A Visit to Motorcyclepedia, March, 2025

Last week, I made my second visit to what might be one of the few motorcycle museums on the East Coast, “Motorcyclepedia” in Newburgh, NY. Unlike my first visit in 2021, which was more of a quick walk-through, this time I had the pleasure of an informal tour guide in the form of my good friend Terry, who has done some volunteer work at this museum and is more familiar with its content.

First, the building is huge, with displays which are well-lit, well-maintained, and well-organized. Perhaps the museum’s biggest claim to fame is its collection of Indian motorcycles. Arranged in chronological order, there is one Indian bike of each model year from 1901, the first year of production, through 1953, the final year. Whether you are a bike buff or not, the history as represented here is also a history of the U.S. and its growth as a nation which was putting its citizens into motorized transport.

The Indians are on the main floor, along with a somewhat bizarre collection of motorcycles built for television, movies, and shows. A name familiar to me was Ed “Big Daddy” Roth. If you are at all aware of some of his four-wheeled creations, you can imagine what he might have been able to do with motorcycles. Another interesting element of the collection is the number of original, unrestored bikes.

On the lower level were Harley-Davidsons, and an eclectic collection of import bikes. A surprise to me was the Velorex, a cloth-covered vehicle from Czechoslovakia, which I last saw in the year 2000 at a microcar event. Other treats included bikes by Vespa, Husqvarna, and Opel. There is memorabilia as well, such as posters and vinyl albums with bikes on the covers.

This entire collection was amassed over many years by a father and son team, and the level of preservation is beyond reproach. If you are into motorcycles, this museum is a must-see. Even if you are not, it is an impressive display which thoroughly captures a significant slice of the history of 20^th century America.

INDIAN DISPLAY

Not only was there one bike from each model year arranged in order, each bike included a descriptive placard. It was fascinating to read how the bikes changed and sales grew year over year.