Baby on the go

When you take a walk in the park or downtown you can see a whole range of colorful baby carriages, everything from light organic folding strollers to chunky double buggies. Subways and public buildings are increasingly open to parents with baby transporters. But historically, taking the baby with you on a trip outside the home is a fairly recent development.

In the days before the industrial revolution transporting trolleys were individually made by hand. They were either drawn like a handcart or a sledge, or pushed like a wheelbarrow. Since this was rather impractical, babies and toddlers have rarely been transported outside the house up to the 19th century. The baby slept in a cot or a basket inside the house. In the 19th century in England, the bassinet originated, a basket on wheels, which further developed into the pram and buggy. 

First baby prams 200 years ago

As early as the beginning of the 19th century a tailor in Ulm built so-called "child-chaises". Strollers became really fashionable in the middle of the 19th century in England when taking a daily walk with the baby became popular. The first small factory was built at that time in London and produced bassinets and 3-wheeled buggies. It was very high and the child could only sit in it. Around 1880, 4-wheeled baby carriage models were brought on the market in which the baby could also lie down. Until the early 19th century this perambulator was mainly imported from England. 1889 the first stroller with a reversible seat was patented by an English inventor.

European demand for prams could no longer be covered through handicraft production in the second half of the 19th century and industrial production in Europe started. 

Frames are getting lighter

Up to circa 1920, most families in German-speaking countries had access to this new invention and the frames were now made of steel. In the 1970s, lighter strollers with an aluminum frame became popular. A particularly practical invention was the removable seat with a handle, which can be used as a carrycot.

Latest development: the Sustainable Stroller

While the range of products in the mid-20th century was still small, a large variety of shapes and colors has since been developed. Nowadays models with eco-friendly chassis and seats made of recycled material start to become available. At Zizzz you can now order Greentom Upp designer buggies. In these revolutionary ecological strollers, your baby can sleep undisturbed when you’re on the go, protected by the detachable hood. A reversible seat and a removable carrycot are also part of the design. The Greentom buggies are perfect for combination with a Zizzz baby sleeping bag.