Riding High, Harley-Davidson Kick-Starts Museum in Milwaukee

MILWAUKEE -- In 1984, a banker held Harley-Davidson's fate in his hands. He could agree to refinance the $90 million loan that executives took out a few years before to buy back the beloved motorcycle company from American Machine and Foundry Co., or make it declare bankruptcy.

The banker allowed the company to refinance -- at the last minute -- preserving Harley's folklore for decades to come.

Why? No one knows for sure, but company officials say he owned a Harley.

That story and many others about the company are featured at Milwaukee's new Harley-Davidson Museum, which opened over the weekend.

"In many ways Harley-Davidson's story mirrors the story of America," said company spokeswoman Rebecca Bortner. "The company is 105 years old, has weathered recessions, depressions, wars, and ups and downs and highs and lows. . . . I think that's one reason people have a lot of pride in Harley-Davidson."

The largest U.S. motorcycle maker is now a Fortune 500 company with nearly $6 billion annual revenue and a connection to its owners that is unrivaled in any industry. About half the motorcycles sold in the United States are Harleys, known for their sleek curves and roar. The company boasts more than 1 million members in its Harley Owners Group, or HOG.

The museum's 20-acre site with three buildings of black brick, galvanized steel and glass will likely become a temple for Harley owners. It features about 200 bikes and other pieces of history and culture, and opens in time for the company's 105th anniversary celebration Aug. 28-31. Museum Director Stacey Schiesl expects the museum, which is near downtown Milwaukee, to attract 350,000 people a year from around the world.

Among the motorcycles is the oldest Harley: serial number 1. It's a pedal bike with a small engine, built by William S. Harley and Arthur Davidson inside a 10-by-15-foot wooden shed that had the words "Harley-Davidson Motor Company" scrawled on the door.

There are also the three-wheeled Servi-Cars -- created during the Great Depression for commercial use to deliver ice, fish and milk -- and some of the almost 90,000 WLA Harley motorcycles created for use during World War II. The military contract was a big reason the company survived the war and why many people learned to ride, Schiesl said.

One exhibit sure to be popular is Elvis Presley's red and white 1956 Model KH, along with its January 1956 paperwork, which notes he bought it from a Memphis dealer, his payments were $50.15 a month and his occupation was a "vocalist-self-employed."

His reason for buying: "pleasure and business." Elvis bought it just a few months before his breakthrough single "Heartbreak Hotel" hit the top of the charts.