Henry Ford, The Boy Who Put the World on Wheels, by Norman Rockwell, 1951-1952

01

Artifact Overview

Norman Rockwell created eight paintings for Ford Motor Company's 50th Anniversary calendar project. Four of the paintings highlighted Henry Ford's past and his impact on the larger world, while the others focused on Ford Motor Company's present and future. In this painting, the young Henry Ford shows a skeptical village blacksmith his concept for an automobile.

Artifact Details

Artifact

Oil painting (Visual work)

Date Made

circa 1952

Subject Date

circa 1873

Place of Creation

Creator Notes

Painted by Norman Rockwell

Location

Not on exhibit to the public.

Object ID

64.167.1325.2

Credit

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

Material

Oil paint (Paint)

Technique

Oil painting (Technique)

Color

Multicolored

Dimensions

Height: 16.438 in (framed)
Width: 16.875 in (framed)

02

Related Artifacts

  • {x.objectKey}-image
    Artifact

    Ford Home

    Henry Ford was born in this farmhouse on July 30, 1863. The house stood near the corner of present-day Ford and Greenfield Roads in Dearborn, Michigan. Ford grew up in the house and moved out at age 16 to find work in Detroit. He restored the farmhouse in 1919 and moved it to Greenfield Village in 1944.
03

Related Content

  • Music Sheet for the Song "Over There," with Cover Illustration by Norman Rockwell, 1918
    Set

    Norman Rockwell in the Collections of The Henry Ford

    • 14 Artifacts
    This selection of material represents the span of Norman Rockwell's entire working life, from the 1910s to the 1970s. While The Henry Ford's collections contain a few original illustrations, most of its holdings are works in reproduction used for advertising, magazine and book covers, and greeting cards.
  • Henry Ford, Edsel Ford and Henry Ford II: Ford, Three Generations, 1953
    Set

    Ford Motor Company and Norman Rockwell

    • 16 Artifacts
    Henry Ford II, president of Ford Motor Company, commissioned a calendar from the celebrated American illustrator Norman Rockwell to commemorate the company's 50th anniversary in 1953.