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... cycled into cardboard at the factory's own paper mill. River Rouge was built to produce Model T Fords for decades to come, by the time it was capable of full production later in the decade, a factory a tenth its size could have handled the demand for Model Ts. On June 4, 1924, the ten millionth Model T Ford left the Highland Park factory, which would remain the main facility for T production.
While the flivver outsold its nearest competitor by a six-to-one margin that year, its unbridled run was nearing an unforeseen conclusion. After years of conceding the low end of the market to Ford, another automaker was setting its sights on that very sector. At the beginning of the decade, General Motors was an awkward conglomerate of car companies and parts suppliers, managed more for the sake of its whipsaw stock-price than for efficiencies in auto making. In the middle of the decade, though, a revitalized GM, under the brilliant leadership of Alfred P. Sloan, Jr. , began to offer inexpensive Chevrolet's with amenities that the Model T lacked. Instead of the sturdy but antiquated planetary transmission, it had a smooth three-speed.
The market began to shift; price and value ceased to be paramount factors. Styling and excitement suddenly counted to the customer. Even though the Model T cost a mere $ 290 in the mid-twenties, dealers clamored for a new Ford that would strike the fancy of the more demanding and sophisticated consumers. But Henry Ford refused even to consider replacing his beloved Model T.
Once, while he was away on vacation, employees built an updated Model T and surprised him with it on his return. Ford responded by kicking in the windshield and stomping on the roof. "We got the message, " one of the employees said later, "As far as he was concerned, the Model T was god and we were to put away false images. " Only one person persisted in warning him of the impending crisis: his son, Edsel, who had been installed as president of the Ford Motor Company during the dividend trial and its aftermath in 1919. It was the first of many arguments that Edsel would lose, as the once adoring relationship between the two deteriorated into distrust and disrespect on Henry's part and woeful disillusionment on Edsel's. The Chevrolet continued to take sales from the dour Model T. By 1926, T sales had plummeted, and the realities of the marketplace finally convinced Henry Ford that the end was at hand. On May 25, 1927, Ford abruptly announced the end of production for the Model T, and soon after closed the Highland Park factory for six months.
The shutdown was not for retooling: there was no new model in the works. In history's worst case of product planning, Henry sent the workers home so that he could start to design his next model. Fortunately, Edsel had been quietly marshaling sketches from the company's designers, and he was ready and able to work with his father on producing plans for the new car, called the Model A. It was a success from its launch in December 1927, and placed the company on sound footing again. By the time it went into production, the River Rouge had become the main Ford manufacturing facility. When the last Model T rolled off the assembly line, it was not the end of an era; it was still the very dawn of the one that the little car had inaugurated.
Cars -- more than half of them Model Ts -- pervaded American culture. They jammed the streets of the great eastern cities and roamed newly laid roads in southern California. Adapted to haul everything from mail to machine-guns to coffins to schoolchildren, automobiles represented an opportunity for change in practically everything. They also became a crucial factor in recasting a growing economy. Henry Ford had created a car for the multitudes and that car had created the basis of the car culture embraced by every subsequent generation. The Ford Motor Company, having survived its own crisis in the twenties, was one of only forty-four U.
S. automakers left in 1929, out of the hundreds that had entered the fray since the beginning of the century. That year, Ford, General Motors, and the newly formed Chrysler Corporation -- known then and now as the Big Three -- accounted for 80 percent of the market. He continued to innovate, but competitors (growing more powerful though fewer in number) began to cut into Ford's market share. Within the ensuing few years, however, Ford's preeminence as the largest producer and seller of automobiles in the nation was gradually lost to his competitors, largely because he was slow to adopt the practice of introducing a new model of automobile each year, which had become standard in the industry. During the 1930 s Ford adopted the policy of the yearly changeover, but his company was unable to regain the position it had formerly held.
In the period from 1937 to 1941, the Ford Company became the only major manufacturer of automobiles in the Detroit area that had not recognized any labor union as the collective bargaining representative of employees. At hearings before the National Labor Relations Board Ford was found guilty of repeated violations of the National Labor Relations Act. The findings against him were upheld on appeal to the federal courts. Ford was constrained to negotiate a standard labor contract after a successful strike by the workers at his main plant at River Rouge, Michigan, in April 1941.
Early in 1941 Ford was granted government contracts whereby he was, at first, to manufacture parts for bombers and, later, the entire airplane. He thereupon launched the construction of a huge plant at Willow Run, Michigan, where production was begun in May 1942. Despite certain technical difficulties, by the end of World War II (1945) this plant had manufactured more than 8000 planes. Advancing age obliged Ford to retire from the active direction of his gigantic enterprises in 1945. He died on April 7, 1947, in Dearborn. Ford left a personal fortune estimated at $ 500 to $ 700 million, bequeathing the largest share of his holdings in the Ford Motor Company to the Ford Foundation, a nonprofit organization.
Editorial tributes were favorable to Henry Ford. He was praised as a patriot, philanthropist, philosopher, reformer, economist, and teacher and depicted as a symbol of individualism and productive genius. Today Ford's genius can be seen at the historic sites dedicated to him: Edison and Ford Winter Estates, Fort Myers, Florida; Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village and the Henry Ford Estate-Fair Lane, in Dearborn, Michigan. Ford and his family spent a good deal of time and money on charitable work. They set up an historical museum in Greenfield Village, Michigan, and most notably set up the Ford Foundation. The Ford Foundation is a resource for innovative people and institutions worldwide.
Their goals are to strengthen democratic values, reduce poverty and injustice, promote international cooperation and advance human achievement This has been their purpose for almost half a century. The Ford Foundation feels that there is a real fundamental challenge facing every society today: to create political, economic and social systems that promote peace, human welfare and the sustainability of the environment on which life depends. They believe that the best way to meet this challenge is to encourage initiatives by those living and working closest to where problems are located; to promote collaboration among the nonprofit, government and business sectors, and to assure participation by men and women from diverse communities and at all levels of society. In their experience, such activities help build common understanding, enhance excellence, enable people to improve their lives and reinforce their commitment to society. The Ford Foundation is one source of support for these activities. They work mainly by making grants or loans that build knowledge and strengthen organizations and networks.
Since their financial resources are modest in comparison to societal needs, they focus on a limited number of problem areas and program strategies within our broad goals. Founded in 1936, the Foundation operated as a local philanthropy in the state of Michigan until 1950, when it expanded to become a national and international foundation. Since inception it has been an independent, nonprofit, nongovernmental organization. It has provided more than $ 9. 3 billion in grants and loans. These funds derive from an investment portfolio that began with gifts and bequests of Ford Motor Company stock by Henry and Edsel Ford. The Foundation no longer owns Ford Motor Company stock and its diversified portfolio is managed to provide a perpetual source of support for the Foundation's programs and operations.
The Trustees of the Foundation set policy and delegate authority to the president and senior staff for the Foundations grants making and operations. Program officers in New York, and in offices in Africa and the Middle East, Asia, Latin America and Russia, explore opportunities to pursue the Foundation's goals, formulate strategies and recommend proposals for funding. CHRONOLOGY OF THE LIFE OF HENRY FORD 1863 Born July 30 in Greenfield Township, Michigan. 1879 Leaves family farm for Detroit to work in machine shops. 1888 Marries Clara Bryant of Greenfield Township and moves to 80 -acre farm in what is today Dearborn. 1891 Secures position as engineer with the Edison Illuminating Company; returns to Detroit. 1893 Edsel Bryant Ford, only child of Henry and Clara Ford, born. 1896 Completes his first automobile, the Quadricycle, and drives it through the streets of Detroit. 1899 Ends eight years of employment with the Edison Illuminating Company to devote full attention to the many manufacture of automobiles. Made chief engineer and partner in the newly formed Detroit Automobile Company which produced only a few cars. 1901 Henry Ford Company organized with Ford as engineer.
Ford resigns over dispute with bankers in 1902 and the company becomes the Cadillac Motor Car Co. 1903 Ford Motor Company is officially incorporated. Ford's first Model A appears on the market in Detroit. 1908 Ford begins manufacturing the famous Model T. 1910 Begins operations at factory in Highland Park, Michigan. 1913 Introduces first moving automobile assembly line at Highland Park. 1914 Announces his plan to share the Ford Motor Company's profits with workers, paying them $ 5. 00 for an eight hour day. 1915 The Oscar II, Ford's "Peace Ship, " sets sail for Norway on a pacifist expedition to end World War I. 1917 Begins construction of industrial facility on the Rouge River in Dearborn, Michigan. 1918 Loses his bid for the U. S. Senate. 1919 Edsel B.
Ford, son of Henry Ford, is named president of Ford Motor Company 1921 Ford Motor Company dominates auto production with 55 percent of industry's total output. 1926 Focuses on air transportation and develops the Tri-Motor airplane. 1927 Transfers final assembly line from Highland Park plant to the Rouge. Production of the Model T ends, and the Model A is introduced. 1929 Dedicates his Edison Institute of Technology and Greenfield Village with a celebration of 50 years of the electric light. 1933 Successfully resists first efforts to unionize workers at Ford plants. 1937 "Battle of the Overpass" occurs between Ford security staff and United Auto Workers union organizers. As a result, the court orders Ford not to interfere with union activity. 1941 Ford Motor Company signs a contract with UAW. 1947 Henry Ford dies at age 83, at Fair Lane, his Dearborn home. Bibliography: Bibliography 1) Collier, Peter and David Horowitz. The Fords.
New York: Summit Books, 1987. 2) Head, Jeanine and Wllliam S. Pretzer. Henry Ford: A Pictorial Biography. Dearborn: 3) Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village, 1990. 4) Lacey, Robert. Ford: The Men and the Machine.
New York: Ballantine Books, 1986. 5) Lewis, David. The Public lane of Henry Ford: An American Folk Hero and His Company. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1976. 6) Nevins, Allen. Ford: the Times, the Man, the Company. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1954. 7) Nevins, Allen and Frank Ernest Hill.
Ford: Expansion and Challenge 1915 - 1932. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1957. 8) Nevins, Allen and Frank Ernest Hill. Ford: Decline and Rebirth 1933 - 1962. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1963.
Bibliography 1) Collier, Peter and David Horowitz. The Fords. New York: Summit Books, 1987. 2) Head, Jeanine and Wllliam S. Pretzer. Henry Ford: A Pictorial Biography. Dearborn: 3) Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village, 1990. 4) Lacey, Robert.
Ford: The Men and the Machine. New York: Ballantine Books, 1986. 5) Lewis, David. The Public lane of Henry Ford: An American Folk Hero and His Company. Detroit: Wayne State University Press, 1976. 6) Nevins, Allen. Ford: the Times, the Man, the Company. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1954. 7) Nevins, Allen and Frank Ernest Hill.
Ford: Expansion and Challenge 1915 - 1932. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1957. 8) Nevins, Allen and Frank Ernest Hill. Ford: Decline and Rebirth 1933 - 1962. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1963.
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