Henry Ford

1863-1947

American Businessman

Although he did not invent the technology that made him famous, Ford's profound impact on American culture cannot be underestimated. The development of the automobile, which opened up the nation for its people, and the assembly line, which established mass production as the mechanism for economic power, were perfected by Ford. Both transformed American life. Under Ford's leadership, the automobile went from a luxury to a necessity and inaugurated the "car culture."

Born in Dearborn, Michigan, in 1863, Henry Ford had an aptitude for machinery. However, it was the sight of a coal-fired steam engine in 1876 that set in motion his later triumphs. By age 16, leaving the family farm against his father's wishes, Ford apprenticed in a machine shop in Detroit. He found the work inspirational, and was especially interested in the new gasoline-powered internal combustion engines, which had been developed by German engineer Karl Benz (1844-1929). Ford was hooked.

After three years in the machine shop, he joined the Westinghouse Engine Company as a part-time employee, spending his off hours in a machine shop of his own. His free time also allowed him to travel around Detroit asking questions of its best engineers. In 1896 he produced a two-cylinder, four-cycle engine that generated four horsepower. Ford mounted the engine on a borrowed chassis with four bicycle wheels, and called it the Quadricycle. It was a huge success. People clamored for Ford's invention and wanted to try it for themselves. He sold his first machine for $200, then built a second one, bigger and more powerful than the first. Backed by investors, Ford opened the Detroit Automobile Company (soon reorganized as the Henry Ford Company), the first car manufacturer in what would come to be called the "Motor City."

Ford entered his cars in races and soon won a reputation for speed, setting new records in the process. His success brought more investors' money into the company, beginning the close union between the auto industry and racing.

Over the years, this alliance led to improvements in car design and technology, benefiting the industry as a whole.

In 1902 Ford left the company he'd founded, and started the Ford Motor Company in 1903. The company produced eight different models, and within five years made 100 cars a day. During this time Ford bought many out many of his original investors, and by 1908 owned 58% of the company. Ford's dissatisfaction with the small number of cars produced was growing—he wanted to produce 1,000 a day. He announced that the company would reduce its production to one type, the Model T. "I will build a motor car for the great multitude," he proclaimed. The way to make them affordable, he said, was "to make them all alike, to make them come through the factory just alike." Stockholders were furious, but since Ford controlled 58% of the company there was little they could do.

In the fall of 1908 the first Model T rolled out. The car had several new features that made it more negotiable on country roads, and the engine was encased for protection. Ford set the price at $825, which he knew was expensive, but he believed the price would fall through assembly line technology. With Ford in control, efficiency became the keystone of his operations. For 20 years, Ford produced black Model Ts, and only Ts (often called the "Tin Lizzie" or "flivver").

Ford sold 11,000 cars from 1908 to 1909, then outdid himself with the 1910 model, selling 19,000. Sales skyrocketed, reaching 248,000 in 1914, or nearly half the U.S. market. The heavy demand for cars forced Ford to pioneer new methods of production. He built the largest and most modern factory in America on a 60-acre tract in Highland Park in Detroit.

Ford, preaching modern ideas of efficiency, introduced the continuously moving assembly line. He tinkered with the process until he found the exact pace his workers could handle. Chassis production dropped from 6 hours to 90 minutes. The one millionth Model T was built in 1916. Highland Park churned out a phenomenal 2,000 cars a day.

As he predicted, the price of Model Ts soon fell to $300, giving Ford 96% of the inexpensive car market. Ford next focused on labor problems. He instituted profit-sharing and a bonus system, but it was the "five-dollar day" in 1914 that really took hold.

Ford workers had an eight-hour workday, shorter than the industry average. This allowed the factory to run three eight-hours shifts a day. More importantly, Ford paid workers a basic wage of $5 a day, eclipsing the industry's usual $1.80 to $2.50. The move made Ford a national hero, and his legend approached cult status. He represented the all-American success story. By 1921 nearly 5.5 million Ford automobiles had been built.

A stern man, Ford changed with the outbreak of World War I. His attempts to orchestrate an end to the fight made him look like a maniac. In 1918 he won the Michigan Democratic nomination for a U.S. Senate seat but lost the general nomination by a small margin. Next, he bought the Dearborn Independent, a local newspaper, and used it as a mouthpiece for his racist and isolationist views.

After the high-water mark of the early 1920s, the Ford Company began to slip. A new 1,100-acre factory, the River Rouge complex in Dearborn, opened and marked Ford's attempt at vertical integration. The size and sprawl of the Rouge proved too much for Ford. Personality clashes with subordinates left the company a virtual one-man operation, which proved dreadful.

The Model T also looked outdated by the late 1920s. Stylish models from General Motors and Chrysler forced Ford to drop the car and replace it with the Model A. Just when Ford began regaining market share, the Depression hit and spelled doom.

The outbreak of World War II also hurt Ford's image. At home, he intimidated his workers through campaigns of espionage and subversion against labor unions. His fuzzy pro-Hitler remarks and turn to isolationism led many to label Ford a Nazi apologist.

Ford died in 1947, just as suburbanization and a reinvigorated car craze swept the nation. Although he did not invent the automobile, Ford is most closely linked to its glory. By allowing the masses to purchase cars, he set in motion the creation of a car culture in the United States. In a nation linked by a spiderweb of roads and highways, shopping plazas and fast-food joints, Ford's influence on popular culture is felt daily.

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