Harley-Davidson: A history as winding as old American roads

Did you know that…

• The first Harley-Davidson motorcycles traveled at a speed of just 40 mph
• Throughout the 20th century, the company’s founders struggled with numerous losses and crises
• Technical improvements were made every few years, which sustained the positive perception of motorcycles

Harley-Davidson is a brand that needs no introduction to anyone. Its establishment and development dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. The company’s activity can be compared to the uneven American roads of the last century – once riugh terrain, once smooth asphalt. Because over the 100-year history, the legendary motorcycles went through smaller or larger crises, but at the end – they always successfully reached their destination.

From a tomato paste can to a motorcycle legend

The company’s origins date back to 1903. Two years earlier 20-year-old William S. Harley drew up plans for his first small engine. It had a cubic capacity of 7.07 cubic inches and was designed for bicycles with pedals. This invention, however, did not satisfy the young designer’s ambitions, and soon after this discovery, together with his childhood friend Arthur Davidson, he worked on a much faster machine with greater capabilities – this was, of course, a motorcycle.

The vehicle, which was built in less than two years in a Milwaukee machine shop, became a prelude to something even more grandiose. Manufacturing enthusiasm was also shared by Arthur’s brother, Walter. From a small manufactory without a name, a company was soon born: Harley-Davidson® Motor Company. Just three years later, in 1906, Harley and the Davidson brothers built their first factory on Chestnut Street, which is still located there today.

It was in this one-story wooden structure of small size that the first 50 motorcycles were produced. The first motorcycles leaving its gates had a single-cylinder, 4-stroke engine with a cubic capacity of almost 400 ccm and a power output of about 3 hp.

However, these vehicles in no way resembled modern unicycles with an engine, but rather bicycles with a fuel tank suspended from the frame. They reached a “dizzying” speed of 40 kilometers per hour. Who would have thought that more than 100 years later, annual sales of individual models – obviously completely different, modern ones – would be 10 times higher than the original production. Even more interesting is the fact that, according to some sources, the prototype carburetor for the first Harley was created from a tomato paste can that Mrs. Davidson – the mother of the young mechanics – threw in the trash.

A year after this initial success, in 1907, William S. Harley graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a degree in mechanical engineering. And William A. Davidson quit his job as a tool foreman for the Milwaukee Road Railroad and officially joined the Harley-Davidson® Motor Company. Front-wheel springs were also introduced, and motorcycle production increased to 150 units per year. The adventure had begun.

A motorcycle worthy of its time (and road conditions)

The three men, for whom motoring became a passion and a way of life, believed in the quality and reliability of their products. From the beginning, they focused on the durability and long life of their machines. According to sources in 1913, a decade after the first “Harley” was produced, the prototype model had already covered 100,000 miles and was still running flawlessly. Even the bearings remained in great condition, which was a huge achievement.

And it should be remembered that the average road in the United States at the opening of the last century was, to put it mildly, poor for riding. Unpaved terrain, floating dust, unevenness, a tendency to form muddy puddles… All of this gave a hard time to tireless motorcyclists, sometimes traveling many miles at different times of the year. But Harley-Davidson® Motor Company perfectly hit its target group, providing a product for the times (and conditions on the road).

The early successes were – nomen omen – the driving force for the further development of the company and the motorcycles it produced, as the following calendar perfectly illustrates.

• 1907 – engine cubic capacity increased to 574 ccm (power increase to 4 hp)
• 1909 – first forked engine (“Big Twin” with a capacity of 810 ccm)
• 1911 – first Harley with top-down cam
• 1912 – use of a gearbox and improvement of the driver’s saddle suspension
• 1915 – three-speed gearbox and introduction of kick starter
• 1929 – large motorcycle with lower-valve engine (Flathead)
• 1932 – production of Servi-Car three-wheeler
• 1936 – Knucklehead engine
• 1948 – Panhead engine
• 1949 – first use of telescopic fork
• 1958 – introduction of rear suspension
• 1965 – electric starters
• 1966 – Shovelhead engine
• 1972 – introduction of disc brakes
• 1984 – Evolution engine
• 1995 – first versions of models with ESPFI fuel injection
• 1999 – first engine of the Twin Cam 88 range
• 2001 – Revolution engine
• 2017- Milwaukee-Eight engine

As you can see, practically every few years a “novelty” was released that represented a revolution to the brand’s previous developments. This gigantic development began as early as the beginning of the second decade of the 20th century, when Harley-Davidson® Motor Company was considered the world’s largest motorcycle factory. A total of 1,800 people worked at the production facilities, which – for the time – was a huge number. The result of their work was the production of 22,685 motorcycles in 1919 alone.

The company’s management, as it grew, became increasingly aware that constant modernization was the key to success in the automotive market. And this entailed increasing challenges – in the face of growing competition, but also because of the difficult geopolitical situation in the twentieth century.

Harley-Davidson on the turnaround

The early 1930s were a blow to many companies. Among them for the Harley-Davidson® Motor Company, which was just releasing the VL model. Between 1929 and 1933, production dropped very dramatically. By the end of that period, the company could only sell 10% of what it was able to produce. And this negligible percentage didn’t even apply to individual customers, only to the police and military.

The following decades were a sequence of constant ups and downs, with the latter prevailing. The result was that in 1969 there was a buyout of the Harley-Davidson company by AMF for $21 million. These were also tragic years for the brand’s founders. In 1943, Walter C. Davidson died. A year later, chief designer William S. Harley passed away of a heart attack. Tragic death in a car accident was then suffered by Arthur Davidson – this was in 1950. The presidency, however, remained in the family – it was taken over in 1942 by
William Herbert Davidson, son of William A. Davidson.

In the 1980s, further losses were recorded. In 1982, they amounted to as much as $32 million5, yet the Japanese automotive market was breathing down Harley-Davidson’s neck. From its Asian competitors – to save the situation – it then took over the management method and quality control system, which translated into a large reduction in production costs. Another remedy to recover from the crisis was a new marketing strategy. Advertisements and press releases emphasized the quality of the brand’s new motorcycles – one that is hard to pass up.

A milestone, however, was to ask the US government to impose draconian import duties on heavy motorcycles for five years. It paid off, and the new, rebuilt image was even appreciated by then-ruling President Ronald Reagan, who personally came to visit the factory of the American manufacturer.

Motorcycles in the public service

The uniqueness of the Milwaukee company was, among other things, that they provided machines that were, on the one hand, extravagant being a “toy for the rich” and, on the other hand, useful for military, police and other purposes. It was the orders of the public and services that saved the company from almost inevitable collapse.

In 1919, more than 3,000 U.S. police departments were using motorcycles with the HD logo. And five years earlier, the U.S. Postal Service, the state-owned postal company, “worked” with 4,800 such 2-wheelers. In contrast, 1987 saw the acquisition of the rights to produce single-cylinder military motorcycles.
These were understandably characterized by khaki coloration, shallow fenders, and a wet air filter.

In addition, they were devoid of any “decoration”, in the form of chrome parts and even logos. To this day, the products of the famous motorcycle brand are used in municipal, state and federal services.

Harley-Davidson – a synonym for lifestyle in a leather jacket

Nowadays Harley-Davidson is not only a testimony to the history of motorcycling, but also a pop culture icon, a status symbol, a passion, synonymous with a certain lifestyle, filled with floating dust on the road, associated with a black leather jacket, freedom and adventure. “Harley rider” is a person who represents a certain subculture, which, together with other enthusiasts of machines with the HD stamp, forms a very distinctive micro-community.

It is all of this – the status, the symbol, the mark, the history – that is now also the value of the brand as it stands today. It’s no wonder that, despite recent losses in the market, Harley-Davidson, Inc. is still on the podium in the motorcycle market.