he Motorcycle Industry in New York State is the first book to focus on the over 120-year history of motorcycle construction in the Empire State. Beginning with experimental motorized bicycles in the 1890s, New Yorks motorcycle industry experienced its golden years for innovation and production in the 1900s and 1910s. From that promising start, the states motorcycle industry declined, when the public adopted automobiles for everyday transportation. However, since the late twentieth century, the rise of custom, one-of-a-kind motorcycles has brought a new focus toward the industry. Also, a new effort to reach mass production comes in the form of e-motorcycles and e-bicycles that are being designed in New York.
The first edition, published in 2001, was the product of nine years of research by New York State Museum (NYSM) curator Geoffrey N. Stein. This second edition has been revised and updated by NYSM Senior Historian and Curator Brad L. Utter. For anyone who loves motorcycles or for those enthusiasts/collectors that wish to know more about these unique makers and the bikes that they created, The Motorcycle Industry in New York State is the ideal companion.
Review: "Its easy, if incorrect, to credit Massachusetts, Wisconsin, and Illinois as the only hotbeds of early American motorcycling. In fact, it was New York State that led the way with one of the first viable motor-bicycles, the first V-Twin and the first Four in the United States. From the great to the inglorious, New Yorks many motorcycle makers are listed here, with something new to be discovered on almost every page." - David Edwards, editor, The Antique Motorcycle, AMCA
Geoffrey L. Stein is Senior Historian Emeritus of the New York State Museum. His books include Great Day for Elmira: An Illustrated History of Twentieth-Century Grade Crossing Elimination Projects in Elmira and Elsewhere in New York State. Brad L. Utter is Senior Historian and Curator at the New York State Museum. His books include Enterprising Waters: The History and Art of New Yorks Erie Canal, also published by SUNY Press.
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