George Wenige:

Born in Detroit in 1874, George Wenige arrived in London around 1900 - on a bicycle. He opened his first bicycle shop on Clarence Street. The second incarnation of the Bicycle and Motor Sales Company was built around 1915 at 425-427 Wellington Street. Wenige gave the job to a company that promised to have the building up in 30 days. To make sure the deadline was met, Wenige hired a brass band to provide motivational music for the construction workers.

In the 1920s the Bicycle and Motor Sales Company was reportedly the largest bicycle dealership in Southern Ontario. It was certainly the most colorful. Wenige, who wrote all of his ad copy, billed himself as "The Man Who Made Walking Expensive." He taught his two-year-old son to ride a Baby Red Bird bicycle and then forced the child to pose for publicity photos. As a stunt Wenige rode a bicycle from London to Halifax - at a time when most of the roads were unpaved. In 1918 Wenige held the first of several bicycle picnics for London children. During the winter months, he organized free theatre parties

Wenige's store also served as campaign headquarters for his numerous election campaigns, starting in 1920. In a political career that spanned 32 years, Wenige made 18 tries for the mayor's office and was elected an unprecedented nine times. As mayor in 1950, Wenige welcomed one of his old customers back to London: Actor Hume Cronyn. As a boy, Cronyn had purchased a bicycle on credit - though Wenige couldn't recall if he ever paid off the balance or not.

Wenige owned the business until 1929 when he sold it and opened a real estate office. However, he was always identified with his bicycle trade until his death in December 1952. On the day of his funeral, the London Free Press ran an editorial cartoon that depicted Wenige peddling into the sunset.

In its later years, Wenige store housed Tom Munro Sporting Goods. It was damaged during the spectacular YMCA fire of January 1981 and later torn down to make way for One London Place.