Celebrating 90 -- Collecting through the Decades: 1970s

In The Henry Ford's unmatched collection of presidential vehicles, none is more significant than the 1961 Lincoln Continental that carried President Kennedy through Dallas in 1963. Following his assassination, the car was rebuilt with numerous protective features and put back into service. The Henry Ford acquired the limo in 1978 and first exhibited it--alongside its 1939 and 1950 predecessors--in 1981. -Matt Anderson, Curator of Transportation

John Rust invented a wet-spindle system for mechanically picking cotton in 1928. By 1933 his machine picked five bales per day (2,500 lbs). Peter Cousins, Curator of Agriculture, wanted one of Rust’s machines, and Allan Jones agreed to donate his 1950 picker, named "Grandma," in 1975. Twenty years of life intervened before the picker arrived at The Henry Ford in January 1995. -Debra Reid, Curator of Agriculture and the Environment

In the 1970s, curators worked to bring Henry Ford Museum's considerable tool collection into the 20th century. As part of that effort, staff wrote to power tool manufacturer Black & Decker for information about its history and most important products. The company responded with a donation of five electric power tools, including this example of Black & Decker's first portable circular saw. -Saige Jedele, Associate Curator, Digital Content

In 1970, the Museum purchased what was believed to be a rare and remarkable 17th century armchair. In 1977, a story broke about a woodworker who attempted to demonstrate his skill by making a similar chair that would fool the experts. Analysis proved the Museum's chair was the woodworker's modern fake. Today we use this chair as a teaching tool in understanding traditional craft techniques. -Charles Sable, Curator of Decorative Arts

In 1970, a Henry Ford Museum fire destroyed objects on exhibit and in storage--including many quilts. Curators soon began to fill the void. An exceptional acquisition in 1972 brought ten quilts made by Susan McCord--an Indiana farmwife with an extraordinary sense of color and design. This distinctive vine pattern is a McCord original. Her quilts remain among the most significant in the collection. -Jeanine Head Miller, Curator of Domestic Life