The Galveston County Daily News

William S. Harley was just 21. His partner, Arthur Davidson, only 20. But in 1903 the two men produced the first of what would become the world’s largest motorcycle company in just 17 years.

A century later, the company’s V-twin engine remains a visual synonym for street bikes. That first Harley-Davidson motorcycle was built in a 150-square-foot wooden shed in Milwaukee. That same facility produced the first bike Harley-Davidson raced; on July 4, 1905, their product won a 15-mile race in Chicago.

A larger factory followed in 1906, and in 1908 the company sold its first motorcycle for police use to the city of Detroit. 1909 saw the introduction of the V-twin, a 49.5-cubic-inch engine that produced seven horsepower. The design became an icon.

The Harley-Davidson bar-and-shield logo, now instantly recognizable, was introduced in 1910 and trademarked a year later.

Sidecars first appeared in 1913 and the longest continually published motorcycling magazine in the world, “The Enthusiast,” debuted in 1916.

It was also the time of World War I, and the conflict helped launch Harley-Davidson to prominence. In 1917, one out of every three motorcycles produced by the company was sold to the military; the following year the military bought half of the company’s production. According to Harley-Davidson estimates, the U.S. Army used about 20,000 motorcycles during the war.

The teardrop-shaped gas tank, nearly as recognizable as the V-twin engine and Harley-Davidson logo, was added to all models beginning in 1925.

The Servi-car, as the three-wheeled vehicle that became popular with police departments was known, first appeared in 1932, and was the first product to get an electric starter in 1964.

The first motorcycle rally — the precursor to this weekend’s event in Galveston and others nationwide — was held by the Jack Pine Gypsies Motorcycle Club in 1938. Known as the Black Hills Rally, it was held in Sturgis, S.D, one of the world’s largest motorcycle rallies is still held annually in the town.

Production of civilian motorcycles halted almost entirely for World War II. The company produced 90,000 motorcycles for military use during the war, building an audience of first-time users.

Harley-Davidson had only one American competitor then, Hendee Manufacturing, which built Indian motorcycles. Hendee went out of business in 1953 and Harley-Davidson became the only U.S. manufacturer of motorcycles for the next 46 years.

The 1970s brought a heightened interest in customization; Harley-Davidson responded with the FX 1200 Super Glide in 1971, but it was 1977’s FXS Low Rider that was the first model of a design that would carry through today.

Sold to AMF in 1969, a group of senior executives re-purchased Harley-Dav-idson in 1981. The company was back on the New York Stock Exchange in 1987. In 2002, shareholders could boast a five-year return of 242 percent.

Between 1998 and 2002, annual sales jumped from 150,818 to 263,653. For the 2001 fiscal year, the company two young men started in a Milwaukee shack posted more than $3.4 billion in revenue.