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Bicycle Barclay in the Automobile Age

By Anna-Maria Manuel

Published July 7, 2026.​

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Many thanks to Bill Klinger for his help in interpreting patent documents.

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Philander Barclay is forever associated with bicycles — from his trade to his favorite nickname, “Bicycle Barclay.” [1]

 

Yet, Barclay was no stranger to automobiles. Barclay learned the bicycle trade while working for repairman Wright Elsom, Jr., whose shop handled not only bicycles but racing sulkies, wheelchairs, and early automobiles. [2]

 

Elsom’s increasing focus on automobiles — especially after opening his Oak Park Cycle and Automobile Depot [3] — may have nudged Barclay toward opening his own bicycle shop in 1906.

 

By the early 1920s, Barclay must have felt the impact of America’s growing love affair with the automobile. As more people gave up their bicycles, his business declined. In 1921, he closed his shop and moved to Hollywood, California [4], hoping the climate would encourage year‑round cycling. [5] His brother James lived there. [6] By the time Barclay arrived, his long-time friend and supporter Orren M. Donaldson — founder, publisher, and editor of the Oak Leaves — had also made Hollywood his home. [7]

 

Barclay likely soon discovered that Californians loved their cars just as much as Midwesterners. His Hollywood shop was short lived, operating from July 1922 until perhaps early 1923. [8] He returned to Oak Park in 1926. [9]

 

Still, there was no escaping automobiles. After returning to Oak Park, Barclay worked at the Annex Garage on Williams Street (now Westgate Street) near Marion Street. [10] The shop was sold in early 1929. [11] Why Barclay left around that time remains unclear.

1. “Famous Bicycle Barclay in Front of His Shop”; The Oakparker; November 29, 1935; pg. 41.

 

2. Ibid.

 

3. “Oak Park’s First Horseless Carriage”; The Oakparker; November 29, 1935; pg. 113.

 

4. Barclay’s last ad for his shop seems to be a classified ad published in the October 8, 1921 Oak Leaves (pg. 111).

 

Barclay said he moved to Los Angeles in 1921: “Swatting Mosquitoes”; Oak Leaves; November 26, 1927; pg. 6.

 

5. “Bicycle Barclay Here”; Holly Leaves (Hollywood, California); July 1, 1922; pg. 67.

 

6. Barclay, Jas. T.; Los Angeles City Directory; 1922; pg. 459.

 

Luan joined her two brothers in Los Angeles around 1924. Barclay, Miss Luan E; Index to Register of Voters; Los Angeles City Precinct No. 445; Los Angeles County, California; 1924.

 

7. Donaldson retired from the Oak Leaves and moved to California sometime in the late 1910s. He moved to Hollywood after having lived in Oakland. This was determined by:

  • Donaldson cited his residency as “Oakland, in the county of Alameda, State of California” when he executed a U.S. Patent Application on February 25, 1918. See: Orren M. Donaldson; Sleeping-Car; US Patent 1361233; application filed March 15, 1918; patent granted December 7, 1920.

  • Later in 1918, Donaldson moved to Hollywood to found, publish, and edit the weekly newspaper, Holly Leaves. The earliest issues probably date to summer 1918. The masthead of the newspaper says that the publication was “Entered as second class matter, July 13, 1918 at the post office at Los Angeles, Cal.” See masthead of Holly Leaves, January 14, 1922, for example.

 

8. Barclay ad; Holly Leaves; June 3, 1922; pg. 7; The ad says that his Hollywood shop will open “about” June 15. The shop opened around July 15. See Barclay ad; Holly Leaves; July 15, 1922; pg. 15.

 

Barclay’s last ad (perhaps); “Holly Leaves Information Department”; Holly Leaves; December 9, 1922; unnumbered page.

 

No Barclay ads in the April 6, 1923 Holly Leaves, which seems to be the only post-1922 issue available to examine on the Internet. (https://www.oscars.org/pdfviewer/?hid=1023572483; accessed July 3, 2026.)

 

9. “Swatting Mosquitoes”; Oak Leaves; November 26, 1927; pg. 6.

 

10. "History of Oak Park His Hobby”; The Oak Parker; November 11, 1927; pg. 88.

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11. “Legal Notice” (Mentions sale of Annex Garage); Oak Leaves; February 16, 1929; pg. 88.

Car Ownership for Bicycle Barclay

 

The EMF 20

 

Barclay didn’t dislike cars — he owned a couple in his lifetime.

 

In 1910, the Oak Leaves reported that Barclay had purchased an EMF 20 and was learning to operate it. He was “determined to respect all speed laws and the rights of pedestrians and to resist the tendency to ‘joy riding.’” [12]

 

Once behind the wheel, Barclay became acutely aware of the dangers children faced crossing streets in an era of increasingly fast vehicles. Even though he “exercised unusual care,” he nearly ran over children who darted into the road. “I have had many, many bad frights from running children,” he told the Oak Leaves . “They dart in front of the machine . . . and even the most careful driver is liable to run them down.” [13]

 

In 1911, Barclay formed the How to Cross the Street Club, teaching local children how to be safe pedestrians. He took them for rides in his car, lectured them on street dangers, and compiled a set of rules for crossing, playing in the streets, and riding bicycles. [14]

 

Barclay owned his EMF 20 until 1912. [15]

isl_48273_full--Edited--w arrow.jpg

Barclay’s license number from List of Automobile Licenses, Issued by James A. Rose, Secretary of State of Illinois, from September 1, 1911 to September 30, 1911, inclusive. Image from: Illinois Digital Archives, https://www.idaillinois.org/digital/collection/isl/id/48136/rec/1. (Accessed September 20, 2022.)

Members of the How to Cross the Street Club pictured with Barclay’s EMF 20 in 1911. From: The Philander Barclay Collection; Album 4, pg. 62; BB38C; Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest.

19120622--Oak Leaves--pg 42--CLASSFIED AD--EMF 20 FOR SALE--Edited--cropped.jpg

Barclay placed two classified ads in the Oak Leaves, advertising the sale of his car, one in the June 22, 1912 issue (pg. 42) and the other in the following week’s issue. This is the ad from June 22.

12. Oak Leaves; July 16, 1910; pg. 2.

 

13. Oak Leaves; June 24, 1911; pg. 12.

 

14. Ibid.

 

15. Classified ad (Barclay was selling his EMF 20); Oak Leaves; June 22, 1912; pg. 40.

IMG_3837--Edited--low res.jpg

This picture, which seems to have been taken in a motor vehicle (a Model T?), may be from one of Barclay’s all-night road trips. Except for the names of the occupants — James Bullis (left) and Barclay (right) — there was no other identification written on the back of the photo. From: The Philander Barclay Collection; gray file box; Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest.

Ford Model T (or “Road trip!”)

 

Around 1915, Barclay purchased a Ford Model T [16] — and with it came new adventures for him and several friends.

 

He developed a new pastime: “all-night autoing.” [17] The idea wasn’t entirely new; a 1907 illustrated article in Country Life in America had already described the romance of nighttime motoring along quiet country roads illuminated by headlamps and moonlight. [18]

 

For the first trip, Barclay brought three of his pals:

  • Cless Burras, Advertising Manager at the Oak Leaves [19]

  • John Van Battum, likely already a clerk for the Consumers Company (coal) in Forest Park [20]

  • James Edward “Happy” Bullis, a laborer. Earlier, he was a local volunteer fireman and “one of the first” police patrol drivers in Oak Park. [21]

 

Other trips included Louis Niles, a typewriter mechanic who patented an oil draining valve for automobiles, and Fred J. Durfee, of the Addressograph Company in Chicago. [22]

 

Their first destination was South Bend, Indiana. For the travelers, the advantages of all-night autoing were:

  • Nature can be viewed in its "subdued" aspects

  • Civilization can be viewed in its most artificial aspects

  • Speed cops are less active than in waking hours

  • Highways and boulevards are comparatively free of traffic

  • No hours are lost from work. [23]

 

They left at 11 p.m. on Saturday and drove through the night, stopping for supper at midnight in Valparaiso, Indiana. [24]

 

When friends asked why he chose Indiana, Barclay gave three reasons:

  • “Splendid country roads”

  • The “‘welcome to our city’ spirit”

  • “The fair way in which the authorities have adopted in giving the autoists warning to be careful.” According to Barclay, there was plenty of signage, letting drivers know about the exact speed limits in cities, instead of vague signs to “Obey the state law.” [25]

 

Barclay felt that it would be a good idea for Oak Park to:

Adopt similar plans and warn strangers (first) instead of imposing fines with a warning to "be careful” afterwards. There would be fewer accidents, less work for the motorcycle cop and autoists would have more respect for the laws and there would be a better feeling between the owners and authorities which would be a boost for the village instead of a knock. [26]

16. Index Card Boxes; File Card: “Barclay, Philander”; The Philander Barclay Collection; Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest; accessed April 6, 2023.

 

17. “Advantages of All-night Autoing”; Oak Leaves; August 28, 1915; pg. 26.

 

18. C.H. Claudy; “Midnight Motoring”; Country Life in America; October 1907; pgs. 683-684; 724.

 

19. “Cless O. Burras”; Oak Leaves; February 5, 1916; pg. 3.

 

20. John Marinus James Van Battum; WWI Draft Registration Card.

 

21. Photo BB58G; The Philander Barclay Collection; Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest.

 

22. Index Card Boxes; File Card: “Barclay, Philander”; The Philander Barclay Collection; Historical Society of Oak Park and River Forest.

 

Louis Warner Niles; WWI Draft Registration Card.

 

Louis W. Niles and Harold F. Niles; Oil Draining Valve; US Patent 1891287; application filed November 5, 1928; patent granted December 20, 1932.

 

Durfee, Fred J.; Oak Park Directory and Year Book; January 1,1915; pg. 91.

 

23. “Advantages of All-night Autoing”; Oak Leaves; August 28, 1915; pg. 26.

 

24. Ibid.

 

25. “Why Auto in Indiana”; Oak Leaves; September 18, 1915; pg. 27.

 

26. Ibid.

Winter Car Travel and the Ni-Bar Auto Heater

 

Winter didn’t stop Barclay from traveling. In December 1915, he drove to Valparaiso without wearing a coat, vest, or gloves. He had installed a heating system in his Ford. The Oak Leaves explained: “He placed a drum around the exhaust pipe, left the forward end open and placed registers in the floor. Thru these registers warmed fresh air is forced by the movement of the car, the exhaust pipes supplying more than enough heat.” The system had been introduced locally by Officer Shoemaker, a patrol driver and mechanic. [27]

 

In January 1916, the Oak Leaves announced Barclay’s and Niles’ perfected auto heater. They formed the Ni-Bar Auto Heating Company to manufacture and sell the heaters. According to the article, “They have succeeded in eliminating all the odor, and in the preliminary experiments have discovered that a closed car can be quickly heated to 50 or 60 degrees.” [28]

 

By April 1916, several Oak Park automobiles had Ni‑Bar heaters installed. Barclay and Niles installed them at Barclay’s bicycle shop at 1112 North Boulevard and expected more orders in the fall for winter driving. [29]

19160219--Oak Leaves--pg 27--ad--Ni-Bar Auto Heater--Ni-Bar Auto Heating Co--not inc--Crop

An ad for the Ni-Bar Auto Heating Company. 1112 North Boulevard was the address of Barclay’s bicycle shop. From: Oak Leaves; February 19, 1916; pg. 27.

Barclay appears to have stepped away from the business, at some point. In a February 24, 1917 Oak Leaves ad, Niles is listed as Proprietor; Barclay’s name and phone number are absent. [30]

 

The heater seems to have faded from the market soon afterward, with no ads appearing after February 1917.

 

It seems that Barclay was trying to sell his Model T as early as December 1916. [31] He still advertised it in October 1917. [32] No further ads appeared, suggesting he sold it shortly thereafter.

19171020--Oak Leaves--pg 46--CLASSIFIED AD--Ford for sale w Ni-Bar Heater--PWB's car--ques

Barclay didn’t give his name in this ad. However, some hints (car model, Ni-Bar auto heater, and his shop’s address) seem to suggest that it probably was his car. From: Oak Leaves; October 20, 1917; pg. 46.

27. “Barclay Heats His Ford”; Oak Leaves; December 25, 1915; pg. 31.

 

28. “Perfectly Successful Auto Heater”; Oak Leaves; January 29, 1916; pg. 40.

 

29. “Ni-Bar Automobile Heater”; Oak Leaves; April 29, 1916; pg. 11.

 

30. The Ni-Bar Auto Heating Co. ad; Oak Leaves; February 24, 1917; pg. 48f.

 

31. Classified ad; Oak Leaves; December 9, 1916; pg. 46.

 

32. Classified ad; Oak Leaves; October 20, 1917; pg. 46.

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