The Henry Ford
The Henry Ford Showroom of Automotive History
Learn about automotive history as you browse the collection of The Henry Ford Museum. Enter the showroom to see a complete profile on some of the most important cars ever made, from the 1896 quadricycle to the 1986 Taurus.
Famous Scientists
Famous Scientists: Henry Ford
Learn about the life of the famous inventor Henry Ford in this article.
The Henry Ford
Henry Ford Museum: The Innovator and Ford Motor Company
This resource briefly explains how, with the development of the Model T, the Ford Motor Company became the largest automobile manufacturer in the world during the early 20th century.
Library of Congress
Loc: Today in History: July 30: 1932 Olympics & Henry Ford
Interesting pieces about the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles and about Henry Ford and his impact on society. Includes great photos of early athletes and automobiles.
The Henry Ford
Henry Ford Museum: Smart Fun Online: Model T Road Trip
This collection of lesson plans and activities are for fourth through eighth graders. Lessons revolve around the automobile and its place in American society, the Model T Ford, and Henry Ford.
PBS
Pbs: Who Made America?: Innovators: Henry Ford
One-page profile of influential innovator, Henry Ford, whose vision and ideas created low-cost forms of production that made cars affordable to the average American.
John Wiley & Sons
John Wiley & Sons: Henry Ford and the Model T
This site from John Wiley & Sons examines Henry Ford and the Model T. It provides an in-depth description of how Henry Ford solved production challenges and worker shortages. Read about the other automobile companies that survived in...
Siteseen
Siteseen: American Historama: Henry Ford and the Model T
Henry Ford created the Model T car, the first affordable automobile, and in 1913 introduced mass production of automobiles.
Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
Harcourt: Biographies: Henry Ford Biografia (Espanol)
A brief biography of Henry Ford. Ford's great ideas were to improve the inventions around him and to produce them very efficiently. Good links to pictures and other information.
Library of Congress
Loc: America's Story: Automobile Manufacturer Henry Ford
This Library of Congress timeline series discusses Henry Ford, whose automobiles and manufacturing process made the "horseless carriage" affordable to every American.
Ohio State University
Osu History Teaching Institute: The Automobile
This lesson will help students understand the different ways in which the automobile changed American society. Students will learn about Henry Ford, whose innovations transformed manufacturing and made automobiles affordable for...
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Mit: Inventor of the Week: Henry Ford
This site from MIT Invention Dimension is a brief profile of Henry Ford focusing on the Assembly Line.
Independence Hall Association
U.s. History: The Age of the Automobile
Henry Ford's use of the assembly line to manufacture his automobiles led to many ramifications. Read about the spin-off industries created by the growth of the automobile industry, and see what impact the auto had on culture.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: Biography of America: Los Angeles (Impact of the Automobile)
Find a short essay that discusses the impact of the automobile on the growth of Los Angeles and its suburban districts during the 1920s.
The Henry Ford
Henry Ford Museum: The 1896 Duryea: The First Production Automobile in America
The Henry Ford Museum showcases the 1896 Duryea, one of America's first gasoline-powered automobiles.
Other
Grosse Pointe Historical Society: The Ford Family
Article discussing the Ford Family, with portions on Edsel Ford.
PBS
Pbs: Ford Installs First Moving Assembly Line
A look at the history of the assembly line discusses how the use of this tool was initiated by Henry Ford in his Automobile plant.
University of Michigan
National Endowment for the Humanities: Automobile in American Life and Society
An interactive website that looks at all aspects of the automobile in American life. Teacher and student resources are included.
University of Michigan
Automobile in American Life and Society: Sociological Department
Read a brief description of the purpose of the Sociological Department of Ford Motor Company as it tried to improve the living conditions of employees of the company.
Other
Bryant University: The Five Dollar Day
The Ford Sociological Department was established to administer Henry Ford's plan for a five dollar a day salary for employees working eight hour days. Discover the benefits and problems this plan created.
Annenberg Foundation
Annenberg Learner: A Biography of America: The Twenties 1913 1929
How would you describe the 1920s? The decade was called the Roaring Twenties, the beginning of modern America. Take a look at the economic prosperity, prohibition, popular culture, and the invention of the automobile, then you decide, a...
The Henry Ford
Early 20th Century Migration: Transportation: Past, Present and Future [Pdf]
A teacher's guide and unit plan that explores the migration of people from within and to the United States in the early 20th century up to the present day, many of them to work in the automobile factories in the northern US. Additional...
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: The Impact of Technology: Cars
This video segment adapted from A Science Odyssey looks at the invention of the automobile and the development of mass production. [4:21]
Other
National Museum of Industrial History
Explore these exhibitions, previously located in the Smithsonian Institute, which feature the great Americans who contributed to the industrialization of the United States beginning with the nation's centennial celebration. Plan a trip...