Indian Dealer In CT Targets April Opening

Pop quiz: Where was the first Indian “motocycle” built?

Bzzz. Time’s up. If you said Springfield, MA, well, hang your head. You’re wrong.

Yes, Indian produced motorcycles in Springfield from 1902 through 1953, but the first Indian was created in a city farther south on the Connecticut River – in Middletown, CT. And Middletown is the chosen location for the first dealership in Connecticut of the revived Indian.

 725 Main St., Middletown, CT/Photo by Walt Pinto

Dennis Bolduc, who opened Indian Motorcycle of Springfield in Westfield, Mass. a year ago, has been awarded a second Indian franchise. He’s targeting April 30 for opening day.

The dealership will be located at 725 Main Street on the north end of downtown. “It was a trolley barn for the town originally,” said Bolduc, who spent months scouting possible places to open a second dealership. Overtures from governmental leaders in Middletown did the trick.  “Middletown has been unbelievable. They were the ones who approached me,” he said Thursday.

The original Indian “motocycle” company began in Springfield in 1901 and lasted until 1953 when it went bankrupt. Polaris eventually acquired the Indian name and began producing motorcycles in 2011 based on a predecessor’s design. It wasn’t until 2013 that the company unveiled its own new models.

Indian actually began as the Hendee Manufacturing Co. in 1898 with founder George M. Hendee building bicycles. Two years later, Hendee met Carl Oscar Hedstrom. In January 1901, they signed a partnership agreement with Hedstrom becoming the company’s chief engineer and designer.

Oscar Hedstrom on the first Indian/Courtesy of the Indian Motorcycle Collection, Wood Museum of Springfield History

Rather than work in Springfield, Hedstrom used space at the Worcester Bicycle Manufacturing Company in Middletown and spent five months creating a prototype motorcycle. “That building is still there in town,” said Bolduc, adding that it is near the Wesleyan University campus.

The prototype was then shipped to Springfield where it had its first public demonstration on May 31, 1901. Motorcycle production began in 1902 and Indian went on to become the largest motorcycle producer in the world.

Construction work on the new dealership isn’t expected to start until after the first of the year.

– By Bud Wilkinson