Workers Installing Engines on Ford Model T Assembly Line at Highland Park Plant, 1913
THF91696 / Workers Installing Engines on Ford Model T Assembly Line at Highland Park Plant, 1913
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Artifact Overview
One worker at Ford's Highland Park Plant connects a Model T driveshaft to its transmission, while another lowers an engine onto the chassis using a chain hoist. This 1913 assembly line was relatively crude -- workers pushed or pulled vehicles to each station. The next year, Ford would install chain-driven, moving assembly lines to improve efficiency and increase productivity.
Artifact Details
Artifact
Photographic print
Subject Date
1913
Place of Creation
Creator Notes
Photographed by Ford Motor Company Photographic Department.
Collection Title
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Object ID
84.1.1660.P.833.198
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Ford Motor Company.
Material
Paper (Fiber product)
Technique
Gelatin silver process
Color
Black-and-white (Colors)
Dimensions
Height: 8.25 in
Width: 10 in
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Related Content
SetHenry Ford: Assembly Line
- 25 Artifacts
Ford constantly tweaked Model T assembly lines at its Highland Park plant for efficiency. In 1914, wheels and radiators were conveyed to a platform and slid down ramps for installation on the same line. By 1925, wheels (with tires already mounted and inflated) were conveyed directly to workers, who installed them on both sides of the chassis at once.