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Dale Walksler from Wheels Through Time Museum is The Bob Vila of Early American Motorcycles. In this video he makes final adjustments to a 1915 3-speed Harley-Davidson motorcycle. He then dons vintage riding apparel and takes the Harley time machine for a spin. “It’s really kind of interesting,” Dale says. “In 1915, Harley-Davidson made several different models and always had the trend to carry over previous-year items with their new technology.”  Dale briefly discusses the early technology introduced by Harley-Davidson that revolutionized the motorcycle industry.

There’s some really good literature available about the 1915 Harley-Davidson at Hog Heaven: Celebrating 110 Years of the Harley Davidson (Library of Congress Special Presentation). Here is a picture of a beautifully restored 1915 Harley…oh, and here, here and here.

For an illustrated, down-home ride report from someone who visited the Wheels Through Time Museum, you have got to read Monk’s priceless post. Family, I believe a road trip to Maggie Valley, North Carolina is in order.

My dad and grandmother going for a rip on his 1972 Honda 750.

Saturday, October 10, 2009, could not have been a more perfect day to witness the unveiling of the new Museum of Springfield History in Springfield, Massachusetts. At the heart of this first-class museum are three incredible galleries: the Indian Motocycle collection, with over 30 of the best selections of Indian motorcycles in the world; a premier gun collection, with many of the finest examples of Smith & Wesson firearms ever produced; and some of the best Springfield automobiles ever assembled, including an exact replica of the very first automobile in America, the Duryea, invented in downtown Springfield in 1893. Each gallery shows what a profound impact the Springfield area had on our nation, and the world, as an industrial hub during the 19th and 20th centuries.