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National was one of dozens of lower prestige brands that CCM used for marketing budget priced models. Originally, it was the the brand of the National Cycle and Automobile Co. Ltd.

In the final years of the 19th century, over aggressive expansion in the bicycle industry had led to a glut of manufacturers and rapidly falling prices. In an attempt to stabilize the market and drive out smaller companies, several USA manufacturers, under the guidance of Albert Pope, merged in May 1899 to form the American Bicycle Company (ABC). They also looked to expand into the Canadian marketplace with a similar strategy and in late 1899 merged the Canadian operations of several ABC members into the National Cycle & Automobile Co., headquartered in Hamilton, Ontario.

The strategy of ABC had not been lost on Canadian manufacturers, five of whom banded together in September 1899 to form the Canadian Cycle & Motor Co. Ltd. (CCM). With the demise of one of the two conglomerates surely imminent in a fiercely competitive market, CCM decided that the most effective method to ensure survival was to buy out National. To guarantee the sale and do it in an expeditious manner, CCM  decided to make a an offer that would ensure a quick and substantial profit for National's shareholders. Consequently, in the summer of 1900, CCM acquired National for $280,000, a price well above market value. CCM would operate National into 1902 at which time their own financial difficulties resulted in the disposal of National assets, though CCM retained  Canadian rights to the brands and patents. The most prestgious ABC/National brand acquired by CCM was Columbia, though it also obtained numerous lesser brands, such as National.