MILWAUKEE – The Harley-Davidson Motorcycle Company Complex was originally listed in the National Register of Historic Places in 1994 at a national level of significance. Additional documentation was prepared to extend the period of significance through 1973 and to document the company’s industrial significance.
The additional documentation supplements the original nomination to document all resources located within the original boundary and extends the industrial period of significance. The property is an industrial campus that includes two clusters of sprawling factory buildings constructed between 1910 and 1966, and two auxiliary buildings constructed before 1920. The complex is located northwest of West Juneau Avenue and North 38th Street intersection within the 30th Street Industrial Corridor. All of the buildings previously identified are relatively unchanged since the complex was first listed.
Their first motorcycle was built in the Davidson family’s garage on Milwaukee’s west side at the beginning of the 1900s, and the company influenced motorcycle design at an international level throughout the 20th century. Following the World Wars, Harley-Davidson motorcycles became a middle and upper-class leisure item, instantly recognizable in pop culture, and “Harley-Davidson” was recognized worldwide as the iconic American-made motorcycle. The factory complex at 3700-4000 West Juneau Avenue is the same location where the first major production runs of Harley-Davidson motorcycles were produced, and where the brand’s signature design features were developed and perfected. For several decades, Harley-Davidson motorcycles were produced from parts to final assembly in the complex buildings until manufacturing was relocated to York, Pennsylvania, in 1973.
Additional information for the Harley Davidson Motorcycle Complex is available.
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