Plant Engineering Construction Photographs Series

This series contains photographs taken by Ford Motor Company photographers to document the growth of the company around the country. It mainly includes construction photographs of factories, railroad stations, and Dearborn, Michigan buildings.

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Biographical / Historical Note

Ford Motor Company photographers were dispatched across the country to document the growth of the company evident in construction projects large and small. A large number of the images are progress photographs documenting the construction of Ford Motor Company automotive assembly plants, service and repair structures, and manufacturing facilities. Particularly well represented is the construction, repair, and renovation work at the Highland Park Plant in Michigan.

Construction in non-automotive areas include views of the construction of a Detroit, Toledo, and Ironton Railroad passenger station; several hydro-electric power stations and airplane factories and hangars in Dearborn, Chicago, and Cleveland. Dearborn, Michigan projects included in the series are the Dearborn Inn, Dearborn Country Club, the Edison Institute and Greenfield Village (now The Henry Ford), and the Ford Motor Company's Dearborn Engineering Laboratory. The series is also a good source for images of many of the Ford Village Industries, Chicago and New York world's fairs buildings, and several dealerships.

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Scope and Content Note

The Plant Engineering Construction Photographs series is arranged alphabetically by city; all cities are in the United States. The alphabetical listing ends with Oklahoma City. Highland Park, MI occurs in its alphabetic arrangement and following Oklahoma City at the conclusion of the collection. The Lincoln Plant in Detroit, Michigan is arranged alphabetically under "L" for Lincoln. While the bulk of the photographs were taken between 1921-1945 it should be noted that the years 1913-1916 are also well documented.

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Collection Details

Object ID: 64.167.721.0
Creator: Ford Motor Company. Photographic Department
Inclusive Dates: 1913-1953
Size: 16.8 cubic ft.
Language: English

Collection Access & Use

Item Location: Benson Ford Research Center

Access Restrictions: The collection is open for research.

Credit: From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Ford Motor Company.

Keywords

United States, Michigan, Big Bay

United States, New York, New York City, Flushing Meadows-Corona Park

United States, Illinois, Chicago, Burnham Park

United States, California

United States, Colorado

United States, Florida

United States, Georgia

United States, Illinois

United States, Kentucky

United States, Michigan

United States, Minnesota

United States, Missouri

United States, Nebraska

United States, New Jersey

United States, North Carolina

United States, North Dakota

United States, Ohio

United States, Oklahoma

United States, Pennsylvania

United States, Tennessee

United States, Texas

United States, Virginia

Photographs

Photographic prints

Negatives (Photographs)

Design and construction

Henry Ford (Organization)

Digitized Artifacts From This Collection

In many cases, not all artifacts have been digitized.
Contact us for more information about this collection.

Aerial View of Construction Progress, Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant, Charlotte, North Carolina, March 1924

Aerial View of Construction Progress, Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant, Charlotte, North Carolina, March 18, 1924

Details

Aerial View of Construction Progress, Ford Motor Company Assembly Plant, Charlotte, North Carolina, March 18, 1924

View in our Collectionson thehenryford.org

Artifact

Photographic print

Date Made

18 March 1924

Summary

Starting in 1912, Ford Motor Company opened domestic assembly plants throughout the United States. Assembling automobiles closer to regional markets reduced shipping costs -- parts were cheaper to ship than completed automobiles. Ford established a branch in Charlotte, North Carolina, in 1914. Ten years later the company built a modern one-story assembly plant designed by Albert Kahn. Automobile assembly ceased at this plant in 1933.

Creators

Unknown