Here is a list of classic and vintage bicycle brands and manufacturers. They are listed by the country of each individual company. Some are manufacturers and others are importers.
USA
All Pro – house brand for Kmart. These would all be entry level bicycles, I don’t think any would have much collectible value.
AMF – American Machine & Foundry. Purchased Roadmaster in 1950 and made bikes in the USA with that branding. They also imported Raleigh built bicycles and some from Austria. Made mostly cruiser and kid’s bikes for retail stores, plus some neat looking pedal cars. Went out of business in 1985.
Azuki – similar to Nishiki the brand was made in Japan and distributed by West Coast Cycle. At least some of these were made by Kuwahara. Brand started during the 70s and ended in the 80s.
Beacon – company founded in Milwaukee, WI in about 1950. The first brand produced by Giant in Taiwan. Company was closed in the late 70s. Considered department store bikes.
Boren – company was in Little Rock, Arkansas. Can’t find much out about it but most the bikes I’ve seen seem to be from the 30s or 40s. Most sources I see suggest these bikes were rebadged Schwinn’s.
Cannondale – though the company was founded in 1971, they did not start making bicycles till 1983. One of the largest bicycle companies in the US and is headquartered in Connecticut.
Centurion – founded in 1969 in Newbury Park, CA. Started by importing bikes from Japan. Vintage brand ended in 1990, German company continues the brand now.
Coast to Coast – Coast King and Marquis brand. Private labeled bikes for Coast to Coast hardware. Generally budget bikes. Ross made some of the early models. Out of business.
Columbia – first to make bikes in the USA in 1879. 1950s and older bikes are quite collectible. They made bikes for departments stores, so newer models are less collectible depending on the model. Brand was owned by Pope Manufacturing which later became Westfield Manufacturing. Brand is owned by Ballard Pacific, but I don’t believe this brand is still active.
Colson bicycles – Ohio company that began making bicycles in 1917. Made Firestone and Goodyear branded bicycles most notably. Stopped making bikes in 1962.
Concord – bikes were imported from Japan by Columbus Cycles out of Ohio. Full range of bikes, mostly entry level to maybe mid-level.
Elgin – early Sears brand that was used in the 30s and 40s. Was replaced by JC Higgins. Some model are very nice looking.
GT bicycles – founded in 1972, by Gary Turner and Richard Long in Santa Ana, CA. Started with BMX bikes and later mountain and road bikes. Brand is still active and currently owned by Pon Holdings.
Hawthorne – this is a brand of bikes made for Montgomery Wards. Early bikes were made by Cleveland Welding Company and HP Snyder, some were made in Austria likely by Steyr. The really old ones seem to be collectible, like their tank bikes.
Holiday – these bikes were sold by Holiday general stores. The models I have seen are all entry level and from the 60s and 70s. Most are not very collectible, though I have seen pictures of muscle bikes that would have some value.
HP Snyder – founded in 1895 by Homer P Snyder and Michael Fisher and Snyder and Fisher Bicycle Works. After 3 years Fisher left the company, and it was renamed HP Snyder. Made several brands of bikes including Mohawk, Rollfast, Roamer, and Montgomery Ward (Hawthorne). Mossberg bought the company in 1972 and produced Mossberg bikes till closing the company in 1976.
Huffy – founded at Dayton, OH in 1892. Originally manufactured bikes branded Dayton, Huffy branding started in 1949. Stopped making bikes in the US in 1999 and began importing all models. Brand still active in big box stores. Mostly known as an entry-level department store brand bike.
JC Higgins – this was another brand name used by Sears. I believe they used this name from the 40s and into the early 60s. These bikes were manufactured in the USA by Westfield manufacturing and Murray. These were mostly balloon tire cruiser bikes.
Kent – Company history can be traced back to 1907 in New York City when Abraham Kamler founded Division Cyclery. Company later became Philkam Cycle in 1947, and finally Kent International in 1958. I think they may have started as an importer as some of the early bikes I have seen are made in Hungary. It’s not till 1979 that I see evidence of them manufacturing bikes in NJ. Haven’t seen any real collectible vintage models. Company is still making bikes for big stores like Walmart and Target. Brands include Kent, Shogun, Razor, and BCA. Currently has manufacturing in South Carolina.
Klein – founded by Gary Klein and started making bicycles in 1981. Used large diameter aluminum tubing to make nice road and mountain bike frames. Brand bought by Trek in 1995, Trek stopped making them in 2007.
Lemond – founded by Greg Lemond in 1986 after his first Tour De France win. Made a lot of great road bikes. In 1995 licensing moved to Trek who made the brand until 2008. Greg has brought back the brand and is currently selling e-bikes.
Lotus – founded in New York in 1980. Started by importing road bikes from Japan. Early bikes were made by Tsunoda. Full range of bikes with some very nice road bikes.
Mead Cycle – founded in 1889 by James L Mead in Chicago. Full range of bicycles and seem to be known for the Ranger. Believe they were bought by Schwinn in the 1940s.
Monark Silver King – established in 1934 in Chicago. Earliest aluminum framed bikes that I know of. Bought by Huffy in 1956.
Mongoose – started by Skip Hess of southern California in 1975. Became one of the biggest names in BMX. Brand is still active and owned by Pon Holdings but is a big box store brand.
Montgomery Ward – department store bicycles. Many I have seen have made in Austria on the head badge so likely made by Puch. The models I have seen don’t look very collectible. Also used the Hawthorne brand.
Mossberg – brand existed briefly in the 70s and is the same as the gun company. In 1972 they bought bicycle company HP Snyder and began making Mossberg branded bikes. They made some decent looking bikes, and they were the first to offer a carbon road bike. Company was ended in 1976.
Murray – founded at Cleveland, OH. Started making bikes in the 1930s. Known for being department store bikes, though some of the really old bikes look collectible. Company went bankrupt in 2005, and I don’t believe they are still offered.
Nishiki – Japanese bikes imported by West Coast Cycle. Early bikes were made by Kawamura. Full line of bikes including road bikes, mountain bikes, cruisers, BMX… Brand is currently owned by Dick’s Sporting Goods.
Rampar – this was a budget line of bikes sold by Raleigh USA. Taiwan comes up the most as the country of manufacture, though sometimes Japan is mentioned. Name comes from RAleigh AMerica PARts. Bikes seem to be mostly BMX with some cruisers and road bikes.
Redline – started in 1970 by Linn Kastan and Mike Konle making motorcycle frames in Chatsworth California. Started making bicycle frames and forks in 1974 and would go on to be one of the big names in BMX. Brand has been sold several times but is still active.
Roadmaster – founded at Cleveland, OH in 1936. Brand was bought by AMF in 1950. Brand is now owned by Pon Holdings and is still active in big box stores.
Roamer – the badge for these bikes’ states Roamer D.P. Harris NY. DP Harris marketed the bikes, but they were manufactured by HP Snyder. I believe the Roamer name was associated with the car company of the same name. Most the bikes I have seen seem to be from the 40s.
Rollfast – brand was started by DP Harris Hardware and Manufacturing in the 1890s. In 1895 they were manufactured by HP Snyder Manufacturing in NY. Company stopped manufacturing in 1976. Lots of nice collectible models.
Ross – founded at Williamsburg, NY in 1946. Manufactured in the USA until 1986 when they moved production to Taiwan. Made a broad range of bikes, mostly entry level to mid-level bikes. Filed for bankruptcy in 1988 and was brought back in 2017. Brand still alive.
Royce Union – brand started in 1904 in Holland. Not much info on the original company, the brand would later be owned by TSS Seedman’s a department store chain in NY. I believe all the bikes you will find in the US are from Seedman’s. Bikes were imported from all over the world, mostly entry level.
Sanwa – brand of bicycles owned by Wisconsin Cycle Supply starting in the late 70s through the 80s. Most bikes seem to be made in Japan. I believe these are all road bikes.
Savoy – another brand owned by TSS Seedman’s department store chain from NY. The ones I have seen were made in Japan. Entry level department store bikes.
Schwinn – founded at Chicago in 1895. Was the largest of the USA manufacturers for most of the 20th century. Lots of great collectable models like the Paramount, Sting-Ray, and Black Phantom. Brand still survives for big box type stores.
Sears/Free Spirit – this brand was used by Sears. I see a lot of these bikes for sale in this area, many are considered nice bikes and are made in Austria by Steyr. Later US made models not as nice. Not very collectible due to branding.
Shelby Cycle Company – found in Shelby, OH in 1925. AMF purchased Shelby in 1953.
Specialized – company was founded in 1974 by Mike Sinyard in California, but they didn’t start making bicycles until 1981. One of the largest bicycle companies in the world.
Sutton – brand was owned by TSS Seedman’s department stores. Bike were imported from Japan, mostly entry level road bikes. Active in the 70s and maybe into the 80s.
Takara – brand started in the early 1970s and imported bicycles from Japan. Original company went out of business in the late 1980s, but it appears Kent now owns the brand.
Tommaso – brand started in 1985 in Florida as the house brand for Ten Speed Drive Imports. Italian frames were imported and then painted in the USA. Brand still exists.
Torker – started in the Johnson family garage in Anaheim Hills, California in 1975. John Johnson started by making BMX frames. It wasn’t till 1977 that they used the Torker name and produced full BMX bikes. In 1984 the Torker Bicycle Company went bankrupt, and the brand was purchased by Seattle Bike Supply. Brand mostly disappeared by the early 2000s but has been brought back to life and is currently active.
Trek – founded by Dick Burke and Bevil Hogg in a barn in Wisconsin in 1976. Brand is still going strong and one of the largest in the world.
Univega – brand started in the early 1970s by Ben Lawee in southern California. Bikes were made by Miyata and imported from Japan. Brand is still going and making bikes in South Carolina.
Western Flyer – private label brand of bicycles started in 1931. Some of these were made by Huffy and Murray. Old ones seem to have decent collectible value.
Westfield – manufacturer out of Westfield, MA. Mostly known for making Columbia bicycles, but I have seen some Westfield branded bikes. Company was created from Pope after it filed for bankruptcy in 1915.
Westpoint – this brand was made for True Value Hardware. Some of these were made by Murray or Cotter. Generally low-end bikes, not very collectible due to branding.
Austria
Steyr-Daimler-Puch – Founded in Austria by Johann Puch in 1889. Went on to become a large manufacturing company based in Steyr, Austria. Merged with Austro Daimler-Werke in 1928 and formed Austro Daimler-Puchwerke. I see their name mostly associated with making the Sears made in Austria bicycles. Brand was bought by Bianchi in 1987 who sold it to Cycleurope in 1997. Brand looks to be available in Europe.
Belgium
Eddy Merckx – started in 1980 by the greatest cyclist of all time, Eddy Merckx. High end road bikes made in Meise, Belgium. Brand still active thought not sure if they are available in the US still.
Canada
CCM – best known bicycle manufacturer in Canada and was started in 1899. Made some nicer road bikes, but mostly made low end bikes.
Chimo – bikes were imported from Japan and Hong Kong by Interex in Vancouver. Brand seems to have started in the 70s and went through the 80s.
Skyline – these are entry level bikes distributed by Consumers Distributing in Canada, a catalog store.
England
Raleigh – founded in Nottingham, England in 1887. Brand still active.
BSA – began making bicycles in Birmingham, England in 1880. It appears a company in India is now making BSA bikes with the same logo.
Dawes – English company founded in 1926. Currently owned by Tandem group.
Dunelt – brand goes back to 1919 and started by making motorcycles. Company was bought by Tube Investments in 1950. Most bikes in the US were likely made by Raleigh as a lower brand. I believe the brand ended in the late 1960s.
Hercules – founded in Birmingham, England in 1910. Company was bought by Tube Investments in 1946. Tube investments would go on to buy Raleigh in 1960 and form TI Raleigh Industries. Hercules name was used as a brand for Raleigh and produced through at least the 1970s.
Holdsworth – founded in London, England by Sandy Holdsworth in 1927. Brand is owned now by Planet X.
Humber – Thomas Humber made his first bike in 1868 and went on to build his manufacturing business in Nottingham, England. Brand sold to Raleigh in 1932 and they used it into the 1960s.
Robin Hood – not sure when they were founded, but Raleigh purchased them in 1906 and used the brand at least into the 1970s.
Rocket – can’t find much about the history of this company, but the bikes I have seen were made by Tube Investments prior to them buying Raleigh. It may have been a company TI bought or a brand they created.
Rudge – in 1894 Rudge-Whitworth cycles was formed when Rudge Cycle and Whitworth Cycle merged. Company went defunct in 1946. Raleigh bought the name and used the brand for a number of years.
Triumph – founded in Coventry, England in 1894. It appears you can buy a Triumph branded e-bike now.
Viscount –hard to find info, but seems to be an aerospace company that made bikes in England during the 1970s. Many came with a fork which was prone to breaking…
France
Follis – founded in 1903 in France. Made some nice road bikes. Closed in 2007.
Gitane – founded by Marcel Brunelière in 1930. Brand was big in racing and has 9 Tour de France wins. Still producing bikes, but they are no longer available in the USA.
Jeunet – started in Dole, France in the early 1900s. Run by the Jeunet family, they made some very nice road bikes. Believe they went out of business in the late 70s.
Mercier – founded in France by Emile Mercier in 1919. Started by manufacturing bike parts, but moved to full bikes in 1930. Filed for bankruptcy in 1985. They are now a cycling clothing brand.
Motobecane – this French company was founded in 1923 and became a large manufacturer of bicycles. They went bankrupt in 1981. Currently Motobecane USA is using the brand name.
Peugeot cycles – founded in Beaulieu, a suburb of Mandeure, France in 1882. Brand is still active in certain countries.
Germany
Faehnrich Made By Falter – I believe these were imported into the USA during the 60s and 70s. All the bikes I have seen have been either folding or cruiser bikes. Seem like decent quality. Head badge is a butterfly.
Kalkhoff – founded by Heinrich Kalkhoff in 1919 in Cloppenburg, Germany. The bikes I have seen in the US seem to be entry level road bikes, cruisers, and folding bikes. Company was bought by Derby Cycles in 1989. Looks like they currently make some e-bikes.
Schauff – founded in 1932 by Hans Schauff. Full range of bikes, many appear to be good quality. Imported into the US during the 70s and 80s. Brand still exists, but not sure if they are available in the USA.
Hong Kong
Hong Kong Bicycles – I believe they were a manufacturer of bicycles in Hong Kong, but I haven’t found much information on them. I know they made Chimo bikes that were imported into Canada.
Hungary
Csepel – company made bikes in Hungary. I believe this is the manufacturer of the made in Hungary Kent bicycles. Company also formed a partnership with Schwinn in the late 80s and produced bikes for them.
Italy
Bianchi – founded in 1885, in Milan Italy. Oldest bicycle manufacturer in the world. Still making bikes.
Bottecchia – founded in Italy by Ottavio Bottecchia in 1924. Made some very nice-looking road bikes. Many seem to consider them the budget option of the Italian brands. Company is still in business.
Chiorda – company started in 1952 and was bought by Bianchi in 1966. In 1965 Felice Gimondi won the Tour De France riding Chiorda. Made a range of bicycles and mopeds.
Cinelli – founded in 1948 by Cino Cinelli. Based in Milan, Italy.
Colnago – founded in 1954 by Ernesto Colnago. Based in Italy. Still active.
De Rosa – founded in 1953 by Ugo De Rosa. Considered very high-quality bicycles, still in business.
Faggin – founded by former racer Marcello Faggin in 1945. Maker of high-quality road bikes, still in business in Padova, Italy.
Gios – founded in 1948 by Tolmino Gios. These bikes are almost always blue. They have made some nice road bikes, but not as popular as many other Italian brands. Brand still makes bikes.
Guertiotti – quality Italian maker of road bikes. Founded in 1964 in Milan by brothers Italo and Paolo Guerciotti. Still making bikes.
Legnano – company history goes back to 1902. Made high quality race bikes and even had Fausto Coppi riding for them at one time. Brand was bought by Bianchi in 1987.
Masi – founded by Faliero Masi in Italy during the 1950s. Great racing road bikes that were ridden by some of the greatest including Fausto Coppi and Eddy Merckx. In the US the name is currently owned by Haro bikes.
Olmo – founded in 1938 by Giuseppe Olmo in Italy. High quality road bikes. Brand is still active.
Pinarello – founded in 1953 by Giovanni Pinarello in Treviso, Italy. Company has a record 16 Tour de France wins and is still making bikes.
Rossin – founded in 1974 by Marco Rossin who had been the head frame builder at Colnago. Made very high-quality road bikes. Brand was sold in 1992 to Finross.
Scapin – founded by Umberto Scapin a former pro racer in 1957. They are known for making very high-quality road bikes, though less popular than the big Italian brands. Brand is still making bikes.
Japan
Bridgestone – these bicycles were imported from Japan by Bridgestone USA starting in the 1980s. Road bikes, hybrids, and mountain bikes were in the line. The same company as Bridgestone tires. Stopped USA sales in 1994.
Fuji – founded in 1899 in Japan as Nichibei Fuji. Started by importing US and English bikes. Began making their own bikes and were Japan’s most popular brand by the late 1920s.
Kabuki – brand manufactured by Bridgestone. While I mostly see low to mid-level road bikes from them, they did have some top-of-the-line models. These were imported into the US starting in the 70s. No longer an active brand.
Kawamura – founded by Koichi Kawamura in 1915. Mostly known for making Nishiki bicycles during the 70s and 80s. In 1995 the company changed to making wheelchairs.
Kuwahara – founded in Osaka, Japan by Sentaro Kuwahara in 1918. First started shipping bikes to the USA in 1959. They have made several different branded bikes including Apollo, Azuki, Puch, and Takara. Bikes with Kuwahara branding were imported starting in 1972. They are mostly known for BMX bikes and road bikes, but I have also seen some mountain bikes.
Maruishi – hard to find info on this brand, but it may go back as far as 1884 in Japan. Made their own bikes and also produced some Nashbar bikes.
Miyata – founded in 1890. Exported lots of bikes to the US during the 70s and 80s. They made bikes for several other brands including Nishiki, Fuji, Centurion, Lotus, Univega, and Bridgestone. Panasonic became a large shareholder in Miyata in 1959. Brand is no longer sold in the USA, but still exists.
Panasonic/National – known as National in Japan, Panasonic became their exporting name. Company was founded in 1918 and started exporting bikes to the USA in 1971. Made bicycles for Schwinn, including the Le Tour. Pulled out of the US market in 1989. They still make bikes for the Asian market.
Sekine – company made nice bikes in Japan with the slogan “World Finest Bicycle by Sekine”. I believe the company history goes all the way back to 1912. Bikes were good quality and in 1973 they started making them in Canada. The Canada plant closed in 1982, not sure how long Sekine in Japan lasted after that. I mostly see 70s and 80s bikes in the US.
Shogun – founded in 1977 in Japan by trading company Marui. Early bikes made in Japan and later Taiwan. Brand is currently owned by Kent.
Suteki – made in Japan bicycles that I believe were made by Panasonic. Brand was sold by Sears and may have been exclusive to them. All that I have seen are from the early to mid 80s. Seem to be decent bikes but haven’t seen any that are exceptional.
Zebrakenko – made in Japan, the company history may go back to the early 1900s, but they didn’t show up in the USA till the mid 70s. Full line of road bikes from entry to expert. Olympic Ace was top model. Very few people seem to have heard of this company, so not much of a following or collector value. Seem to have disappeared from US market in the 80s.
Mexico
Windsor – made in Mexico, the full history of this company is hard to find. They were owned by Acer-Mex and seem to be mostly from the 70s. Their Professional model was a good road bike made with Campagnolo components and Columbus tubing. I believe the brand is now owned by Bikes Direct.
Netherlands
Concorde – Dutch brand made really high-quality road bikes from 1982 to 1993. Founded by Manfred Krikke. Many believe their frames were Italian made.
Poland
Tyler – made by Romet in Poland and imported into the United States. Entry level bicycles including kids, cruisers, folding, and road bikes. I don’t believe these are very collectible due to being entry level.
Spain
Zeus – founded in Spain by Luis Arregui in 1926. Manufactured bicycles and components. Went out of business sometime in the early 1980s. Zeus name is owned by Orbea now.
Switzerland
Mondia – started making bicycles in 1933. Made some nice quality road bikes. Company went out of business in 2003.
Taiwan
Firenze – most sources say these were made in Taiwan and used as a giveaway item for companies in the States. Buy a tv, get a bike with it. Considered low quality and not collectible. The head badge used Italian flag colors likely to suggest made in Italy.
Giant – founded in 1972, they started by making bicycles for other brands. The first brand they made for the USA was Beacon. In 1977 they started making Schwinn bicycles and business grew fast. Starting in 1987 they began selling bikes under the Giant brand. Today they are the largest manufacturer and designer of bikes in the world.
This list is a work in progress. This will never be a complete list of all vintage bikes, but I hope to make it a complete list of those you may run into on the market. Only counting brands/companies that had strong production by the 80s.
Links
Vintage bicycle component companies
Vintage Steel frame tube manufacturers and types
List of the best vintage road bikes from the 70s and 80s
Frugal Average Bicyclist 
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