Born in 1875 in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, Irving Bacon received his early art training from Joseph Gies at the Art School of the Detroit Museum of Art. Much of his early work concentrated on illustrations and cartoons, and often his artwork reflected the influence of his travels to the American West. From 1894 to 1900 he worked as an illustrator at the Detroit Evening News and the Detroit Free Press. He first met Henry Ford through a mutual acquaintance in 1898, when he rode to Royal Oak and ...

This collection is mainly composed of photographs, drawings, and some correspondence related to Bacon's career with the Ford Motor Company and the Edison Institute. The series within this collection are accordingly arranged to the different aspects involved with the work of Henry Bacon. There are five series in the collection, the Golden Jubilee painting, Irving Bacon personal materials, Greenfield Village and Henry Ford Museum, Henry Ford related work, and D...