Indian Motorcycles: Set the Standard

George M, Hendee, an industry pioneer, founded a bicycle production company in 1897 called the Hendee Manufacturing Company. With co-founder and chief engineer Oscar Hedstrom, they opened the company's first factory in 1901 in downtown Springfield, Massachusetts. Together, they were a powerful duo and quickly established the company's reputation as being reliable, and outstanding performance. Hendee resigned as general manager in 1915, yet stayed on as president until he fully retired in 1916. Hedstrom served as the chief engineer until he resigned in 1913. The Sweden-born engineer held a record speed, at the time, of 56 miles per hour in a race he won from New York City to Springfield, Massachusetts and back in 1903.

Oscar Hedstrom

The US Army began using Indian Motorcycles in 1913, and dedicated a majority of its production to the war effort after the US entered the conflict in 1917. This resulted in dealers having limited inventory, and retail sales dropped significantly because of this. However, the company contributed nearly 50,000 motorcycles from 1917 to 1919. When World War II became a global conflict, Indian Motorcycle focused nearly all of their production efforts from 1940 to 1945 to the Allied cause, with a total contribution of $24 million worth of motorcycles and spare parts, including over 35,000 bikes.

George M, Hendee

In 1953, the company ceased operations and discontinued all models and all production. Two years later, the brand name was purchased by Brockhouse Engineering, which sold imported Royal Enfield motorcycles that were branded as Indian Motorcycles. By 1960, the remains of the business were sold to the Associated Motorcycle Company, and the brand died.

Nine companies formed a merger to form the Indian Motorcycle Company of America (IMCA) with a production facility in Gilroy, CA. They produced modified versions of Indian's original designs, but went bankrupt in 2003. Stellican Ltd. purchased the assets, and established Indian Motorcycle Company manufacturing facility in King's Mountain, NC, where they produced bikes until they sold to Polaris in 2011.

Travis Pastrana

Since then, Polaris has been able to take Indian Motorcycles to new heights. Honoring the company's past as being a firm supporter of the military, they launched a multi-year partnership with Veteran's Charity Ride (VCR), a non-profit organization that dedicates itself to providing healing experiences for wounded, severely injured, and amputee veterans from all branches of service. Today, Indian Motorcycles has a line of motorcycles and motorcycle maintenance.