REGISTER” was printed across the top and the plates differed in size to meet the necessary amount of characters. Approximately 500 motorcycles were in use in the state at the time of the first required plate, which were the same for both automobiles and motorcycles. The only difference was that motorcycle plates’ identification began with the letter Z. Most states required visible license plates by 1914.
88 Crystal Haydel was not just an employee at Harley-Davidson, she was a rider, too! In fact, she’s recognized as the first woman in Wisconsin to register a motorcycle for road use, which she did in 1911.
89 Part of the Harley-Davidson mystique surrounding the company throughout its 100-plus years involves the actual year of its first production and the year of the first commercial sale. Even though 1903 is the generally accepted first year of production, and the one reported by The Motor Company itself, varying evidence has come to light through the years that places the first motorcycle as early as 1901 and as late as 1905. To make matters even more confusing, Harley-Davidson never acknowledged its first year until the 1954 model line and, by then, none of the founders were still alive to discuss or confirm the company’s timeline. One of the most interesting pieces of evidence is an advertisement from the factory in 1910 that says “eight years ago we placed on the market the first model of the Harley-Davidson motorcycle.” This suggests that a motorcycle was built and sold in 1902, although it could also mean 1903.
90 Evidence also exists that puts Harley-Davidson’s first real motorcycle and sale at a later date; that’s C. H. Lang’s 1914 testimony as part of a patent infringement lawsuit. As you know, the accepted history is that C. H. Lang sold his first Harley-Davidson in 1903. However, in his testimony he says that he became familiar with the H-D motorcycle in the autumn of 1904 and became an official dealer in 1905. Most of the conspiracies regarding the first year of manufacture can be attributed to misspeak, or confusing and generalizing language that rounded up years rather than giving an exact time. As unlikely as any of the alternative start years might be, it’s still a fun and interesting debate.
91 Harley-Davidson produced its first advertisement in the January 1905 issue of Cycle and Automobile Trade Journal. That ad touted only the part of the bike that really makes a Harley-Davidson a Harley-Davidson: the engine. Although many motorcycles were being produced at the time, it was a far greater task to build an entire motorcycle (with the engine) than it was to build just an engine. Therefore, marketing the engine as a stand-alone product that included mounting equipment for a bicycle made good business sense, and it was a great start to promoting the company’s name. The ad showed a picture of the single-cylinder engine and advertised 3-1/4 bhp (brake horsepower). It also listed the company’s address at 315 37th Street in Milwaukee, the famous backyard shed.
92 The Enthusiast, first published in 1916, is often mistaken as The Motor Company’s first print publication. However, in 1912, the company began publishing Harley-Davidson Dealer, which was sent out to dealerships. Although the content was focused more on the business aspect of the company, the magazine contained good maintenance tips and H-D model information that just about any owner would find valuable. It’s likely that enough owners started asking for it, which led to the creation of The Enthusiast.
93 In the early years of motorcycling, hundreds of marques sprang up and then quickly disappeared. Many of them, including Milwaukee-based Merkel (later known as Flying Merkel), beat Harley-Davidson to its frame design and the use of a V-twin engine. However, Flying Merkel’s last motorcycle was built in 1915, after the company relocated to Ohio. During Harley-Davidson’s first decade, more than 75 American motorcycle companies went out of business; some only managed to build a handful of bikes.
94 In the earliest days of his motorcycle company, Bill Harley attended the University of Wisconsin in Madison and studied engineering; his focus was internal combustion engines. Because he was not from a family of means, he waited tables at a fraternity house to pay for tuition. In later life, he became one of the wealthiest men in Wisconsin.
95 In 1915, Carl Peterson and his wife (whose name is unknown) took their Harley-Davidson to Europe to enjoy a tour of the continent, beginning in Scandinavia. Unfortunately, World War I had erupted in Europe the year before. As they were about to head to Germany from Sweden, they were advised to return home to the United States. Carl said that the Swedish riders were extremely impressed with the power of his motorcycle and, although the trip didn’t end as he would have liked, the Harley-Davidson “performed perfectly.”
96 In 1901, Bill Harley and Arthur Davidson attended a performance by French stage performer and singer Anna Held at Milwaukee’s Bijou Theater. As part of her performance, Held rode a shiny French motor-powered bicycle across the stage. The 20-year-olds were likely the only men in the audience who paid more attention to the vehicle than the performer. This is the earliest recorded instance of Harley and Davidson actually seeing a motorcycle, although it’s believed that they had seen at least one previous demonstration in their home city.
97 Legend has it that when Arthur and Bill built a carburetor for their first experimental engine, they crafted the body from a tomato soup can. According to historian Herbert Wagner, it’s more likely that the carburetor simply resembled a tomato can and was therefore given that nickname. Perhaps not surprisingly, they had trouble getting the fuel to flow properly, so they took it to a close friend, Ole Evinrude. At the time, Ole was a friend who had to row his boat out to his favorite fishing spot, just like everybody else. It was on one of these rows that Arthur and Ole thought up the idea for a small engine to power a rowboat. The idea was similar to Arthur and Bill and their need for a motorized bicycle.
98 The March 31, 1914, edition of the Milwaukee Journal featured an article titled “Harley-Davidson Motor Co.: Its Marvelous Growth and Development, Hum Of Wheels Spins Romance – True Tale Reads Like Fiction.” This is one of the earliest pieces of writing that examines the history of Harley-Davidson and uses direct quotes from the founders; these quotes have been used repeatedly in articles since then. Much of the company’s early history, correct or not, has been based on his writing.
99 A letter that Steven J. Sparough wrote, dated April 15, 1912, has become one of the most instrumental tools for historians to piece together The Motor Company’s early history. In his letter, Sparough says that his Harley-Davidson, which had 51,000 miles on it when he bought it, was the first Harley-Davidson motorcycle ever built. He says it was built in 1903 and sold in 1904 to Henry Meyer. The bike was then transferred through several Chicago area owners: Geo. W. Lyon, Dr. Webster, and Louis Fluke. Sparough bought the machine in 1907 after the previous owners managed all those miles, which makes his 1903 year of manufacture seem very likely.
This is the only known photograph of a pre-1905 Harley-Davidson and it is believed to be the very first motorcycle that the company built. That’s Steven J. Sparough standing behind it, the man whose surviving 1912 letter was pivotal in tracing The Motor Company’s early history. (Photo Courtesy Harley-Davidson)
100 On April 30, 1905, Arthur Davidson set off from Milwaukee to Cambridge, Wisconsin, to deliver a motorcycle to his friend, postal carrier Peter Olson. The 50-mile trip took Arthur 5-1/2 hours according to the Cambridge News, and officially made Olson one of the earliest (possibly the second) owners of a Harley-Davidson motorcycle.
101 After performing well at the Milwaukee Motordrome in 1914, Harley-Davidson racing manager Bill Ottaway invited Leslie “Red” Parkhurst to become the first member of The Motor Company’s race team. Parkhurst piloted the new racebike to victory in most of the initial regional races in which he competed; then they decided to take on a big national race. Parkhurst and five other racers went to Dodge City, Kansas, to
