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The 20 th Century was marked because the age of the machine and a revolution in human historical past; for the primary time human beings partnered with noisy, greasy and highly effective machine expertise.[1] Josephine Gomez was born October 16, 1921 in Baltimore, to a household that used a motorbike as transportation. Her father, Luciano Gomez, was born in Spain in 1889 and had apprenticed in his residence village to turn into a cabinetmaker. He saved his cash and, like lots of his younger mates, felt the urge to purchase a bicycle, and discover this novel technique of transportation. Whereas using with mates just a few days after his buy, he was shocked to come across his first motorbike. In fact he needed it, however with all his cash spent, how might he presumably get his arms on one? America…absolutely if he went to America, he might afford a motorbike. He joined the Service provider Marine and traveled the world. At port in Bayonne NJ, a buddy with a motorbike let Luciano take it for a experience. Simply as he’d imagined. He jumped ship and settled amongst different Spanish immigrants dwelling on Cherry Avenue on the Decrease East Facet of Manhattan.
Arthur Vandell Jr. is Josphine’s son, and relates the story: “My grandfather (Luciano Gomez) was born in Spain in 1889. He apprenticed as a cabinetmaker, and on the finish of his apprenticeship he had sufficient cash to purchase a bicycle. So he and his mates went on a experience up the mountain to a resort. They stopped midway they usually heard this noise arising the hill. Right here comes three guys on bikes, they usually had by no means seen one earlier than. So Luciano says, ‘oh my goodness, I simply spent all my cash on this bicycle…now I’m by no means going to get a motorbike. The one approach I’ll get a motorbike is that if I am going to America.’ This was 1905. He noticed the primary airplane, the primary automotive that got here into his city. Then he joined the Spanish Service provider Marine.”
Josephine Gomez Vandell provides to the story of her father: “He got here on a ship to Bayonne, New Jersey. He rode on a buddy’s motorbike and stated, ‘Oh, wow!’ And he made up his thoughts that sooner or later he was going to go away the ship and he’s going to settle on this nation. And he did. He was enthusiastic about with the ability to have his personal unbiased transportation. This was like a brand new factor. My entire household rode Indians, numerous bikes.”
Suzanne Vandell Quinn, Josephine’s daughter, pipes up: “My grandfather was a carpenter and he had a carpentry enterprise on Pearl Avenue in Manhattan, and he had an Indian with a sidecar. He would come to Staten Island on the ferry and work on constructing his home by hand. After the home was completed, my grandfather and grandmother moved to Staten Island[2]. Again then, there have been only a few individuals on Staten Island. There wasn’t any transportation. They used the motorbike. They didn’t have a automotive ‘until a few years later.”
Josephine: “My father had the entire household on the motorbike. I used to experience with my brother within the specially-made sidecar, and my mom rode behind my father. You recognize, after I lived within the different finish of the island, in our neighborhood, we had been the one ones with a car, and it was a motorbike (laughter). Transportation has modified since I used to be youthful. On this a part of the island there was no bus… you walked to the prepare station. My father Luciano Gomez was from Spain. There have been many Spanish individuals dwelling downtown Manhattan round Cherry road. All of them had bikes. Throughout the summer time we’d all go off on our bikes, crabbing or one thing. And on the way in which we’d cease and any person would make a hearth from twigs, and they’d make a paella. In these days we didn’t have refrigeration; we used to prepare dinner rice with no matter we coudl discover, and snails. Oh, I used to like them.
“In 1931 we used to go to the shore so much. We’d go crabbing down in Toms River (NJ). We went to Montreal, Canada throughout Prohibition [January 17, 1920-December 5, 1933] within the facet automotive. We went to Niagara Falls within the facet automotive. You need to keep in mind, there have been no highways. Staten Island was largely filth roads. There have been nonetheless horse-drawn carts. I keep in mind them. My father can be driving the motorbike, we had been within the facet automotive and I keep in mind going previous horses and wagons.[3] My father had a particular sidecar made by an organization named Goulding. This sidecar could possibly be taken off [its chassis], and he made just a little cart and he put that on for his cupboard enterprise. The place he would carry his lumber and all that. When it rained, there was a canopy onfor the sidecar, and we’d get beneath that. And we might fall asleep there. Once we took that journey to Montreal there have been no paved roads. We wore goggles. Typically we’d get stung by a bee. We had a fabric helmet that was a flight helmet.
“[In the] Nineteen Thirties we didn’t have numerous examples of how one can do all this. We checked out pilots and airplanes for what to do. The best way to gown. Airplanes had been nonetheless a brand new factor. A pilot was a brand new factor. Going quick and touring. This was a brand new factor, Ya. We had been taking a look at flight. It was a pleasure using in these days…there wasn’t any site visitors on the roads. There have been no highways, no interstates, no motels to remain at, no eating places to eat. We’re speaking 1926-7. We’d be touring on the motorbike and there weren’t actually any motels. We’d discover a place with a cabin. Typically you’d see different individuals with bikes. There weren’t individuals with automobiles.
“There have been no maps, no tour guides, nothing. Possibly we had a compass. There was the Lincoln Freeway [dedicated Oct. 31, 1913. Ran from Times Square NYC to Lincoln Park in San Francisco]. And there was one highway that went from Maine to Florida [The Florida Highway was first built in 1938]. Many elements of these roads had been paved. It was a pleasure driving then.
“We needed to have instruments. My father stored his instruments within the sidecar. Sure, you needed to have information about how this stuff labored. If one thing broke you needed to determine it out by yourself. My brother labored as a mechanic for Mike Lombardi Sr for forty years [Staten Island Motorcycle dealership originally opened in 1905 by Frank Lombardi as a general store]. Many individuals got here from lengthy distances to have my brother work on their bikes. Staten Island has an actual historical past of excessive pace guys…there was numerous racing; Thompson Stadium…Weissglass…there have been a pair race tracks and hill climbs.
“I used to be nineteen, twenty-two, twenty-three after I acquired my first motorbike. I purchased an Indian Scout round 1939. I used to be the one girl with a motorbike in my space. Then there have been a pair ladies within the Richmond membership [Richmond Motorcycle Club] who had bikes. There was a lady named Wanda and she or he had a motorbike. This was not a query of being cool. There was no such factor as cool.
“We adopted the racing circuit. Lots of the daughters and sisters of the riders had been their mechanics. It by no means bothered me to get my arms soiled. My Indian was a easy motorbike. I wasn’t that good at mechanics, fortunately I had my brother ‘Don’; really his identify was Selestino, however a number of the guys within the membership referred to as him Don Juan, and Don caught as his nickname. And my father knew how one can work on bikes. The Gomez household was recognized for bikes. In Staten Island there weren’t that many bikes round. My father rode, my brother, and my husband and my son. Now I’ve my grandsons using. And my son in legislation, he rode. The very best man at my wedding ceremony and my husband’s brother… It was inexpensive to experience a motorbike.
“We had been earlier than the ‘factor’ about bikes and ‘insurgent tradition’. We rode Indians. Mike Lombardi (Sr.) offered Indians. Again then lots of people who rode Indians had been completely different from individuals who rode Harley-Davidsons. The ladies who had been within the Richmond membership had been dignified. My Scout was a forty five cubic inch motorbike. It was heavy. The seat was a cushty distance from the bottom. I might simply sit on my motorbike. One time I needed to cease actual quick as a result of this automotive was coming, they didn’t see me as a result of the solar was in his eyes… He was heading for me… So I dropped the bike. Then I needed to decide it up… the poor man was so apologetic.
“I felt unbiased… You’d get that breeze… I used to be so used to that. It was nice… That’s how I met my husband. He was within the males’s Richmond Membership and I used to be within the auxiliary. We used to have good events. Lombardi had his store within the again, that they had just a little shack and we had all our events there. That’s the place I met my husband. It was good clear enjoyable. Not one of the women had been married however the males had been gents. We’d all foxtrot across the ground. It was like a household outing. Seaside events, BBQs.
“We rode by means of all of the climate however we didn’t give it some thought. That’s what we did. We didn’t suppose we had been powerful. That is simply what we did. Yeah. Then I met my husband and we acquired married after which I used to be pregnant with Arthur Jr. and I gave it up. That was in ’47. My father had a 1936 Ford coupe with a rumble seat. These had been the great ol’ days…we had no cash however we positive had enjoyable. Ha. Transportation and touring was in our blood. We cherished it. I cherished driving. Bikes and automobiles and driving was how we socialized. That is how we met one another. I appreciated to go snowboarding and skating…I suppose the motorbike factor was embedded in me. My father, my brother, it was second nature, it was no massive deal. That is one thing I all the time knew. I feel I paid $200 for my Scout. It was used. The fella was within the Military with my brother. I labored at Fort Wadsworth [the military base on Staten Island, opened during the Civil War 1861-1979].
“My mom was French, my father was Spanish. They met in England. They had been adventurous individuals. They didn’t suppose they had been, however after I take into consideration my mom coming right here, she was like a pioneer. I nonetheless love to sit down on a motorbike. I don’t experience now, with this site visitors. Once I was younger and rode, I’d open it up just a little…yeah. I feel the quickest I rode was round 70mph. My father had a Vincent HRD Rapide [Series B] and it was quick. I went round 100mph on the again with my father. I keep in mind we went to New Hampshire on that factor. That wasn’t essentially the most comfy motorbike. The again seat was kinda exhausting. My Indian was a cushty motorbike. It had an enormous seat. The nice ol’ days…ha ha.
“It was bikes and our sense of transportation. Having enjoyable…there was no situation of dangerous habits…no. Once I see that place within the Dakotas – Sturgis – after I see these women on the again of the bikes, they’re half-dressed, they usually have these thongs on their toes, and quick shorts, I say, Oh my God, in the event that they ever fall down boy are they gonna be scraped. All of us wore boots. Even within the summertime we wore leather-based jackets. We wore jodhpur horse using pants.
“My brother was born on Cherry Avenue in downtown Manhattan. I used to be born in Baltimore. There have been numerous Spanish individuals within the Cherry Avenue space. There have been numerous Irish individuals in there too. You recognize, the ages of individuals have modified in my lifetime, with older and youthful individuals. Once I was younger earlier than WWII issues had been completely different between older and youthful. There have been numerous older individuals.[4] However Oh ya, after I was on my motorbike, and I had the wind in my hair, I had a way about myself. I used to be using on my Scout, I used to be going the place I needed to go.
“We wore Buco leather-based jackets. We had been into model. I paid consideration to how I needed to look. We wore sure garments that we all the time wore after we rode. We wore blue cotton pants however they weren’t denims. There was no such factor as dungarees. Not then. We wore heavy cotton pants.
“I used to be normally with any person else, know what I imply, on a protracted experience. We all the time had just a little device field. We used to go throughout. Early, early within the morning we’d go to Toms River New Jersey to go crabbing and by midday time we’d come again with a bushel of crabs. Right this moment you’d be fortunate to get one or two. We went throughout Jersey. I used to be too younger to recollect then after I rode with my father. I don’t know if he had a map. He had sense of route.
“That is what my household did. We rode bikes. No one ever stated something within the neighborhood. In the home I lived in, my father constructed that home. He’d come each night time by motorbike and dig the inspiration by hand. There have been no bulldozers… Once I was younger there wasn’t some huge cash. There wasn’t any transportation on this space. There was a bus we might take to highschool however it price a nickel. We didn’t actually have a nickel. So we walked. Two miles.
“Me using on a motorbike as a younger girl was completely different. I didn’t consider myself as a insurgent. That is what I did. It was life. We managed. Staten Island was all farms. Oh yeah. Out on the south shore we had been form of hillbillys. We’d look throughout the water at Manhattan… We had been so near it however the place we lived was so rural. Many of the jobs had been in Manhattan so individuals took the ferry. Type of remoted.
“Once we used to go using, we’d meet up with a dozen motorcyclists. Totally different sorts of individuals we wouldn’t normally see. They’d be from a membership all going. There was a membership from the Bronx they usually had been bunch. There have been all completely different races of individuals using in New York. That is how we met one another. As a child I had a way of confidence. The motorbike helped me to have this as a lady. Quite a lot of this confidence was handed to me by my mom. She had been an orphan since she was 13 years outdated. She needed to determine all the pieces out by herself. I discovered this independence from my mom. It was a pure factor. I used to be ready to tackle the world. No matter I wanted to do, I went forward and did it. I used to be the one younger girl I knew who rode a motorbike. This helped me be who I’m.”
Josephine Gomez Vandell handed away January 10, 2024 on the age of 102. Her oral historical past chronicles her life-long ardour for bikes and the way they supplied her with a way of self and independence.
[1] One cause the 20th Century exploded in financial development is related to the car. Economists will let you know that when a growing economic system introduces the car, that economic system will double in GDP in ten years.
[2] New York Metropolis has 5 boroughs- Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens, Staten Island. Early 20th Century, Staten Island was rural farmland (dairy farms that provided milk to the town). Underpopulated. It has been known as the ‘Forgotten Borough’. Inhabitants throughout Josephine’s day, 1930, was 6,930. By 2020 the inhabitants was 495,747. The development of the Verrazzano-Narrows Bridge (1959-1964), together with the opposite three main Staten Island bridges, created a brand new approach for commuters and vacationers to journey from New Jersey to Brooklyn, Manhattan, and areas farther east on Lengthy Island.
[3] In 1900, round 130,000 horses labored in Manhattan–greater than 10 instances the variety of taxicabs on the streets of New York Metropolis right this moment. A typical metropolis horse produced as much as 45 kilos (20 kilograms) of manure and a pair of gallons (7.5 liters) of urine a day. Many metropolis horses died younger, generally on the street. By the early twentieth century, the variety of horses within the metropolis started to decrease. Know-how, within the type of motor automobiles—automobiles and vans, regularly lowered the town’s reliance on horsepower. Between 1910 and 1920, the variety of horses within the Metropolis declined from 128,000 to 56,000.
[4] The child growth that started after troopers returned from the struggle in 1945 was an essential demographic shift that occurred through the Nineteen Fifties; there have been greater than 70 million births between 1946 and 1964 in the USA. By 1960, an estimated 60 % of the U.S. inhabitants was beneath age 30. This demographic shift in direction of youth modified the tone of American tradition.
My because of Arthur Vandell Jr. (Josephine Vandell’s son), Tim Quinn, and Suzanne Vandell Quinn (Josephine’s daughter, married to Tim), for his or her beneficiant assist with this text, and for the usage of treasured household images. This interview was carried out on 7/25/2014.
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