Harley-Davidson Museum

Exhibits

See the legends come to life

Experience the Harley-Davidson Museum

EXPERIENCE GALLERY

Now open, a revitalized Experience Gallery enhances the impressive collection on exhibit at the H-D Museum. With inspiring stories from riders who have turned their dream of learning to ride into reality, a look at the epic journeys you can only experience behind the bars of a Harley-Davidson^® motorcycle, plus the chance to throw a leg over a new Harley-Davidson Freedom Machine, the reinstalled Experience Gallery shows the world how United We Ride!

Special Exhibits

These temporary exhibits provide unique looks into a wide range of topics related to Harley-Davidson and motorcycle culture.

Opening June 17, 2023

The Mama Tried Motorcycle Show and adjoining Flat Out Friday races are a bright spot in the dead of cold, Wisconsin winters. The show has amassed an army of followers and fans that give the weekend its signature style: People are the heart of the show; the bikes are the social lubrication. The Harley-Davidson Museum’s special exhibit, “Mama Tried: Bringing it Together,” focuses on the builders, the racers and the fans that gather over a bike or a brew.

A riot of bikes awaits you this summer: outrageous custom bikes, lovingly restored vintage machines, and one rare as hen’s teeth – 1929 FHAC with FLXI Sidecar Factory Racer. Don’t come alone; bring your crew. That’s what Mama Tried is about, after all.

Opened December 17, 2022

From award-winning children and YA author Isabel Quintero and illustrator Zeke Peña comes the Harley-Davidson Museum’s first-ever bilingual exhibit, “My Papi Has a Motorcycle” / “Mi papi tiene una moto.” Based on the beloved children’s book of the same name, “My Papi Has a Motorcycle” shares a story of family bonds strengthened by the simple act of taking a joy ride on a two-wheeled machine.

With brilliant, colorful art from Peña paired with heart-warming stories from Southern Californian riding families, “My Papi Has a Motorcycle” will draw smiles from kids of all ages. It’s an exhibit that focuses not only on where you can take a motorcycle, but where a two-up motorcycle ride with a loved one can take you.

Archive image of riders pushing a bike out of a ditch

Opened March 5, 2021

In the decades before America paved its highways, early riders had to be prepared for all sorts of terrain: sand, clay or dirt – and wandering those makeshift byways were Harley-Davidson motorcycles. Today, it’s called off-road or adventure touring; back then it was just called riding. Since 1903, Harley-Davidson motorcycles proved their toughness by riding over wooded hills, through stone-choked creek beds and up mountain sides. “Off-road Harley-Davidson” tells the history of motorcycles designed for rough roads, the people who rode them and the adventures they shared.

Opened October 24, 2012

A Harley-Davidson^® motorcycle was recovered in May on an isolated beach in British Columbia. The bike had drifted over 4,000 miles across the Pacific Ocean after being washed away in a storage container during the devastating tsunami that struck Japan on March 11, 2011. The remains of this 2004 Harley-Davidson^® Night Train^™ are on display at the Harley-Davidson Museum^® as a memorial to the tragedy that claimed more than 15,000 lives.

Permanent Exhibits

Explore two floors filled with dozens of beautifully preserved bikes and artifacts to discover the details of Harley-Davidson's history and heritage.

Permanent Exhibit

2nd Floor

From board track racing and hillclimbs, to club rides and endurance events, this gallery pays tribute to the grassroots movements of the early twentieth century that revolved around the camaraderie, thrill-seeking and competitive spirit that drove the motorcycle culture of the day.

Clubs and Competition Exhibit at the H-D Museum

Permanent Exhibit

2nd Floor

As you enter this gallery, it is impossible to miss the Exploded Bike display. Separated into a multitude of pieces, this 1940s Knucklehead is a mechanical drawing brought to life. Across the north wall resides our version of a "family tree." The engines on display illustrate the evolution of the Harley-Davidson engine from its earliest to its latest incarnation. Spread throughout the rest of the gallery, you will find interactive exhibits showcasing engine mechanics.

Permanent Exhibit

1st and 2nd Floors

Our story opens with the motorcycle that is often referred to as "Serial Number One." Dating back to the first years of the company, this is the oldest known Harley-Davidson® motorcycle in existence. Winding your way north through the five galleries on the first floor, the stories of the people, products, culture and history that made the Harley-Davidson Motor Company what it is today continue to unfold. As you meander downstairs to continue your tour, you'll experience some of Harley-Davidson's most successful and most challenging events of recent years – from the launch of the Sportster^®model in 1957 to the merger with AMF in 1969. Not to be missed is the three-screen video that tells the courageous story of all those involved in buying the company back from AMF in order to regain control of Harley-Davidson's destiny.

Permanent Exhibit

1st Floor

Kids can get decked out in pint-size Harley gear and rev up the engine of a Knucklehead motorcycle. Enjoy games, books, puzzles and more in this space designed especially for our youngest visitors.

Kids sitting on Harley-Davidson Imagination Station

Permanent Exhibit

1st and 2nd Floors

As you begin your tour of the Harley-Davidson Museum^® you'll find yourself on the Museum's second floor staring down a line of bikes, three wide and 180 feet long. These bikes begin to tell the story of the company's first fifty years. Each bike in the gallery was specifically chosen for its noteworthy heritage, as well as its unique expression of signature Harley-Davidson elements – beauty, performance, functionality and style. Complete your trip through the Harley-Davidson collection of classic models from the late 1940’s to the present in the first-floor gallery.

Permanent Exhibit

2nd Floor

Showcased along this wall are some of the most iconic Harley-Davidson tanks ever designed and customized since 1903. Each is a piece of Harley history, a work of art in its own right, and an example of the deep-rooted creative freedom Harley-Davidson motorcycles inspire. Stroll the gallery and enjoy the best tanks from our past, our latest designs, and commissioned one-of-a-kind creations by noted artists.

Permanent Exhibit

1st Floor

The Build-a-Bike interactive station at the Harley-Davidson Museum allows visitors to customize historic Harley-Davidson motorcycles. By swapping parts from other historic Harley-Davidson motorcycles, visitors are empowered to design their own dream bikes. When the bike is completed it’s given a unique number, added to the permanent collection database, and presented above for all to see on the Virtual Road animation.