Inside Willow Run Ford Village Industry Plant Powerhouse, February 1940
THF92178 / Inside Willow Run Ford Village Industry Plant Powerhouse, February 1940
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Artifact Overview
In the 1920s and '30s, Henry Ford located small hydroelectrically powered factories throughout rural southeast Michigan. Built in 1939, the Willow Run plant differed from other "Village Industries." Instead of local residents, boys from Ford's nearby Camp Willow Run -- which provided income and life-skills training for underprivileged teenagers -- worked here, supplying door and ignition locks and keys for Ford's passenger cars.
Artifact Details
Artifact
Photographic print
Subject Date
12 February 1940
Place of Creation
Collection Title
Location
By Request in the Benson Ford Research Center
Object ID
P.188.27241
Credit
From the Collections of The Henry Ford. Gift of Ford Motor Company.
Material
Paper (Fiber product)
Linen (Material)
Technique
Gelatin silver process
Color
Black-and-white (Colors)
Dimensions
Height: 7.5 in
Width: 11 in
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SetHenry Ford and Hydropower
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In 1921, Henry Ford conceived a project on the Tennessee River near Muscle Shoals, Alabama. He proposed to lease two federally owned fertilizer plants and a hydroelectric dam for 99 years at a cost of $5 million, modernizing the facilities while they were under his management. Objectors voiced concerns about private control over public resources. Ford withdrew his proposal in 1924.