Worth Mitten

1922 Worth Mitten

1922 Worth Mitten bicycle

Cycling Legend Victor Hopkins, in 1924

Worth Mitten, from Davenport, Iowa, was a small production bike builder who supplied a few great cyclists of his era.  The couple dozen bikes that he built were all well engineered for the rough roads of the time with long wheelbases and extremely raked forks.  This redish-brown color was a Mitten trademark, and all known bikes have this enamel finish.

Among the notable riders on his bikes was Victor Hopkins, 1926 National Champion and Olympian at the 1924 games.

1913 Worth Mitten Bio

Worthington Longfellow Mitten was quite the cyclist himself before he took up the torch.  Born in 1884, “Worth” raced in over thirty Six-Day races, a few of these as a solo rider before two-man teams became the norm.  Worth was successful enough to make good wages on the bike. 

Fillet brazed rear dropout

Worth Mitten head badge

As a bike builder, Worth set himself apart from his contemporaries by fillet brazing his frames (the smooth, melted looking joints) as opposed to utilizing traditional lugged construction.  Worth also fashioned his own racing tires out of linen and rubber (those didn’t stand up to the ravages of time, however, and newer tires are glued to these wooden rims).