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GreatGarages The Harley-Davidson Museum: Hogs Gone Wild Written by David M. Brown

Jump on the nearest “hog” and visit The Harley-Davidson “The originators of the company had the foresight to Harley-Davidson founders: Arthur Davidson, Walter Davidson, William Harley, and William Davidson Museum in , Wisconsin. keep things, so we have one motorcycle for every year the Owned by the 109-year-old company,the 130,000 square- company’s been in business,” says Bill Davidson, vice presi- foot Museum complex opened to the public in July 2008 at dent of the museum and the great-grandson of co-founder 400 W. Canal St., just a mile from the spectacular Santiago William Davidson. “We have many of the items stored in Calatrava-designed Milwaukee Art Museum. The founding humidity-controlled rooms.” year for the company, 1903, is emblazoned on the building. As the bikes celebrate American cultural history, the Opened the same year the company celebrated its 105th museum architecture is inspired by Milwaukee’s industrial anniversary, the museum is also just two miles from the orig- heritage, including a skeleton of 1,200-plus tons of galvanized inal headquarters of Harley-Davidson, founded by William S. steel beams. Surrounded on three sides by the Menomonee Harley and brothers Arthur, Walter and William A. Davidson. River, the campus includes green spaces and a landscaped That building is on the National Historic Register. river walk. Also available is the Motor Bar & Restaurant, Cafe More than 500 vehicles and thousands of artifacts com- Racer and The Shop retail store. prise the museum’s 109-year old collection. One piece of Of the many exhibits, one, Custom Culture, shows how paperwork, now on tour, shows that purchased Harley-Davidson motorcycles have impacted American pop a Harley-Davidson just days before he became famous with culture and Hollywood, especially through the rebel biker “Heartbreak Hotel.” Some of the motorcycles are on display, image. Recent special exhibits include True Evel: The Amazing and the rest, many in original condition, are carefully stored. Story of Evel Knievel (summer 2010); Collection X: Weird, 1936 EL, OHV, V-Twin Bill Davidson

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King Kong is a 13-foot long, 1,000-pound motorcycle

The Engine Wall featuring 30 Harley-Davidson engines

The oldest known Harley-Davidson motorcycle in existence, Serial Number One

1942 WWII, Side-Valve, V-Twin Board track racing was the height of popularity in the early 1900s

Wild Wonders of the Harley-Davidson Museum (summer grandparents’ back yard where the motorcycle was built. The were WLA models. evening or weekend classes taught by instructors from Harley- 2011); and most recently, Worn to be Wild: The Black Leather company actually had that shed until 1969, when, by acci- “We actually made a prototype shaft drive design for the Davidson University; Harley-Davidson’s service training for Jacket in summer 2012, now at the EMP Museum in Seattle. dent, a contractor destroyed it doing some restoration work.” government with a sidecar unit, but it just didn’t meet the dealership technicians; Steel Toe Tours, a visit to the Harley- Bill kindly two-wheeled us in to see the museum and • Racing Motorcycles on the Board Track — “The track needs for the project. The museum has a Harley-Davidson and Davidson Museum and the Pilgrim Road Powertrain discuss some of the motorcycles: is a replica of what we were doing in the 1920s. Many of these the Military exhibit, which showcases heroic veterans’ stories Operations manufacturing facility; and Back Road Tours, • Harley-Davidson Serial Number One — “This is the tracks were built with two-by-fours and up to two miles in and Harley-Davidson’s patriotic efforts.” which offer in-depth explanations of selected museum exhibits oldest known Harley-Davidson motorcycle in the world. We length with 45-degree banking, which is what we have repli- • Exploded Knucklehead Motorcycle — “It’s in the and provide a glimpse into the private areas of the Harley- restored it about 15 years ago after much discussion. But, it cated. Safety concerns ended these in the ‘20s. Few of these Engine Room in the museum. We created the so-called knuck- Davidson Archives. had come to a point in time where we were concerned about racing bikes were made, and we have mounted five on the lehead — it’s because of the shape of the overhead-valve con- “We cater to all walks of life at the museum,” Bill says. deterioration, so we very carefully completely restored it. In track as it might have appeared, say, in the Midwest at the figuration — to improve performance. It ran in production “Children love it, spouses love it, families love it. It’s a great doing so, we learned a lot. It’s a single cylinder putting out time. These bikes were amazing: twin cylinders, no brakes, from 1936 to 1947. We have created an exploded bike, so place to come and visit and enjoy the motorcycles and history. three horsepower. We actually found a ‘number one’ stamped direct drive, 100 miles an hour and total-loss oil systems.” that visitors can see all of the components, including engine After all, this isn’t just a piece of Harley-Davidson history; it’s inside the engine case. • WLA Harley-Davidson Motorcycle — “This one was chassis and front end. American history, too.” “The founders worked hard to design a purpose-built created for the U.S. Army during World War II and is in the • King Kong and the Rhinestone Harley — “These motor- For more information on the museum’s galleries, exhibits, chassis because so many of the early motorcycles were essen- Military Gallery. This was pulled directly from the assembly cycles are located in the Custom Culture Gallery, and they special events, tickets, and more, visit www.h-dmuseum.com tially bikes with motors; these just didn’t hold up to the power. line, as is the case with many of the motorcycles in the muse- show how the Harley-Davidson culture means customization: or call 414.287.2789. This first motorcycle offered buyers durability and reliability. um’s collection. The company produced motorcycles for both No two Harleys are synonymous; no two Harleys are alike.” If you or someone you know has a GreatGarage and would We’ve placed it in a beautiful display case with lights in the World War I and II, mostly for Europe: 90,000 motorcycles The museum also offers a variety of special opportunities like it to be considered for an upcoming issue, e-mail us at wooden floor, which represents the shed in my great-great- were produced for WWII, and 60,000 of these motorcycles such as the Harley-Davidson Museum® Shop Class, a series of [email protected].

October 2012 68 www.highline-autos.com October 2012 69 www.highline-autos.com