1909 Curtiss Other Curtiss Models

FROM THE DICK SHAPPY COLLECTION: The 1909 Curtiss V-Twin "Roadster"

Despite becoming known as the fastest man on earth in 1907 for setting a land speed record of 136 mph on an experimental V-8 motorcycle he had built himself, Glenn Hammond Curtiss was not known for his bikes, but rather as an American aviation pioneer. Born in 1879 in Hammondsport, New York, he started his engineering career racing bicycles in his youth. By 1902, he had built his first motorcycle engine with a tomato soup can as a carburetor, and his genius only expanded from there. The sixth engine he ever produced, a single-cylinder under the name Hercules, can also be found in the collection of Dick Shappy. He quickly found that Hercules was already patented, and his future endeavors would begin the Curtiss line.

In 1904, he was taking home the gold against even his rivals at Indian Motorcycles, and put his 9 HP V-twin engine into the first successful dirigible in the United States, the California Arrow. Until 1912, he and his team would go on to build, sell, and race motorcycles out of their Hammondsport garage, but this wasnt his only successful endeavor. In the same period, Curtiss was the chief rival of the Wright brothers, designing airplane engines, the most widely used U.S. aircraft in WWI, the first amphibious aircraft, and joining the Aerial Experimentation Association. Curtiss was one of the great engineers of the early 20th century, producing innovative and high-performance motorcycles, inventing the handlebar throttle, and helping to create the U.S. aviation industry.

This 1909 Curtiss V-Twin Roadster is an extremely rare specimen, considered the "Duesen­berg" of early American motorcycles. A powerful air-cooled engine rated at 8 to 10 horsepower with splash oil lubrication and a dry-cell battery ignition was produced at the G. W. Curtiss Manufacturing Company in Hammondsport, New York. The Audrain Auto Museum reports that this 1909 Curtiss is one of the most well-preserved motorcycles in the world today and the last of the Curtiss line.

There are only a handful of Curtiss engines known to have survived, including the Hercules. This one, Engine Number 3302, went to Dale Stoner in collaboration with the Glenn H. Curtiss Museum in Hammondsport, NY, for a careful and meticulous restoration and documentation. Dale Stoner is not only the premier Curtiss historian and a master machinist but also an engineering pioneer who will one day be regarded in the history books right alongside Glenn. He is currently recreating the beautiful and historic 1907 Curtiss 8-cylinder experimental motorcycle that set the world land speed record of 136 MPH in exacting detail. It has been rumored that upon completion, this vehicle could be worth between $500,000 and $1 million.

MANUFACTURER: The G.H. Curtiss Manufacturing Company

MANUFACTURED: Hammondsport, NY, USA

YEAR: 1909

MODEL: Roadster

ENGINE: 54 cu. in. V-Twin, Air-Cooled

HP: 6

ENGINE NO: 3302

TRANSMISSION: Belt Drive

SEAT: Persons Manufacturing Co. of Worcester, MA

SPEEDOMETER/ODOMETER: Stewart Magnetic Type

CLOCK: Ingersoll Watch Company, Yankee Model

HEADLIGHT: Twentieth Century Mfg. Co. Lamp Model No. 102 of New York City

FEATURES: Tool Bag, Speedometer/Odometer, Headlamp, Clock, License Plate

Check out master machinist and Curtiss historian Dale Stoner reflect on Glenn Hammond Curtiss's motorcycles and show off his 1907 Curtiss V-8 land-speed-record-setting replica at Jay Leno's Garage: "The Fastest Man on Earth: 1907 Curtiss V8 Motorcycle"