Indian Motorcycles

by Jerry Hatfield, Hans Halberstadt (Photographer)

What began as a motorized bicycle dreamed up between a young machinist named George Hedstrom and a champion cyclist named George Hendee, became one of the most popular motorcycles in the world: the Indian. Out of production for half a century, Indian retains the loyalty and admiration of motorcycle riders and enthusiasts everywhere. This book recounts the marque’s story from its earliest single-cylinder “motocycles” of 1901 through the bitter day in 1953 when the company shuttered Wigwam, its Springfield, Massachusetts, plant—with a nod to the trademark disputes that continue to this day. Text by noted Indian historian Jerry Hatfield, and more than 125 specially commissioned photographs and 25 black and white historical pictures, capture the seductive power and grace of the great models—the Scout, Chief, and Four, —and recreate the thrill the Indian generates to this day.

160 pages, Paperback

First published April 1, 1996