle shop at the Ogden Avenue address also includes old and unusual bicycles and such items as a one-hand clock, an Irish shillelagh, and a sword handle wrapped with human hair.
Born in Austria 58 years ago, Steinlauf came to this country with his family in 1912.
The gun collection was started a year later when his father sent him down to the basement for some coal, and young Joe found a wooden gun that apparently had been delivered with the coal.
⸻
Family of Bike Riders
Somehow, Steinlauf relates, that wooden toy made him curious about guns and he began buying and trading for unusual firearms.
The collection includes a still-loaded Colt .44 caliber army revolver made in 1861 and found on the battlefield of Gettysburg; revolvers used by guards on the old Wells Fargo express; a British knife pistol with a 4-inch blade; and a combination-lock revolver that cannot be fired until the proper combination has been set.
As for the bicycles:
Steinlauf’s entire family has always ridden bikes, he says, and he began selling bicycles and bicycle tires when automobiles were still a rarity.
His son, Fred, 32, began riding when he was 2 years old and developed trick riding routines that won him a place in the army special services during the last war.
He used to do the manual of arms at war bond rallies wearing a full field pack and riding a unicycle.
⸻
Makes “Gangster Bike”
In addition to acquiring antique cycles, Steinlauf has made many odd bicycles, including a five-place model with four wheels that he intended to present to the Dionne quintuplets.
Another, made from the head of an old-fashioned brass bedstead, resulted after Steinlauf dreamed one night he was riding his bed down the street.
A “gangster bike” that Steinlauf made for a gag during Prohibition was
By Henry Greene Jr. — Chicago Daily Tribune — September 12, 1954
⸻
Proprietor of more than 350 guns without ever having fired a shot himself is Joe Steinlauf, 3851 Ogden Avenue.
His museum in his tire and bicycle shop at the Ogden Avenue address also includes old and unusual bicycles and such items as a one-hand clock, an Irish shillelagh, and a sword handle wrapped with human hair.
Born in Austria 58 years ago, Steinlauf came to this country with his family in 1912.
The gun collection was started a year later when his father sent him down to the basement for some coal, and young Joe found a wooden gun that apparently had been delivered with the coal.
⸻
Family of Bike Riders
Somehow, Steinlauf relates, that wooden toy made him curious about guns and he began buying and trading for unusual firearms.
The collection includes a still-loaded Colt .44 caliber army revolver made in 1861 and found on the battlefield of Gettysburg; revolvers used by guards on the old Wells Fargo express; a British knife pistol with a 4-inch blade; and a combination-lock revolver that cannot be fired until the proper combination has been set.
As for the bicycles:
Steinlauf’s entire family has always ridden bikes, he says, and he began selling bicycles and bicycle tires when automobiles were still a rarity.
His son, Fred, 32, began riding when he was 2 years old and developed trick riding routines that won him a place in the army special services during the last war.
He used to do the manual of arms at war bond rallies wearing a full field pack and riding a unicycle.
⸻
Makes “Gangster Bike”
In addition to acquiring antique cycles, Steinlauf has made many odd bicycles, including a five-place model with four wheels that he intended to present to the Dionne quintuplets.
Another, made from the head of an old-fashioned brass bedstead, resulted after Steinlauf dreamed one night he was riding his bed down the street.
A “gangster bike” that Steinlauf made for a gag during Prohibition was
Comments
Available RSS feeds
Random image
