Oscar Hedstrom (12 March 1871 – 29 August 1960) was a co-founder of the

Indian Motocycle Manufacturing Company Indian Motorcycle (or ''Indian'') is an American brand of motorcycles owned and produced by automotive manufacturer Polaris Inc.

Childhood and adolescence

Carl Oscar Hedström was born in the parish of Lönneberga, Hultsfred Municipality, Kalmar County, Småland, Sweden. His family emigrated in 1880 to the United States, and settled in

Brooklyn Brooklyn is a Boroughs of New York City, borough of New York City located at the westernmost end of Long Island in the New York (state), State of New York. Formerly an independent city, the borough is coextensive with Kings County, one of twelv ...

, New York City. As a boy, he spent much time riding a bicycle around the city, and was fascinated by its mechanical design.

Career

At age 16, Hedstrom started working at a small engineering workshop in the Bronx, New York, where he learned to manufacture watch cases and components. He worked as an apprentice in several small workshops, until he was 21 when he obtained

journeyman A journeyman is a worker, skilled in a given building trade or craft, who has successfully completed an official apprenticeship qualification. Journeymen are considered competent and authorized to work in that field as a fully qualified employee ...

status.

On two wheels

In his spare time Hedstrom built high-quality bicycles that were lighter and more durable than standard bikes. He rented a workshop space in

Middletown, Connecticut Middletown is a city in Middlesex County, Connecticut, United States. Located along the Connecticut River, in the central part of the state, 16 miles (25.749504 km) south of Hartford, Connecticut, Hartford. Middletown is the largest city in the L ...

where he designed and cast engines from his own patterns. He also designed and build a concentric carburetor. While his reputation as a bicycle designer grew, he started to build tandem bicycles with gasoline engines. These were called ''pacers'', and were used to split the wind for racing cyclists. The motorized pacers of that time functioned poorly, but Hedstrom's design quickly gained a reputation as being very reliable. At this time he came into contact with the former cyclist George M Hendee from Springfield, Massachusetts, who now manufactured bicycles and sponsored contests. Hendee was dissatisfied with the pacers available, and asked Hedstrom to take one of his to Springfield. Hendee was so impressed that he asked Hedstrom to develop a prototype for a mass-manufactured motorized bicycle. The first Indian prototype was then built and completed on May 25, 1901, by Hedström at the old Worcester Cycle Manufacturing Company in Middletown, Connecticut, and the first public demonstration was held on Cross Street in Springfield, Massachusetts at 12:00 noon on Saturday June 1, 1901.

Indian Company

The cooperation between Hedstrom and Hendee resulted in the Indian Company. Hedstrom's design was innovative, and successful. Oscar Hedstrom resigned from the Indian Company on 24 March 1913 after a disagreement with the board regarding dubious practices to inflate the company's stock values. George Hendee resigned in 1916. Hedstrom resided on his estate on the banks of the

Connecticut River The Connecticut River is the longest river in the New England region of the United States, flowing roughly southward for through four states. It rises 300 yards (270 m) south of the U.S. border with Quebec, Canada, and discharges into Long Isl ...

until he died in 1960.

Notes

References

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hedstrom, Oscar 1871 births 1960 deaths People from Hultsfred Municipality American motorcycle designers Indian Motorcycle designers Swedish emigrants to the United States