The history of Harley-Davidson is closely connected with the development of American motorcycling. For more than a century, the company has produced motorcycles that have become recognizable throughout the world, and its name has come to represent much more than a particular manufacturer. Harley-Davidson motorcycles have been used for transportation, recreation, touring, competition, law enforcement, and ceremonial purposes. Among the many motorcycles produced by the company, the Shovelhead occupies a particularly interesting place in Harley-Davidson history. Its distinctive engine design, long production period, and association with American motorcycles of the second half of the twentieth century have made it an important part of the company’s heritage.
One unusual chapter in the history of Harley-Davidson motorcycles involves a large collection of police-owned machines that eventually found their way from the United States to Europe. In the early 1990s, a Dutchman named Max Middelbosch purchased a large batch of valuable police-owned Harley-Davidson Shovelhead motorcycles and imported them to the Netherlands. The purchase was remarkable not simply because of the number of motorcycles involved, but also because of the condition and configuration of the machines. Of the motorcycles acquired, 144 were equipped with sidecars, while the remainder had seen very little use.
