-
William S. Harley Born
Original co-founder of Harley Davidson is born. -
First Production of Motorcycles in America
Charles H. Metz was in charge and responsible for this. Metz is still a legend to this day. -
Launch of Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Company
Launched by William S. Harley, & Arthur and Walter Davidson. -
W.S. Harley Graduated from College
He graduated from University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in mechanical engineering. -
WWI Begins
This caused a huge spike in the use of motorcycles, specifically Harley-Davidson by the military. This made the innovative bikes war time vehicles. -
First Woman Biker
Sally Robinson was the first ever woman to officially receive a motorcycle license. -
First Japanese Motorcycles
Suzuki was the first ever Japanese producer of motorcycles. This led to greater competition as well as quality within the growing industry. -
Company Competition Grows
Honda and Yamaha both join in the race to make the best and most reliable motorcycle and compete with bigger brands like Harley-Davidson. -
Custom Motorcycles Popularize
With war times over and the American urban economy booming, many people took up the hobby of creating and customizing their own bikes. -
"Superbike" Invented
Honda continued to innovate and created the first four-cylinder motorcycle, also known as the first "superbike". -
Iconic Brand Comeback
As the huge population of babyboomers looked for a unique experience, brands such as Triumph, Ducati, and BMW came back on the market and competed with more common household products. -
1st Electric Motorbike
"The Lectra" became the first electric motorbike invented and produced for the public. -
The "Indian" bike returns
Indian Motorcycles were one of the first fully American motorcycle brands, and after decades off the market, Polaris brings the American icon back. -
Harley Goes Electric
After over a century in business, Harley-Davidson brings to market their first ever electric bike called the "LiveWire" -
Harley-Davidson Splits the Company
After a successful electric bike launch with the LiveWire, Harley-Davidson decides to split the company and make LiveWire its own stand alone company. This allowed Harley to stay true to its gas roots while not losing the innovative gene which its' carried for over a century.