WIMA USA Indian Motorcycle Museum

By now, anybody who hasn't been locked in a bank vault for the past 20 years is aware who the first Americans were. Depending on your particular persuasion, they were called American Indians (to distinguish them from Indian Home Indians); then, just plain Indians; and now, Native Americans.

But did you know that the first native American Indian was born in Springfield? They came from the Indian Motocycle factory here and ruled Services the two-and three-wheeled world of motorized transportation for the first half of this century. In fact, thousands upon thousands of Chiefs and Braves and Live Scouts left the city for destinations all over the world, and even now, 45 years after production ceased, there are still an estimated 50,000 on the road and as many more yet to be discovered.

The last remnant of the manufacturing complex that once occupied four square blocks is now the Indian Motocycle Museum on Hendee Street. Housed in the last of the complex's buildings still standing -- the company's engineering department -- is a wonderland of mechanical beauty, function and history. It's presided over by curator Esta Manthos, the last bridge to the company's glory days and a historic treasure in her own right.

Here's just a sampling of what's on display at this one-of-a-kind treasury:

* The world's first motorcyle made of wood, with a leather saddle and wooden wheels with metal tires;

* The first Indian Motocycle, produced in 1901 and the granddaddy of everything motorcycle everywhere;

* Dozens of Indian Scouts, Braves and Chiefs, including a 1951 Chief with sidecar that
was favored by police departments everywhere;

* The only remaining water-cooled aircraft engine, built by Indian (incidentally, the first
airmail flight in 1913 was powered by an Indian engine);

* Indian also made outboard engines and there is a particularly prime model of a 1929
Silver Arrow on display;

* The world's first snowmobile, or "snow boat," was built at the Indian plant in Springfield in 1941. They were used to train the Army's 10th Mountain Division, the unit that fought in northern Italy in World War II and where Sen. Robert Dole was wounded saving a comrade;

* A 1950 Indian Papoose, a folding motorcyle designed to be dropped by parachute to provide airborne troops quick transportation;

* The world's only 1928 Indian X4 roadster "dog" model, a handsome blue and silver
machine with a leather hood strap. The appelation "dog" refers to its power
train and not to its performance.

*One of the most impressive displays is that of an all-white 1940 Indian Junior Scout donated by Louise Scherbyn of Waterloo, N. Y., the most famous stunt rider of her time and the star of many a touring motorcycle show. A pioneer among women riders and a trick rider of the first order, she is now 94, recently broke a hip, and has retired to an upstate New York nursing home.Scherbyn also donated several of her riding costumes, petite outfits that belied her big heart. A trophy case is devoted to her accomplishments.

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There is no automotive snobbery here; the Indian Motocycle Museum also displays the products of other manufacturers, including a Briggs and Stratton motor scooter from 1930; a Columbia Whizzer motorized bicycle from 1946; an Allstate (Sears) MoPed from the same era; a 1950 Cushman motor scooter. There's an all-chrome 1966 "Matchless" from London, a 1972 Harley-Davidson Servicecar; a 1975 Hercules from Germany with a Wankel rotary engine; a monstrous 1969 Cymer-Munch "Mammoth" from Germany.

There are showroom versions of Westfield's famous Columbia bicycles. (Word has it that Columbia, which stopped making bicycles decades ago, may soon resume production. Speaking of Westfield, a motorcycle produced for about eight years by the Pope Manufacturing Co. is the only motorcycle ever depicted on an American postage stamp. The 1916 Pope holds that distinction, one which Esta Manthos declares is the product of
politics. "If any American motorcycle ever deserved it's own stamp, it's the
Indian,"she declares. And she's right.

Anyone approaching the vicinity of the so-called Golden Years can experience a timeline of their youth by walking along a row of these displays. There are also high-wheel bikes, thousands of photographs, even more thousands of pins, patches displays and trophies, and the largest assemblage of toy motorcycles you will ever see, guaranteed. To cap it
all off, there's even a working 1895 Wurlitzer "Nickelodeon" that now costs a quarter but which still plays honky-tonk piano music accompanied by seven instruments.
If it doesn't set your toes to tapping, check your pulse.

Founded at the turn of the century by Carl Oscar Hedstrom, a champion bicycle racer and George Hendee, a Springfield entrepeneur, the Indian Motocycle Co. led the field and set the pace for a fledgling industry that soon supplied a world-wide demand. It started in 1895 when Hedstrom attached a motor to a two-wheel wooden "pacer" to help train bicycle racers, one of the leading sports of the day. The machine was so popular that he and Hendee teamed up to produce the new "motocycle" without an "r". The first of a long line of Indians was ridden out of the factory in 1902.

In 1913, when Indian introduced electric starting, the sky was the limit. In the years before World War I, Indian was producing 20,000 machines a year and owned the world of motorcycle racing. Then, Hedstrom left the company in 1913 and Hendee followed several
years later, while the industry was still following Indian's lead. In 1919, Indian introduced an immensely popular model, the Scout 101, which won the attention and the heart of Japanese fans, including one Sochiro Honda. Yes, the same Sochiro Honda who founded the company of the same name.

Indian continued to produce its famous line of Chiefs, and the Sport Scout of 1935, with those sexy fender skirts that still produce admiring groans. During World Wart II, Indian produced thousands of motorcycles for the military, as did rival Harley-Davidson. History has it that Harley made the better deal, if not a better bike, and left Indian cash poor by the time peace returned. That, plus design and manufacturing decisions that missed the mark and the market, spelled doom for a company its loyal devotees say should never have
died.

But there is still hope, says Esta Manthos, who, with her late husband, Charles, kept an Indian presence in Springfield against all odds. Charles Manthos, who died in 1996, was an engineer, a historian, a humanitarian and public servant. In addition to being a prominent
businessman, he was a trustee of Springfield Technical Community College, a corporator of the Connecticut Valley Historical Museum, chairman of the governors of the Shriners Hospital and founder and first president of the Indian Motocycle Museum. He was also an unpaid city water commissioner during 18 years and nine mayors. And that's the short list.
First and foremost, he and Esta, who retired "with honors" herself after a distinguished career with Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co., were boosters for the city. It was their untiring effort that preserved what remains of the Indian tradition.

Esta and Charlie "met on a motorcycle," she says. It was 1931. "My mother told me I could do anything I wanted, just don't get hurt," Esta recalls. In addition to operating the museum seven days a week, much of her time these days is devoted to preparing for this year's Indian Day, a traditional gathering observed on the third Sunday in July. It's the magnet for Indian Motocycle devotees from around the nation and the world. Visitors last year came from as far away as Palm Springs, Calif., Arlington, Texas and Mulberry, Fla.
There are trophies (Esta is polishing and assembling them now), parts booths, competitions and induction into the Indian Motocycle Hall of Fame.

Esta Manthos also answers inquiries from around the world. She recently received a letter from a man in India who had found an old model and was looking for parts. She gave him the names of two former Indian Motocycle dealers in Calcutta who might still have some on hand. "There were Indian Motocycle dealerships in 40 countries," she said. She also stays in touch with collectors like The Tonight Show's Jay Leno and Microsoft's Bill Gates, among many others.

The Indian Motocycle Museum is a private undertaking; it receives no public money.
There are too many strings attached to public money, Esta says in her typically straightforward manner. If you'd like to see a fasinating collection of toys for adults and
children -- sprinkled with a little spice by a curator who knows her stuff, the Indian Motocycle Museum is open seven days a week. Incidentally, Esta reminds the visitor as she gestures toward a row of classic machines, "Everything runs." Enjoy.

What: The Indian Motocycle Museum.
Where: 33 Hendee St., Springfield.
Hours: Open every day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. except Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day.
Getting there: From Interstate 91 or Mass. Turnpike, take I-291 exit. From I-291 take St. James Avenue (Exit 4) to Page Boulevard. Right on Page to Hendee. Look for blue and white Indian Motocycle Museum signs. Museum is inside the Titeflex Corp compound.
Cost: Adults, $3. Under 12, $1. For information: Call (413) 737-2624.

Or write Indian Motocycle Museum, P.O. Box 90003, Mason Square Station,
Springfield, MA., 01139.