Above: S.E. Rochelle posing on a motorcycle with a bald eagle. Courtesy of Sonnie Rochelle, Jr.
One of Durham’s most interesting historical figures, Sidney Edgar “S.E.” Rochelle (1878-1960), was a veteran, an entrepreneur, and most notably, a motorcycle enthusiast.
Rochelle reportedly graduated from Durham’s first public graded school, which was established in 1882, located in the Wright Factory on West Main Street.
Background: Photo of the first Durham Graded School in the Wright Factory, c. 1882.Courtesy of Open Durham, Preservation Durham.
MILITARY SERVICE
Rochelle served in the Spanish-American War and fought in the Philippines, surviving a battle that saw 80% of his company killed. He returned to Durham in 1901 and remained active with the company, attending several national engagements with it.
Background: Company E, 43rd Regiment, US Volunteer Infantry, in which Rochelle joined, served during the Philippines Insurrection. Courtesy of the North Carolina Museum of History.
HUMBLE BEGINNINGS
After the death of his father, Rochelle took over his fish stand at an old city market located at the south end of Church Street. When the city market moved to the new Academy of Music and municipal building located at what is now CCB Plaza, Rochelle decided that the rent was too high and left the business.
“My motto: if I haven’t got it, and you want it, I’ll get it for you if it’s made.” -S.E. Rochelle
Rochelle then began working with a man named H.A. Gaskins, who ran a phonograph, music, bicycle, lock, and gun store. By 1910, he decided to strike out on his own, opening a gun, bicycle, battery, and motorcycle shop at the northeast corner of Corcoran and Parrish Streets. In 1912, Rochelle and his wife moved into their new house at 1714 Chapel Hill Road.
Above: Durham’s municipal building and Academy of Music, ca. 1904. Courtesy of Open Durham, Preservation of Durham.
A NORTH CAROLINA FIRST
From 1910 to 1954, Rochelle owned and operated North Carolina’s first Harley Davidson / Henderson / Indian dealership on the corner of Parrish and Corcoran Streets, and later at 200 Mangum Street in downtown Durham.
Background: Interior of the 200 Mangum Street store, ca. 1920, Rochelle pictured center. Courtesy of the Durham County Library.
BUILDING DURHAM’S MOTORCYCLE COMMUNITY
Rochelle not only provided Durham motorcyclists with bikes, he also created a motorcycle community through the promotion of his motorcycle-related attractions at the local amusement park, organization of a riding club, and coordinating many local versions of the American Motorcycle Association (AMA)-sanctioned Gypsy Day Tour rides. The Gypsy Day rides often consisted of a round trip from Durham to Greensboro. Rochelle’s Durham Motorcycle Club also traveled all over the United States.
Background: Posing for a picture on a road outside Durham, ca. 1920. Courtesy of The State Archives of North Carolina.
CONTINUING THE LEGACY
Right: Motorcycle race at the NC State Fairgrounds racetrack, ca. 1917.Courtesy of the State Archives of North Carolina.
Many of the exhibit photos seen here have been preserved by one of Rochelle’s surviving relatives. His great nephew, Sonnie Rochelle, Jr., maintains the original prints and artifacts; many of these were originally kept in a makeshift museum behind Sonnie’s former East Durham home and were curated by his father, Sonnie Rochelle, Sr.
The exhibit’s curators were welcomed into the home of Sonnie Rochelle, Jr., to discuss his “Cousin Sid”, as he called him. The curators are grateful for the honor to carry on the story of one of Durham’s most interesting motorcycle figures. Sonnie and his own son carry on the two-wheel tradition- it can only be surmised that it’s in their blood!
Inspired by Rochelle, local nonprofit Ton Up North Carolina carries on Durham’s motorcycling history by organizing an annual ride in Rochelle’s name. Ton Up North Carolina also hosts the state’s largest vintage motorcycle show, the Bull City Rumble, here in Durham on West Main Street in the Brightleaf District every Labor Day Weekend. The event is free and open to the public. In 2019, the event honored S.E. Rochelle by bringing a Motordrome (similar to the Whirl of Death, seen here) back to Durham for the first time in over 100 years.
Top Left: Durham Gypsy motorcycle tour, June 17 , 1923, pictured in front of Old West Building at Trinity College (now Duke University). Courtesy of the State Archives of North Carolina. Bottom Left: Members of the Ton Up UNC organization in a “Rochelle Ride-In” recreating the historic photo from 1923. Courtesy of Ton Up NC.
Durham: The Birthplace of Motorcycling in North Carolina was originally curated by Ton Up NC in 2019, as part of the Museum of Durham History’s “Durham 150” programming.
This digital exhibit was created by Clay Harrison in 2025.