Henry Ford: Great American Figure

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Nothing is particularly difficult if you divide it into several small jobs. This is according to one great American figure, Henry Ford. Perhaps that was the basis of his great achievements. He ignited Americans’ love for cars. He revolutionized the American car automobile industry and perhaps that is why the Time Magazine dubbed him the “the father of the twentieth century American industry (Iacocca, 1998). The production of the Model T, a car that rocked America and dubbed “America’s Everyman Car” in 1908 was his novel idea. Model T was a car that would serve the interests of a wide class of people (Iacocca, 1998). And this aroused the popularity of the car in America. The car’s simplicity made the car of choice by engineers, yet marketing men preferred it just as much. The pioneer’s dream was mass production of Model T, but in essence, he wanted to see it bought in large numbers. Henry Ford realized that the secret to the success of the car was paying the workers well while producing more cars in less time and for less money, and he did exactly that. After all, you cannot build a reputation on what you will do (but on what you have done) as he was used to say (Iacocca, 1998).

Born in Michigan on July 30, 1863, Henry Ford was the son of a farmer (Olson, 1997). Common knowledge would have therefore have it that he would have developed into a consummate farmer, aping his father. Nevertheless, that was not the case. He left school at the age of 15 to work on his father’s farm but he must have realized that he was not destined to be a farmer. One year later, in 1869 he moved to Detroit to become an apprentice in a machine shop (Olson, 1997). His interest for machines must have developed while in this shop because he could spent his evenings repairing watches and clocks to supplement his low wage. Although he later returned to his father’s farm and was given 40 acres to develop, Ford’s interest was just not in farming. He was unable to settle in the farm and returned to Detroit where he got a job as an engineer for a company called Edison Illuminating Company. He also worked on part-time basis Westinghouse Engine Company (Olson, 1997). Perhaps his love for machines was developed by the freedom he had at his young age, working at the farm and handling small machines as a hobby. At that time, no one would have believed that “Ford” would one day become a house hold name across the globe, appearing as one of the world’s top car models. Conceivably, what could have inspired Ford most was his thought that one of the greatest discoveries that a man makes and surprises him most, is the realization that he can do what he initially thought he could not (Olson, 1997).

An innovative man, Ford launched the Ford Motor Company in 1903, and claimed the he would build a car for the multitude. The claim was not ill advised, for in October 1908, the first of the Model T cars was out and was on sale for $950 (McCarthy, 2007). However, since Ford wanted the “America’s Everyman Car” to be affordable and make the statement a reality, nineteen years into production the car was going for $280 (McCarthy, 2007). In deed, Model T became the car for the ordinary man and as McCarthy (2007), put it, the car model heralded the beginning of the Motor Age in America. Ford made the car to evolve from a luxury item and a preserve of the rich to an item of the ordinary man.

Aside from the car industry, America’s agriculture industry owes much credence to Henry Ford. Though was not specialized as a farmer, he did not loathe agriculture. The farms that developed in Detroit, growing what, alfalfa, dairy barns all pegged their technology on machinery made courtesy of Henry Ford. Thus, while Detroit become the “World’s automotive Industrial Centre,” it was also an enormous agricultural producer (Wik, 1972). Ford made significant scientific and technological contribution to Americas, particularly the rural areas, but the contribution cannot be accurately measured because the means of doing so are always unreliable (Wik, 1972). Henry Ford believed in science and technology and was of the opinion that sciences and technology was the panacea to progress. Therefore, he suggested that to improve efficiency in the agricultural industry, man had to embrace the use of machines. Thus, the tractor had to replace the horse and machines had to replace cows (McCarthy, 2007).

It is difficult to explain and account for all of Ford’s contributions to America, but from the farm to the automotive industry and to the farm again, for put America on the road. Today, the Ford car and tractor are machines that stand as a force to reckon with in the fight for supremacy in the automotive industry.

The sales of Ford car were extraordinary. By the year 1914, Ford’s Michigan plant was able to turn out a complete car chassis every 93 minutes. Given the technology that was available at that time, this was not a usual occurrence. Nevertheless, it was an improvement from the earlier production time of 728 minutes (McCarthy, 2007). Another of ford’s achievements was the use of constantly moving assembly line, specialization of labor and careful coordination of activities. These were very new ideas ion the automotive industry (McCarthy, 2007). While most employees in America were lowly paid (‘Bibliography of Ford’, 2008), ford bought a revolution. In 1914, he was paying his employees five dollars a day, nearly double what other employees were earning. In addition, he cut the work day from nine hour to eight in order to create a three-shift workday.

Although Ford was an innovative man and one who embraced science, he was not fond of spending time with professional scientist of his time. He eschewed scientific organizations and never attended meetings of professional scholars. He respected scientific scholars and would seek their advice, but he did not make them friends. Instead, his personal friends were the practical, individuals like him who believed in the work of their hands and had common touch such as Thomas Edison and Luther Burbank.

In spite of his choice of friends, Henry Ford did not live without controversy. He was often criticized of saying words that outran his deeds (Jeffrey, 1980). Moreover, some people claimed that he got fame because he had more money than he could invest. Still others accused him of being ignorant of culture and that lacked sympathy for philanthropy. That aside, he opposed the First World War even participated in a forum to discuss ways in which the war could be avoided. Nevertheless, he became interested in politics but failed to win a senate seat in 1918. Ford again opposed the Second World War at its initial stages, but it is interesting that the ford plant at Willow Run produced over 8000 bombers that were used in the war. According to Wik (1972) Ford died on April 7, 1947, two years after USA had bombed Japan in the world’s first atomic bombing.

Works Cited

Bibliography of Ford Henry. Web.

Jeffrey Z (1980) Henry Ford History Prentice Hall: New York.

Iacocca, L. Henry Ford. Time magazine Monday, Dec. 7, 1998.

McCarthy, T. (2007). Auto Mania: Cars, Consumers, and the Environment. Yale: Yale University Press.

Olson, S (1997). Young Henry Ford: A Picture History of the First Forty Years. Wayne: Wayne State University Press, 1997.

Wik, 1972, R M (1972). Henry Ford and Grass-roots America. Michigan: University of Michigan Press.

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Henry Ford: Great American Figure

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