The Northwest on Two Wheels

Motorcycles may not be the first thing you associate with South Lake Union, but inside Museum of History and Industry’s Walker Gallery, they tell a fascinating story about the Pacific Northwest. Kickstands Up! 125 Years of Motorcycling in the PNW brings together rare bikes, personal histories, and hands-on experiences that trace how motorcycling took root in the region and evolved into a distinct local culture.

Rather than focusing simply on machines, the exhibit looks at how motorcycling intertwined with the Northwest’s identity—from early logging routes and rough backroads to today’s city streets and custom builds. Visitors will move through more than a century of innovation and community, seeing how riders, tinkerers, and clubs helped shape a culture unique to this corner of the country.

In that spirit, the exhibit spotlights the voices of local riders and fabricators, the evolution of safety gear and design, and the broader economic and cultural ripples created by motorcycling in the PNW.

Inside the Gallery

The exhibition unfolds through several themes, including:

• A century-plus of engineering and design, shown through vintage and modern motorcycles seldom seen up close
• Profiles of the riders and builders who carved out space for motorcycling in the PNW
• Moments where motorcycling intersected with regional industry, recreation, and national trends
• Interactive spaces that let visitors get hands-on with elements of the riding experience

Featured Stories From the Archive

Alongside the machines themselves, Kickstands Up! showcases vivid snapshots of personal courage, creativity, and community drawn from MOHAI’s collections. Visitors will see:

• Pilot Gladys Dawson, pictured with her friend Madeline Thompson before the two set off on a remarkable 1936 motorcycle journey through the U.S. and Mexico on Dawson’s Harley-Davidson.
• Teenage racer Debbi Selden, shown with her trophies around 1968. Selden became the first woman in the U.S. to earn a professional racing license—only after taking her fight for equal access all the way to the Supreme Court.
• Seattle’s Dykes on Bikes, captured at the start of the 1993 Pride Parade, highlighting how riding has long intersected with LGBTQ+ visibility, solidarity, and celebration.

These stories add a powerful human layer to the exhibit, illustrating just how many ways motorcycling has shaped—and been shaped by—life in the Northwest.

A Companion Exhibit: Riding Together

Just steps away in MOHAI’s Peggy Corley Showcase on Seattle History, visitors will find a smaller but equally compelling display: Riding Together: 135 Years of Cycling in Seattle. While Kickstands Up! explores the motorized side of two-wheeled culture, Riding Together highlights how bicycles transformed daily life in Seattle.

The display brings together a handful of objects from MOHAI’s collection and community lenders, including a 19th-century women’s safety bicycle and cycling suit. It also spotlights local bicycle clubs and nonprofits whose advocacy and creativity have shaped Seattle’s streets, transportation systems, and social movements for more than a century.

Together, the two exhibits offer a broad look at how riding on two wheels opened new possibilities, connected communities, and left a lasting imprint on the region.

Exhibit access is included with MOHAI general admission: $25 adults, $20 seniors 65+ and military, and $19 students. Youth 14 and under are free. Both exhibits run through April 26, 2026.