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- Late 1860s: Earliest references to electric motorcycles can be found in patents.
- 1911: Electric motorcycle available according to early Popular Mechanics article.[1]
- 1920s: Ransomes, current makers of forklifts, explored the use of an electric powered motorcycle. This and other developments helped pave the way for the company to use electric mining cars and lorreys.[2]
- Early 1940s: Fuel rationing in United States caused Earle Williams to convert a motorcycle to electric power. This became the basis for the formation of the ParCar from the Marketeer Company.[3]
- 1941: Fuel rationing in Occupied Europe encouraged an Austrian company by the name of Socovel to create a small electric motorcycle. Approximately 400 were manufactured.[4]
- 1967: First Fuel Cell powered electric motorcycle created by Karl Kordesch at Union Carbide debuts. Demonstrated the feasibility of fuel cells as a power source. This particular fuel cell was an alkili fuel cell that operated with hydrazine, a rocket fuel propellant.[5]
- 1967: "Papoose" moped sized electric motorcycle prototype is created by Indian Motocycle Company under the direction of Floyd Clymer.[6]
- Early 1970s: Aurenthetic Charger moped sized mini bike (small motorcycle) sold.[7]
- 1973: Mike Corbin sets first electric motorcycle land speed record of 101 mph.
- 1974: Corbin-Gentry Inc. begins sale of street legal electric motorcycles.
- Professor Charles E. MacArthur makes first electric vehicle ascent on Mt. Washington, NH using a Corbin Electric motorcycle. The event evolved into an annual rally called the "Mt Washington Alternative Vehicle Regatta".
- 1978: Electric Harley Davidson MK2 created by Transitron manufactured in Honolulu, Hawaii.[8]
- 1988: Eyeball Engineering creates KawaSHOCKi electric dragbike and is featured in a major magazine.[9]
- 1996: Peugeot Scoot'Elec was the first mass production of an electric motorbike.
- Late 1990s: EMB Lectra VR24 electric motorbike pioneered the use of variable reluctance motors (hence the VR) and was marketed as street legal.[10]
- 2000: Killacycle made a record run of 152 mph (245 km/h) at 9.4 s quarter mile (400-metre) time at Woodburn Drags 2000, OR.[11]
- 2000s The development of lithium-ion batteries and powerful electric motors (originally for military applications) made mainstream electric motorcycles more feasible.[12]
- 2007: A123 Li-Ion cell-powered Killacycle set a new quarter mile (400-metre) record of 7.824 seconds and 168 mph (270 km/h) in Phoenix, AZ at AHDRA 2007.[13]
- 2008: Electra Green made by Orlando Tony Parker in Omaha, Nebraska was the first electric motorcycle made in the state of Nebraska.
- 2009 "The 24 Hours of Electricross", the first all electric dirtbike race.
- 2009 The first Time Trial Xtreme Grand Prix (TTXGP) all electric street motorcycle race took place on the Isle of Man.
- 2010 ElectroCat was the first electric motorcycle to climb pikes peak and set a record time in the Pikes Peak International Hill Climb[14]
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