Automobile Plant Construction Photographs
The Automobile Plant Construction Photographs consist of 136 black-and-white photographic prints of images taken during construction of the Ford Motor Company Rouge River Plant located in Dearborn, Michigan, and of a Chevrolet Service Parts Division building located in Saginaw, Michigan.
Biographical / Historical Note
Floyd V. Mow was a construction superintendent for Albert Kahn Associates during the period of construction of the Ford Motor Company Rouge River Plant, and possibly beyond. It is assumed that Mr. Mow collected these photographs during his time with Kahn.
Scope and Content Note
The Automobile Plant Construction Photographs collection (0.4 cubic ft.) consists of 136 black-and-white photographic prints of images taken during construction of the Ford Motor Company Rouge River Plant located in Dearborn, Michigan, and of...
MoreThe Automobile Plant Construction Photographs collection (0.4 cubic ft.) consists of 136 black-and-white photographic prints of images taken during construction of the Ford Motor Company Rouge River Plant located in Dearborn, Michigan, and of a Chevrolet Service Parts Division building located in Saginaw, Michigan. Both of these buildings were designed by Albert Kahn Associates. The images of the Rouge Plant construction date from February to March, 1918, and the images of the Chevrolet building construction date from October, 1940 to April, 1941.
Also included in the collection is a small portrait of the collector, Floyd Mow.
LessCollection Details
Object ID: 2012.47.0
Creator: Mow, Floyd V.
Inclusive Dates: 1918, 1940-1941
Size: 0.4 cubic ft. (1 box)
Language: English
Collection Access & Use
Item Location: Not Currently On Exhibit
Access Restrictions: The photographs are open for research.
Credit: From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Digitized Artifacts From This Collection
In many cases, not all artifacts have been digitized.
Contact us for more information about this collection.
Rouge Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
The first vehicles built at Ford Motor Company's Rouge factory weren't automobiles but boats. These Eagle boats were designed to challenge German submarines during World War I, but they saw only limited action before the armistice. Workers laid the first Eagle's keel on May 7, 1918. Sixty boats were completed when production ended in October 1919.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.113
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Rouge Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Rouge Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
The first vehicles built at Ford Motor Company's Rouge factory weren't automobiles but boats. These Eagle boats were designed to challenge German submarines during World War I, but they saw only limited action before the armistice. Workers laid the first Eagle's keel on May 7, 1918. Sixty boats were completed when production ended in October 1919.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.117
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Rouge Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Rouge Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Henry Ford started purchasing land near the mouth of the Rouge River in 1915. He envisioned a new factory complex with access to water transportation and room to grow -- two things missing at Ford's Highland Park plant. Construction of the new Rouge factory started in 1917 and, in a sense, never stopped during Henry Ford's lifetime. Improvements and additions were constant.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.119
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Rouge Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Shipyard View of South End of New "B" Building
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Henry Ford started purchasing land near the mouth of the Rouge River in 1915. He envisioned a new factory complex with access to water transportation and room to grow -- two things missing at Ford's Highland Park plant. Construction of the new Rouge factory started in 1917 and, in a sense, never stopped during Henry Ford's lifetime. Improvements and additions were constant.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.120
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Shipyard View of South End of New "B" Building
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Construction is underway at Chevrolet's Service Parts Division plant in Saginaw, Michigan, in this 1941 photo. This new building was designed by Albert Kahn, among the most influential industrial architects of the early 20th century. Kahn's airy reinforced concrete structures were popular with automakers. He also counted Packard, Ford, Hudson, and Dodge Brothers among his clients.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.125
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Construction is underway at Chevrolet's Service Parts Division plant in Saginaw, Michigan, in this 1941 photo. This new building was designed by Albert Kahn, among the most influential industrial architects of the early 20th century. Kahn's airy reinforced concrete structures were popular with automakers. He also counted Packard, Ford, Hudson, and Dodge Brothers among his clients.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.126
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Construction is underway at Chevrolet's Service Parts Division plant in Saginaw, Michigan, in this 1941 photo. This new building was designed by Albert Kahn, among the most influential industrial architects of the early 20th century. Kahn's airy reinforced concrete structures were popular with automakers. He also counted Packard, Ford, Hudson, and Dodge Brothers among his clients.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.131
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Construction is underway at Chevrolet's Service Parts Division plant in Saginaw, Michigan, in this 1941 photo. This new building was designed by Albert Kahn, among the most influential industrial architects of the early 20th century. Kahn's airy reinforced concrete structures were popular with automakers. He also counted Packard, Ford, Hudson, and Dodge Brothers among his clients.
Keywords
Object ID
2012.47.134
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Chevrolet Service Parts Plant Construction
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
Portrait of Floyd V. Mow, Superintendent for Albert Kahn, undated
Artifact
Photographic print
Summary
Floyd V. Mow was a superintendent for Albert Kahn Associates, among the most influential industrial architecture firms of the early 20th century. Kahn's airy and well-lit concrete buildings were particularly suited to automobile manufacture. The firm counted Packard, Ford, Hudson, Dodge Brothers and more among its clients. Kahn designed commercial and residential buildings as well.
Creators
Object ID
2012.47.1
Credit
From the Collections of the Henry Ford. Gift of the Mow Family.
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Get more details in Digital Collections at:
Portrait of Floyd V. Mow, Superintendent for Albert Kahn, undated
What is The Henry Ford?
The national attraction for discovering your ingenuity while exploring America’s spirit of innovation. There is always much to see and do at The Henry Ford.
