The issue with dating a bike by anything other than the frame is that these parts may have been changed at any time. The chain ring on the bike doesn?t appear on Hawthornes until the spring-summer 1940 catalog. The change to N-D hub brake arms wasn?t part of my knowledge so I didn?t pick up on that. Hi Anthony, you bring up some good points and underline some of mine. In that case it was a less expensive paint treatment than head darts. I have not seen this on a Hawthorne but I have a base model CWC Western Flyer that has a similar stripe. I can?t tell from the photo if the broad box pinstripe around the badge is original or an addition. Your bike looks to be generally original with an accessory rack. If more people will post crank hanger/serial number photos, comparisons will lead to more general knowledge on the subject. Some of the other over-stamps may have to do with Montgomery Ward numbering for their record keeping.Īs I noted in my first post, earlier CWC numbers seem to follow a more straight-forward pattern than later prewar numbers. Sometimes stolen or abandoned bikes were re-numbered by police departments before being sold at auction. One possibility is the LPD number refers to a police department. The other numbers could be several things. If my assumptions are right, your bike would prove that this style frame remained in production longer than any previous evidence I have seen would suggest. It is a 1941-1942 model.įrom the above evidence I would call your bike a 1941 and guess it was probably made between late 1940 and the end of prewar production sometime in very early 1942.

I have a girl?s CWC Western Flyer in my collection that is H88113. It is hard to read, my interpretation being H06958. I believe the ?H? number is the CWC serial number. The torque-star chain ring didn?t appear until 1940 so if it is original to your bike that would date it to 1940-1942.Īs for serial numbers you have plenty to choose from. Hawthorne used three different chain rings on their full size prewar balloon models, the ?snowflake? the ?speed-comet? and the ?torque-star? (my names). That frame style typically dates to 1938-1939 but I think yours is later. Your Hawthorne is definitely prewar and is one of the models made for Montgomery Ward by Cleveland Welding.

Wards hawthorne bicycle