The Motor Co. has had a long and storied history. It's been used in wartime and peace, it's evolved into an iconic American brand, one that is almost as recognizable abroad as the American flag or a bald eagle. Yet, its humble beginnings don't start here in the good ole US of A. No, part of it starts in Scotland.
See, if you didn't know, Harley-Davidson is a combination of names; Bill Harley and William A. Davidson. The latter of which was originally from, you guessed it, Scotland. Specifically, a small stone cottage in Netherton, Scotland.
Davidson's family emigrated to the United States—yes, everyone's favorite motorcycle brand was actually started by an immigrant—in 1857 from Scotland. However, the family's original home in the country is set to be demolished, paved over to make room for new homes. And folks are rightly upset about not saving the semi-historic structure. So much so that not only are they working with the UK's government, but are looking for donations through GoFundMe to help preserve the cottage.
According to the GoFundMe campaign's page, "The fate of this historic home of the Davidsons from Harley-Davidson was nearly sealed in 2021 when the current owners put the cottage on the open market. The only purchase offers reported were to see the little cottage museum demolished to make way for a housing development. We couldn't let that happen and banded together three years ago to work towards community ownership. We've been tirelessly working for these three years, raising awareness, setting up the charity to enable the community to save the cottage and now with two unsuccessful attempts at securing funding from the National Heritage Lottery, we're now facing a daunting reality. We are so close but just need a bit more!"
The campaign's organizers have now met with the UK's government and were told that they could unlock further funding, stating, "To move forward with the project, we must raise the full amount of match funding now by the end of this November. This extra time is invaluable and we must show progress. We will be having regular meetings with the COF who are monitoring us closely as we near the deadline."
The campaign's goal is to bring in £70,000, or about $92,000, so they can unlock those governmental funds and save the historic cottage and piece of Harley history. In recent years, the home has become a focal point for local Harley enthusiasts, as well as those making pilgrimages from around the world. It's a piece of history, as it were, as without it, we wouldn't have one of the most iconic motorcycle brands around.
There's still a long way to go, and the organizers seemingly have an uphill battle, as the campaign began in September and only £3,350 of the total £70,000 has been raised so far. But who knows, the people could rally and get the historic site saved.
