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Henry Ford | 1920s Era
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Henry Ford | 1920s Era
1863-1947
Biography of Henry Ford
Introduction of Henry Ford
Born in 1863, Henry Ford resided on a farm in Wayne County, Michigan, being the eldest of 6 children in his family.
In Henry Ford’s adolescence, he showed an interest in mechanics. By the time he was 12 years old, he spent most of his freetime in a small machine shop, then at 15 he constructed his first steam engine.
Henry Ford's Jobs before "Ford"
Henry Ford's
Apprenticeship
Henry Ford left his home for the city of Detroit where he did apprentice work as a machinist in multiple shops.
He completed his apprenticeship in 1882 & spent a year repairing & preparing Westinghouse steam engines in Southern Michigan.
In 1891, he joined the Edison Illuminating Company as an engineer. The company was founded by Thomas Edison (who would go on to mentor Ford and become his lifelong companion). In November 1893, he was promoted to chief engineer.
Henry Ford's Family
In 1888, Henry Ford married Clara Jane Bryant, whose father was also a farmer from Wayne County. In 1893, their first and only son, Edsel Bryant Ford, was born.
Ford's Family History
Ford's First Engine & Vehicle
Henry Ford’s career as an engineer of automobiles dates back to the winter of 1893 where his interest in combustion engines led him to build a one-cylinder gasoline engine model. The vehicle was composed of a four-horsepower engine which could only drive forwards.
This became the first Ford engine, starting his legacy on his company & powering his first vehicle. A later version of the same engine powered his prototype automobile, which was essentially just a horseless carriage, named the Quadricycle, completed in 1896.
Ford's First
Vehicle
Photo of the
Quadricycle
Ford's First Company
On August 19, 1899, he left Edison Illuminating Company and organized the Detroit Automobile Company with others. The company declared bankruptcy 18 months later. Meanwhile, Henry Ford began to engineer & build several racing cars. In one of the races, called Sweepstakes, he defeated Alexander Winton on a track in Grosse Pointe, Michigan on October 10, 1901.
One month later, Ford founded his second company, named the Henry Ford Company. He left that enterprise which would become the Cadillac Motor Car Company. In 1902, Henry Ford set a world record for the mile, covering the distance in 39.4 seconds in the winter of 1904. This was extremely impressive back then as our standards contrasting with automobiles today and back then were extremely different.
Ford's First Company
Ford Motor Company
The Beginning of "Ford Motor Company"
Henry Ford & 12 others invested $28,000 and established Ford Motor Company on June 16, 1903. The first vehicle built by the company was sold on July 15, 1903, making it the company’s first sale. This is where Henry Ford began to build his legacy & company that we know today as Ford.
Henry Ford owned 25.2% of the stock in the organization, listing him as the President & controlling owner in 1906. In 1919,
Henry’s wife, Clara Ford as well as his son, Edsel Ford, acquired the interest of all stockholders for a total of 105,820,894, making them the sole owners of the company. Edsel, who succeeded his father as president in 1919, occupied that position until his death in 1943, when Henry Ford returned to the post.
Ford's Impact on the Automotive Industry
Henry Ford's Recognition
Henry Ford invented several vehicles such as the iconic Model T which changed the automotive industry forever with the introduction of the moving assembly line to car production. His industrial innovations were extremely important due to the economic impact it had.
It was so impactful that the term “Fordism” came to refer to the mass production & consumption that they enabled. Henry Ford was seen as a powerful business figure. He produced several books describing his perspective on industry, society, and innovation.
The Ford Model T
One of the main reasons why Henry Ford was so iconic & successful in the 1920s Era was because of the Ford Model T. The Model T was introduced in 1908 and 15 million Model Ts were produced by 1927, setting a record for car sales.
Ford factories used to produce only 10-15 per month to thousands per month by 1911. By 1925, Ford was manufacturing around 9,000 vehicles per day. In 1913, the introduction of the moving assembly line production and its introduction to the Model T factory revolutionized the car industry and manufacturing more broadly.
The Ford Model T
The Assembly Line
The introduction of the assembly line shaped how we produce our vehicles today. This was just the root of all of our accomplishments with technology.
The Model T was nicknamed “Tin Lizzie.” It was reliable, cheap, and easy to maintain, which were factors that contributed to its major mass-market appeal. Ford intended to make the Model T consumer appealing & cheap.
Workers disliked the moving assembly line as it was boring, repetitive, & strictly timed. Many workers left to find jobs with competitors. This lead Ford to introduce the “$5 Day” in 1914.
At the time period, $5 was double what a factory worker could expect to earn in a day. Ford also reduced the shift length to eight hours, an hour less than the previous standard. Workers favored this idea.
This change led Ford to run three shifts per day, making the factory operations more efficient.
The Assembly Line
Photo of Ford's Assembly Line
Five Day Workweek
One of the most iconic systems that Ford introduced was in 1926, the five day work week, shutting down his factories on Saturday and Sunday.
These changes turned out to be remarkably competitive in the contemporary labor market, eventually giving the company a significant hiring advantage as well as increasing employee retention and quality of life.
Ford's Recognition | Conclusion
In 1946, Henry Ford was recognized by several major industry organizations for his achievements, including the first-ever Gold Medal award from the American Petroleum Institute. Ford died at the age of 83 in Dearborn, Michigan. on April 7, 1947.
Today, Ford Motor is worth $48.36B as of 2022. Ford Motor Company designs, manufactures, markets and services all varieties of cars, trucks, sport utility vehicles, electrified vehicles, and Lincoln luxury vehicles.