How did the collection get started? Why is the museum located in New Bremen?

The Schwinn family, of acclaimed bicycle notoriety, assembled a collection of bicycles, which they made available for public display in Chicago, Illinois. In 1997, following a restructuring of their business, a majority of this collection was put up for auction. A local collector, aspiring to preserve the integrity of the collection and bring an interesting attraction to his hometown, purchased approximately 170 bicycles from the collection, as well as archival materials and other bicycle memorabilia, and opened this museum in New Bremen, Ohio. The name of the Schwinns’ collection, the Bicycle Museum of America, was also preserved.