Just 16 years after Daimler’s wooden frame “bone crusher” of 1885, recognized as the first motorcycle, the Indian Motocycle Company of Springfield, Massachusetts was born. In the spring of 1901, Oscar Hedstrom, astonished his up till then silent business partner and bicycle manufacturer, George M. Hendee, with a demonstration of the startling abilities of his newly created motorcycle on the steepest hill in Springfield. The amazed crowd could see the machine accelerate up and maneuver around the rough surfaced hill from slow starts. This first machine weighed 98lbs and developed 1¾ horsepower. Three Indians were built in 1901, with production really starting in 1902 with an output of 143 machines. Harley Davidson came into being a year later in 1903.

With Hendee’s history as a champion bicycle racer it was natural that in 1902 they immediately turn to racing to promote their already successful venture. The victories against the imported machines of the day were immediate and would carry on to see Indian dominate motorcycle racing in USA and overseas well into 1940s. The only other motorcycle manufacturer of last century to achieve such market dominance both on the racetrack and as a world leader in sales is Honda. (Soichiro Honda rode a 101 Scout for a number of years.)

By 1904, with wins in virtually every event entered the demand for Indians soared with 546 lucky buyers gaining ownership from a rapidly growing waiting list. Indian introduced its first production V-Twin in 1906 (3½ horsepower). By 1908 motorcycle racing in America had become a growing sport with amateur racing encompassing hill climbs, endurance runs and cross country feats and professional racing centered around the dare-devil exploits of the ‘board’ race tracks which were enlarged wooden velodromes. Indian production had reached 3,257 machines compared to Harley with 450, who were not yet fielding factory racers. Already racing speeds had reached a blistering 84 mph.

Finally in 1909 the “bicycle frame” era ended with the introduction of the full loop frame that incorporated the fuel tank in the now conventional position in front of the rider on the horizontal stay. Long distance trials of endurance and reliability also became popular at this time. Volney Davis riding an Indian V-twin won accolades for riding from San Francisco to New York and return (10,400 miles on atrocious dirt tracks) without any major mechanical problems. By now Indian had also secured contracts to supply all of the major Police departments, many of whom would remain loyal Indian riders until its demise. One of the reasons given for the left handed throttle common to all Indians was that it allowed the patrolman to use his right hand for his firearm.

At its tenth anniversary Indian could rightly claim the crown as the world’s premier manufacturer of motorcycles. Indian offered 8 models and had 4-valve single and 8-valve twin racing bikes in development. Indian also ventured across to the Isle of Man TT in 1911 and took a clean sweep of the first three places. Less than half the entrants finished. The factory produced 19,585 machines for its 1,200 dealers nationwide at a profit of $502,000.

1913 was a pivotal year for motorcycling. Indian was approaching its Golden Age. Oscar Hedstrom had again developed an innovative piece of engineering, the cradle spring frame. Indian became the first major American manufacturer to offer front and rear wheel suspension. Hedstrom, the visionary, had seen that by reducing fatigue and increasing comfort the motorcycle would gain greatly in appeal, opening the way for greater acceptance as the replacement for bicycles. Hendee had also been successful in managing the development of the Hendee Special, which was the first motorcycle with electric start and a fully modern electrical system. Unfortunately battery technology was unable to withstand the punishment of the rough roads and like so many other innovations that were before their time this model was only offered for part of one year. Total Indian production reached 32,500 machines.

During this decade the founders had funded the phenomenal growth by selling shares to local industrialists. These shareholders had begun to push for greater profits and control of the business. This and the sudden death of Jacob DeRosier, one of the greatest riders of his time, convinced Oscar Hedstrom to resign. With the shareholders now in control and some less than ethical manipulation of the share prices on their behalf, George Hendee also resigned in 1915.

Harley had by now developed a formidable racing team, the Harley Wrecking Crew, and this began the monumental track struggles that would enthrall enthusiasts over the next 4 decades and beyond led by Cannonball Baker and later by Ed Kretz for Indian. Even when in his forties, this hard man of the sport could out muscle far younger competitors and was still winning on Indians. Henry Ford also had an enormous effect on all motorcycle manufacturers at this time. With his invention of the assembly line he could for the first time sell a car cheaper than a motorcycle as is generally still the case today. This unfortunately destroyed Hedstrom’s vision for motorcycling and ensured the continued perception of motorcycling as an enthusiast’s means of transport and as a sport. In 1916, the Powerplus, with a new 1,000cc v-twin side valve engine was introduced, a number of which made their way to New Zealand. During the First World War 20,000 of these would be produced for overseas service. Harley Davidson survived the war in a better financial position than Indian and was for the first time the worlds largest motorcycle manufacturer.

Indian was in poor financial shape, but excellent bikes continued to roll off the production lines; the Scout in 1920, the Chief (1000cc) in 1921, the Big Chief (1,200cc) in 1923 and the 101 Scout (600cc and then 750cc) in 1928. The 101 would hold the reputation as the best handling racing Indian and when stroked using Chief flywheels was a potent competitor. In April 1923 the 250,000th Indian rolled off the line. Strong sales continued and the company’s financial position gradually improved. In 1927 Indian purchased the Ace Motor Company, the last of the second tier manufacturers, producers of an inline four cylinder motorcycle previously designed by W.G. Henderson. These were renamed the Indian Ace, and later, after a redesigned engine the Indian Four. These giants of the motorcycle world developed a large following, especially with law enforcement agencies as the Indian refinements were added to the original bike.

During 1928 Indian began what was to be a repeated failure over the years by trying to diversify into other products. The first was an aftermarket car shock absorber that bombed, followed at various times by outboard motors and other items. At Indian they just knew how to make great motorcycles.

Despite continued mismanagement Indian again survived great hardship in the form of the Great Depression. E. Paul Du Pont became President of Indian in 1929 and this signaled the beginning of a return to stable management and rising profits. Indian and Harley riders continued the heated battle for racetrack supremacy, and in 1934 a revolutionary new model was announced, the Sport Scout. In 1940 Indian stunned the world with its new spring frame and heavily skirted or valenced fenders. These new improvements again firmly established Indian as a leader in styling, comfort and performance. Springfield enjoyed a welcome period of financial health and production was just over 10,000 machines.

Then came a fateful day in December 1941 when Japan attacked Pearl Harbor. Virtually all Indian production until 1946 would now be focused on the military effort. In 1942-3 Indian produced 33,000 motorcycles to Harleys 55,000. During this period Indian developed 3 models specifically for the war effort. The 640b was a modified 750cc Sport Scout, the 741b was a 500cc lightweight V-twin (somewhere between 3,000 and 5,000 of these machine came to New Zealand) and the 841 was a 750cc traverse mounted V-twin (popularized by Moto Guzzi 20 years later) with shaft drive. Over 1,000 841s were produced but none saw active service and the model was discontinued. In 1943 Indian founder George Hendee died at the age of 77.

Both Indian and Harley had won contracts to supply large numbers of military motorcycles, but Harley negotiated far better contracts and Indian was again left perilously cash poor at the end of the war. To make matters worse the Indian factory plant was already very old prior to the war and in dire need of replacement. Shareholders had been happy to take the profits after the depression but had not invested in new modern machinery. By the end of the war the machinery was on its last legs.

The final episode in Indian’s history began shortly after the end of the war. Unwilling to again try to turn around the fortunes of Indian, E. Paul Du Pont sold Indian to Ralph Rogers, the head of a large manufacturing conglomerate. When civilian production again resumed in 1946 only the Chief was offered to a market of keen young men whose first experience of motorcycling was during the war. Indian faced a scramble to retool and increase production to meet demand before post war inflation would see motorcycle prices jump almost 30% in 1947. On the race track however, Indians notched up wins at almost every event, with Ed Kretz in devastating form. Rogers was convinced that the way forward for Indian was with a range of vertical singles and twins, similar to the popular models appearing from England. When in 1948 the new models arrived, poor quality control, hard starting and engines of too small displacement at 440cc for the twin (Warrior) and 220cc for the single (Arrow) plagued them. At the same time the fateful decision to halt production of the Chief was made. Rogers had poured money from his other ventures as well as his own personal fortune into keeping Indian afloat. Rogers then went to England to negotiate with John Brockhouse for more capital and for the agency to import English motorcycles into America. The final straw for Indian was in 1949 when the English Government devalued the pound by almost 30% and Indian ran out of funds because it couldn’t compete with the cheaper English imports. Had this not happened and the quality control and design of the new vertical twin and single been of sufficient standard and specification, who knows …………..

Rogers resigned as President of Indian in 1950. The company was divided into two separate entities, one for production and one controlled by Brockhouse for the distribution of Indian, Norton, Matchless, AJS, Royal Enfield and Vincent in America. Production of the Chief resumed with an improved 1300cc engine and telescopic forks. Also the problems of the vertical twin were resolved and it was increased to 500cc, but was still unable to compete with the cheaper English imports. By now most of the top riders, including Kretz had also moved to English imports and were proving to be successful with the lighter more powerful English bikes. In 1952 production of the Warrior was halted and in 1953 the very last of the Chiefs were made. Indian, the truly Pioneer American Motorcycle for more than 50 years was finished. This was the end of a motorcycling era.

In 1954 the first of many attempts to revitalize or exploit the Indian name was made by re-badging 700cc Royal Enfields. Again in the 70s this was tried with Italian minibikes with limited success. After many years of bitter lawsuits and wrangles the Indian name was again restored to a motorcycle in 1999 with a model reminiscent of the styling of a Chief with a modern S&S V-twin engine. Acceptance by die-hard Indian enthusiasts has been luke warm to say the least and only time will tell if the venture will be a success. Also a Scandinavian concern has manufactured a limited number of a newly designed inline 4 motorcycle sold as an Indian Four in England, the only place the trade name is not held by the American concern, and as a Dakota 4 or Wiking elsewhere.

Due solely to the foresight of a small number of enthusiasts whose sanity must have been sorely questioned during the 60s and 70s, relatively large numbers of Indians survive today. Also available from repairers like Bob Stark’s Starklite and Kiwi Indian, both based in America, are huge numbers of reproduction and new old stock parts, almost enough to build a complete Chief from parts, providing you have enough money! The resurgence in the popularity of Indian can also be seen from the rapidly escalating prices of bikes. An original 1953 Chief can now sell for $50,000 US and even the humble 741b that could be bought here for £15 after the war, has doubled in price in the last ten years and can fetch up to $10,000 for a good one.

The mystique and soul of the Indian is still alive and well in the growing number of enthusiasts who are determined not to let the marquee be lost to the past. I would certainly caution anyone who has a feeling to get involved with an Indian. It is a relationship that gets in your blood and can almost become an obsession, says me who has in the last year bought a 741b and more recently a 48 Chief. Be warned but above all else, enjoy.

On 9-11 February 2001 the Indian Owners Register of New Zealand (IORNZ) will convene the first of a number of celebrations worldwide to mark a Century of Great Motorcycling at Hunua in Auckland.




The weekend preceding will also see the annual Classic Motorcycle Racing Register event at Pukekohe racecourse which will feature Indian and Harley racing, with competitors coming from USA, along with the largest display and ride past of Indians to be shown in New Zealand.

IORNZ can be contacted by writing to 60 Kiwi Rd, Raumati Beach, or by e-mail to malvic@win.co.nz <mailto:malvic@win.co.nz>

Written by Paul Waddell ©

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