Past Forward

Activating The Henry Ford Archive of Innovation

Monthly Archives: June 2020

We hope you enjoyed this week’s experiences focused on Be Empathetic. Were you inspired to create or invent something? Please share your story or photos with us on social media using #WeAreInnovationNation!

If you missed anything from our series this past week, check out the recordings and resources below. We hope that you will join us this upcoming week to explore new themes drawn from our Model i Learning Framework, focusing on why innovators need to Stay Curious.

What We Covered This Week
Why is it important to consider other's feelings?

STEAM Stories
Our STEAM story of the week was Cara’s Kindness by Kristi Yamaguchi, Olympic Gold Medalist and World Champion in Figure Skating. Kristi founded the Always Dream Foundation and helps promote early childhood literacy.  In this, her newest picture book, Cara the cat is having a hard time choosing the perfect music for her new skating routine but drops everything to help a friend in need. All Cara asks is that he pay it forward.

Then we learned about the many ways we combine Paper and Natural Materials with a lesson from  our early childhood curriculum, Innovate for Tots and a coloring page featuring Edison’s Bamboo Filament Lamp.  Watch the video here.

Innovation Journeys Live!

On Wednesday we hope you were able to join us for an Innovation Journey Live and our new Learn by Doing component.  Curator of Agriculture and the Environment at The Henry Ford, Deb Reid, shared the story of reclaiming the Rouge River after decades of pollution and how the Ford Rouge Dearborn Plant is caring for the environment in new and innovative ways.   Then Alex demonstrated how you can make your own river system!  The materials and directions are included below.  Watch the video here.

Be Empathetic: Caring for the Environment at The Ford Rouge
Materials

  • Rectangular baking pan
  • Wedge-type object to prop up one side of the pan
  • Dirt or sand
  • Plastic toys, sticks, grass, leaves that you have at home
  • Water
  • Cup

Build your own river system!
To help you understand how humans changed the shape of the Rouge River and how these shifts impacted the environment around the Rouge, use household materials to create your own mini-river system. Take it a step further by drawing a map of your river.

Directions

  1. Fill a baking pan with dirt or sand.
  2. Use your hands to cut (or dredge) a path through the dirt. Make sure to start at one end of the pan and end at the other.
  3. Use your wedge object to prop up one side of your pan. Only about an inch.
  4. Place toys (leaves, pieces of grass, etc.) along the sides of your path – these are your houses, buildings or crops.
  5. Fill a cup with water. Slowly pour the water onto the start of your river. Watch as the water flows.
    1. Where does the water go?
    2. Why do you think the water went that direction?
    3. Did some of your houses flood?
    4. Were your crops washed away?
    5. What can you do the prevent the flooding?
  6. After making some observations, “dredge” a new path for your river. Try again!
  7. Once you have made your river, draw a map!

For next week’s challenge, here are the materials you will need and the directions (watch Alex on Wednesday to help you complete the challenge!!)

Stay Curious
John McLoughlin JR.’s skillful use of new color printing techniques

Materials

  • Hard flat surface that can be used with paint. For example:
    • Upside down baking tray covered in aluminum foil
    • Cardboard covered in aluminum foil
  • Paper
  • Paint – washable, acrylic, or watercolor
  • Empty toilet paper roll
  • Popsicle sticks

Make your own print studio at home!
To help you understand how John McLoughlin and other artists created print works, use household items to create your own print studio.

Directions

  1. Ask your parents to help you find a paint friendly zone.
  2. Put small drops of paint all over your hard, flat surface. This will be your “tile.”
  3. Use the toilet paper roll to roll the paint evenly over the surface.
  4. Time to get creative! Create a design using your popsicle stick. Scrape away the paint to create pictures or words.
  5. Carefully set the paper on your design.
  6. Smooth and press your paper gently onto the tile.
  7. Slowly lift your paper up to see your design.
  8. Repeat!

Resource Highlight: Model i Primer+
In our continued efforts to help parents, students and educators during these times of uncertainty, The Henry Ford is providing helpful tips that assist parents in adapting its educational tools for implementation at home.

This week we are highlighting a lesson from theModel i Primer+ .

The five lesson plans from our Model i Primer+, named after the Actions of Innovation, are designed as opportunities for students to practice the Actions and Habits introduced in the Primer. Each lesson includes age-appropriate versions for grades 2-5, 6-8, and 9-12.  In keeping with this week’s theme of Be Empathetic, focus on the Define: Achieving Clarity activity, found here.

Check out the activities for Define: Achieving Clarity and share your experience and follow others as they engage in our digital learning opportunities using the hashtag #WeAreInnovationNation.

Parents and educators can learn more about Model i at:   https://www.thehenryford.org/education/teaching-innovation/modeli/

 

 

 

Model i, innovation learning, educational resources

Introducing a New Learn by Doing Component

In our continued efforts to help parents, students and educators, The Henry Ford is providing helpful tips that assist parents in adapting its educational tools for implementation at home and this week we are introducing a Learn by Doing component for our Wednesday Innovation Journey Live! 

We’ve been sharing the habits of an innovator from our Model i learning framework for the last few weeks and this week our focus is on how innovators must be empathetic.  This Wednesday we will be learning about Caring for the Environment at the Ford Rouge Plant with The Henry Ford’s Curator of Agriculture and the Environment, Deb Reid. 

Jessica Stock and Deb Reid will share the Innovation Journey of the Rouge with you and Alex Cavinee will share this Learn by Doing activity. The necessary materials and directions are included here so you can be prepared to join Alex and build your own river system!

Be Empathetic: Caring for the Environment at The Ford Rouge

Materials

  • Rectangular baking pan
  • Wedge-type object to prop up one side of the pan
  • Dirt or sand
  • Plastic toys, sticks, grass, leaves that you have at home
  • Water
  • Cup

Build your own river system!
To help you understand how humans changed the shape of the Rouge River and how these shifts impacted the environment around the Rouge, use household materials to create your own mini-river system. Take it a step further by drawing a map of your river.

Directions

  1. Fill a baking pan with dirt or sand.
  2. Use your hands to cut (or dredge) a path through the dirt. Make sure to start at one end of the pan and end at the other.
  3. Use your wedge object to prop up one side of your pan. Only about an inch.
  4. Place toys (leaves, pieces of grass, etc.) along the sides of your path – these are your houses, buildings or crops.
  5. Fill a cup with water. Slowly pour the water onto the start of your river. Watch as the water flows.
    1. Where does the water go?
    2. Why do you think the water went that direction?
    3. Did some of your houses flood?
    4. Were your crops washed away?
    5. What can you do the prevent the flooding?
  6. After making some observations, “dredge” a new path for your river. Try again!
  7. Once you have made your river, draw a map!

We hope you join us this Wednesday.

Model i, educational resources, innovation learning

thf145583
June 1955 magazine advertisement for the release of Lady and the Tramp. THF145583

Although this animated feature film received mixed reviews when it was first released on June 22, 1955, Walt Disney’s Lady and the Tramp has since become a classic.  It is beloved for its songs, its story, its gorgeously rendered and meticulously detailed settings, and its universal themes of love and acceptance—not to mention that scene with the spaghetti!  Numerous story artists and animators contributed their talents to creating this film, but it would take years before Walt Disney would finally give it his nod of approval. 

Unlike other Disney animated films of the time, Lady and the Tramp is not based upon a venerable old fairy tale or a previously published book.  Its origins can be traced back to 1937, when Disney story artist Joe Grant showed Walt Disney some sketches and told him of his idea for a story based upon the antics of his own English Springer Spaniel named Lady, who was “shoved aside” when the family’s new baby arrived.  Walt encouraged Grant to develop the story but was unhappy with the outcome—feeling that Lady seemed too sweet and that the story didn’t have enough action.  For the next several years, Grant and other artists worked on a variety of conceptual sketches and many different approaches. 

In 1945, the storyline took a drastic turn, which ultimately led to its final film version.  That year, Walt Disney read a magazine short story called, “Happy Dan, the Cynical Dog.”  Here, in the story of a cynical, devil-may-care dog, Walt found the perfect foil for the prim and proper Lady.  By 1953, the film had evolved to the point that Walt asked Ward Greene, the short story’s author, to write a novelization of it.  It is Greene—not Joe Grant—who received credit in the final film.  Walt couldn’t resist adding a personal tidbit to the story.  According to his telling of the story, the opening scene came from his own experience of giving his wife a puppy as a gift in a hat box to make up for having forgotten a dinner date with her. 

Interestingly, the spaghetti-eating scene was almost cut, as Walt Disney initially thought it was silly and unromantic.  But animator Frank Thomas had such a strong vision for the scene that he completed all the animation for it before showing it to Walt, who was so impressed he agreed to keep in the now-iconic scene.

thf8604
1955 charm bracelet of the dogs in Lady and the Tramp, likely a souvenir obtained at Disneyland. THF8604

Since the dogs were the main characters of the film, it seemed only natural to both show and tell the story from the dogs’ point of view.  The animators studied many real dogs to capture their movements, behaviors, and personalities, while the scenes themselves were shot from a low “dog’s-eye-view” perspective.

thf205154
A depiction of Main Street, U.S.A. at Disneyland from the 1955 Picture Souvenir Book to the park. THF205154

The film’s setting—early 20th century small-town America—referenced Walt Disney’s own return to his roots, particularly his growing up in the small town of Marceline, Missouri.  As the setting was coming to life on film, a real live 3D version of it was being constructed at Disneyland, Walt Disney’s new park in Anaheim, California.  Disneyland opened a mere three weeks after the film was released.

Although the setting hearkened back to the past, the filmmaking technique that Walt chose was typically state-of-the-art.  As Walt marked the growing interest in widescreen film technology, he decided this would be the first of his animated films to use CinemaScope.  To fill in the extra-wide space of this format, the animators extended the backgrounds—resulting in settings that are unusually breathtaking, detailed, mood-setting and, when the story called for it, filled with dramatic tension.  Unfortunately, many theatres were not equipped with CinemaScope, so Walt decided that two versions of the film had to be created, forcing layout artists to scramble to restructure key scenes for a standard format as well.  CinemaScope ultimately proved too expensive and did not last past the early 1960s.  But its influence on Lady and the Tramp lives on—a testament to Walt’s commitment to filmmaking innovation.

donna-lady-tramp
Although souvenirs related to Lady and the Tramp are hard to come by these days, I was thrilled to find these salt-and-pepper shakers and collectible pins over several visits to Walt Disney World.

I saw Lady and the Tramp when it was re-released in theatres in 1962.  I was nine years old at the time and I was completely enraptured.  The details and setting—from the frilly ladies’ dresses, dapper men’s suits, and overstuffed furniture inside Lady’s house to the horses’ clip-clopping down the cobblestone streets—seemed like old photographs come to life.  Taking in these details on the big screen as a girl, I was transfixed.  Is this where my interest in history began?

After seeing Lady and the Tramp at the movies, I also became obsessed with wanting a dog.  Not just any dog.  I wanted Lady, or a cocker spaniel as close to Lady as I could get.  I dreamed of her, drew pictures of her, transferred her personality onto the stuffed dogs I inevitably got as presents.  When I was in eighth grade, my parents finally relented.  One day my Mom surprised us and took us kids down to the animal shelter to get a dog.  It wasn’t a cocker spaniel.  But we did find a little golden-haired puppy that was a fine substitute. 

I don’t know that I thought much of Tramp when I was a girl.  He was wayward, a nuisance, too different.  But from my older perspective, I see that Lady meeting, and ultimately falling for, Tramp was really a symbol of what happens in your life.  Forced out of your comfort zone, broadening your horizons, seeing things from new perspectives, taking life’s curves with grace until, rather than resisting it, you accept it—even embrace it. 

Who knew, when I was a girl, that this movie was not just about dogs but about life? 

Note: The complete story of the making of Lady and the Tramp, including Joe Grant’s contributions, can be found in the bonus feature, “Lady’s Pedigree: The Making of Lady and the Tramp,” in the 50th Anniversary DVD of Lady and the Tramp.

Donna R. Braden is Curator of Public Life at The Henry Ford. 

by Donna R. Braden, popular culture, movies, Disney

The Henry Ford’s Model i learning framework identifies collaboration as a key habit of an innovator. When considering inspirational collaborators from our collection, Charles and Ray Eames immediately came to mind. So, as part of The Henry Ford’s Twitter Curator Chat series, I spent the afternoon of June 18th sharing how collaboration played an important role in Charles and Ray Eames’ design practice.  Below are some of the highlights I shared.

First things first, Charles and Ray Eames were a husband-and-wife design duo—not brothers or cousins, as some think! Although Charles often received the lion’s share of credit, Charles and Ray were truly equal partners and co-designers. Charles explains, "whatever I can do, she can do better... She is equally responsible with me for everything that goes on here."

eames-1
THF252258 / Advertising Poster for the Exhibit, "Connections: The Work of Charles and Ray Eames," 1976

So when you see early advertisements that don’t mention Ray Eames as designer alongside Charles, know that she was equally responsible for the work. Here’s one such advertisement from 1947.

eames-2
THF266928 / Herman Miller Advertisement, June 30, 1947, "Now Available! The Charles Eames Collection...."

And here’s another from 1952. I could go on, but I think you get the point!

eames-3
THF66372 / Wood, Plastic, Wire Chairs & Tables Designed by Charles Eames, circa 1952

For more on Ray’s background and vital role in the Eames Office, check out this article from the New York Times, as part of their recently-debuted “Mrs. Files” series.

Charles and Ray Eames were experimenting with plywood when America entered World War II. A friend from the Army Medical Corps thought their molded plywood concept could be useful for the war effort—specifically for a new splint for broken limbs. Metal splints then in use were heavy and inflexible. Charles and Ray created a molded plywood version and sent a prototype to the U.S. Navy. They worked together and created a workable—and beautiful—solution for the military.

eames-4
THF65726 / Eames Molded Plywood Leg Splint, circa 1943

Out of these molded plywood experiments and products came the iconic chairs we know and love, like this lounge chair.

eames-5
THF16299 / Molded Plywood Lounge Chair, 1942-1962

But Charles and Ray Eames wanted to make an affordable, complex-curved chair out of a single shell. The molded plywood checked some of their boxes, but the seat was not a single piece—not a single shell. They turned to other materials.

Around 1949, Charles brought a mock-up of a chair to John Wills, a boat builder and fiberglass fabricator, who created two identical prototypes. This is one of those prototypes—it lingered in Will's workshop, used for over four decades as a utility stool. The other became the basis for the Eames’ single-shell fiberglass chair.

eames-6
THF134574 / Prototype Eames Fiberglass Chair, circa 1949

Charles and Ray recognized when their expertise fell short and found people in other fields to help them solve design problems. Their single-shell fiberglass chairs became a rounding success. Have you ever sat in one of them?

eames-7
THF126897 / Advertising Postcard, "Herman Miller Furniture is Often Shortstopped on Its Way to the Destination...," 1955-1960

If you’ve been to the museum in the past few years, you’ve surely spent some time in another Eames project, the Mathematica: A World of Numbers…and Beyond exhibit. This too was a project full of collaborative spirit!

While those of us not mathematically inclined might have a hard time finding math fun, mathematicians truly think their craft is fun. Charles and Ray worked with these mathematicians to develop an interactive math exhibit that is playful.

eames-8
THF169792 / Quotation Sign from Mathematica: A World of Numbers and Beyond Exhibition, 1960-1961

Charles Eames said of science and play, “When we go from one extreme to another, play or playthings can form a transition or sort of decompression chamber – you need it to change intellectual levels without getting a stomachache."

eames-9
THF169740 / "Multiplication Cube" from Mathematica: A World of Numbers and Beyond Exhibition, 1960-1961

Charles and Ray Eames sought out expertise in others and worked together, understanding that everyone can bring something valuable to the table. This collaborative spirit allowed them to design deep and wide—solving in-depth problems across a multitude of fields.

Katherine White is Associate Curator, Digital Content, at The Henry Ford. For a deeper dive into this story, please check out her long-form article, “What If Collaboration is Design?”

 

Eames, women's history, Model i, Herman Miller, furnishings, design, by Katherine White, #THFCuratorChat

We hope you enjoyed this week’s experiences focused on Collaborate. Were you inspired to create or invent something? Please share your story or photos with us on social media using #WeAreInnovationNation!  

If you missed anything from our series this past week, check out the recordings and resources below. We hope that you will join us this upcoming week to explore new themes drawn from our Model i Learning Framework, focusing on why innovators need to Be Empathetic. 

What We Covered This Week
How can we work together to innovate? 

STEAM Stories
Our STEAM story of the week was One Love by Cedella Marley.  Adapted from the lyrics of one of her father’s most famous songs, Cedella uses Bob Marley’s One Love to show what can be accomplished when a community comes together to transform their neighborhood. 

Then we learned about the many ways we combine Metal and Glass with a lesson from our early childhood curriculum, Innovate for Tots and a coloring page featuring Lamey’s Diner. Watch the video here.

Innovation Journeys Live!
On Wednesday we hope you were able to join us for an Innovation Journey Live and learn the story behind Dan Gurney’s collaboration with Ford Motor Company to design the 1965 Lotus-Ford and win the Indianapolis 500 with The Henry Ford’s Curator of Transportation, Matt Anderson. Learn more about the team who changed racing forever. Watch the video here

#THFCuratorChat
Associate Curator Katherine White discussed the important role that collaboration played in Charles and Ray Eames’ designs. Learn more here.

Kid Inventor Profile

In our Friday segment we learned about young inventor, Arthur Zhang, a 9th grader at Winchester High School in Winchester, Massachusetts. His invention, AWARE - AI Enabled Web of Sensors for Anticipation of Ruinous Events, is an interconnected network of sensors that uses artificial intelligence to make predictions for natural disasters. Watch the video here.

Learn more below about how our Innovate Curricular activities can keep your child innovating here:
Resource Highlight: Model i Primer+, Invention Convention Curriculum
In our continued efforts to help parents, students and educators during these times of uncertainty, The Henry Ford is providing helpful tips that assist parents in adapting its educational tools for implementation at home.

This week we are highlighting lessons from both the Model i Primer+ and Invention Convention Curriculum:
The five lesson plans from our  Model i Primer+, named after the Actions of Innovation, are designed as opportunities for students to practice the Actions and Habits introduced in the Primer. Each lesson includes age-appropriate versions for grades 2-5, 6-8, and 9-12.  In keeping with this week’s theme of Collaborate, focus on the Design: Creative Focus activity, found here.

Check out the activities for Design: Creative Focus and share your experience and follow others as they engage in our digital learning opportunities using the hashtag #WeAreInnovationNation.

You can learn more about our Invention Convention Curriculum, just click on the link.  Invention Convention is a program open to students in grades K-12. The lessons teach students skills that will give young innovators the chance to design, build, and pitch an original invention to their peers and judges. Competitions are held at local or regional levels and those qualifying move on to state competition. State qualifiers can then compete at the Invention Convention U.S. Nationals held here at The Henry Ford.

Parents and educators can learn more about Model i at:   https://www.thehenryford.org/education/teaching-innovation/modeli/ 

Model i, educational resources, innovation learning

indy-500-sunliner
The 1953 Ford Sunliner, Official Pace Car of the 1953 Indianapolis 500. (
THF87498)

As America’s longest-running automobile race, it’s not surprising that the Indianapolis 500 is steeped in special traditions. Whether it’s the wistful singing of “Back Home Again in Indiana” before the green flag, or the celebratory Victory Lane milk toast – which is anything but milquetoast – Indy is full of distinctive rituals that make the race unique. One of those long-standing traditions is the pace car, a fixture since the very first Indy 500 in 1911.

This is no mere ceremonial role. The pace car is a working vehicle that leads the grid into the start of the race, and then comes back out during caution laps to keep the field moving in an orderly fashion. Traditionally, the pace car’s make has varied from year to year, though it is invariably an American brand. Indiana manufacturers like Stutz, Marmon, and Studebaker showed up frequently, but badges from the Detroit Three – Chrysler, Ford, and General Motors – have dominated. In more recent years, Chevrolet has been the provider of choice, with every pace car since 2002 being either a Corvette or a Camaro. Since 1936, the race’s winning driver has received a copy of pace car as a part of the prize package.

amelia-pacecar-1935
Amelia Earhart rides in the pace car, a 1935 Ford V-8, at the 1935 Indianapolis 500. (
THF256052)

Likewise, honorary pace car drivers have changed over time. The first decades often featured industry leaders like Carl Fisher (founder of Indianapolis Motor Speedway), Harry Stutz, and Edsel Ford. Starting in the 1970s, celebrities like James Garner, Jay Leno, and Morgan Freeman appeared. Racing drivers have always been in the mix, with everyone from Barney Oldfield to Jackie Stewart to Jeff Gordon having served in the role. (The “fastest” pace car driver was probably Charles Yeager, who drove in 1986 – 39 years after he broke the sound barrier in the rocket-powered airplane Glamorous Glennis.)

Ford was given pace car honors for 1953. It was a big year for the company – half a century had passed since Henry Ford and his primary shareholders signed the articles of association establishing Ford Motor Company in 1903. The firm celebrated its golden anniversary in several ways. It commissioned Norman Rockwell to create artwork for a special calendar. It built a high-tech concept car said to contain more than 50 automotive innovations. And it gave every vehicle it built that year a commemorative steering wheel badge that read “50th Anniversary 1903-1953.”

ford-999
Henry Ford’s 1902 “999” race car poses with the 1953 Ford Sunliner pace car on Ford’s Dearborn test track. (Note the familiar clocktower at upper right!) (
THF130893)

For its star turn at Indianapolis, Ford provided a Sunliner model to fulfill the pace car’s duties. The two-door Sunliner convertible was a part of Ford’s Crestline series – its top trim level for the 1953 model year. Crestline cars featured chrome window moldings, sun visors, and armrests. Unlike the entry-level Mainline or mid-priced Customline series, which were available with either Ford’s inline 6 or V-8 engines, Crestline cars came only with the 239 cubic inch, 110 horsepower V-8. Additionally, Crestline was the only one of the three series to include a convertible body style.

wcf-999
William Clay Ford at the tiller of “999” at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. (
THF130906)

Ford actually sent two cars to Indianapolis for the big race. In addition to the pace car, Henry Ford’s 1902 race car “999” was pulled from exhibit at Henry Ford Museum to participate in the festivities. True, “999” never competed at Indianapolis Motor Speedway. But its best-known driver, Barney Oldfield, drove twice in the Indy 500, finishing in fifth place both in 1914 and 1916. Fittingly, Indy officials gave William Clay Ford the honor of driving the pace car. Mr. Ford, the youngest of Henry Ford’s grandchildren, didn’t stop there. He also personally piloted “999” in demonstrations prior to the race.

As for the race itself? The 1953 Indianapolis 500 was a hot one – literally. Temperatures were well over 90° F on race day, and hotter still on the mostly asphalt track. Many drivers actually called in relief drivers for a portion of the race. After 3 hours and 53 minutes of sweltering competition, the victory went to Bill Vukovich – who drove all 200 laps himself – with an average race speed of 127.740 mph. It was the first of two consecutive Indy 500 wins for Vukovich. Sadly, Vukovich was killed in a crash during the 1955 race.

sunliner-side
Another view of the 1953 Ford Sunliner pace car. (
THF87499)

Following the 1953 race and its associated ceremonies, Ford Motor Company gifted the original race-used pace car to The Henry Ford, where it remains today. Ford Motor also produced some 2,000 replicas for sale to the public. Each replica included the same features (Ford-O-Matic transmission, power steering, Continental spare tire kit), paint (Sungate Ivory), and lettering as the original. Reportedly, it was the first time a manufacturer offered pace car copies for purchase by the general public – something that is now a well-established tradition in its own right.

Sure, the Sunliner pace car is easy to overlook next to legendary race cars like “Old 16,” the Lotus-Ford, or – indeed – the “999,” but it’s a special link to America’s most important auto race, and it’s a noteworthy part of the auto racing collection at The Henry Ford.

Matt Anderson is Curator of Transportation at The Henry Ford.

Indiana, 20th century, 1950s, racing, race cars, Indy 500, Ford Motor Company, convertibles, cars, by Matt Anderson

We hope you enjoyed this week’s experiences focused on Challenge the Rules. Were you inspired to create or invent something? Please share your story or photos with us on social media using #WeAreInnovationNation!  

If you missed anything from our series this past week, check out the recordings and resources below. We hope that you will join us this upcoming week to explore new themes drawn from our Model i Learning Framework, focusing on how innovators Collaborate . 

What We Covered This Week 
How can we challenge the way things are done to innovate? 

STEAM Stories 
Our STEAM story of the week was The Girl Who Ran: Bobbi Gibb, the First Woman to Run the Boston Marathon by Kristina Yee and Frances Poletti.  Bobbi wanted to run in the Boston Marathon but was told she couldn’t. She was told girls can’t run, especially in marathons, but Bobbi didn’t think that was fair. How did she Challenge the Rules to achiever her dream?   

Then we learned about the many ways we use fabric with a lesson from our early childhood curriculum, Innovate for Tots and a coloring page featuring the Hanks Silk Mill.  Watch the video here

Innovation Journeys Live!
On Wednesday we hope you were able to join us for an Innovation Journey Live and learn the connection between Women, Weaving and Technology with The Henry Ford’s Curator of Communications and Information Technology, Kristen Gallerneaux. Learn more about the role of women and punch card looms in the development of computer technology. Watch the video here

Kid Inventor
In our Friday segment we learned how 10th graders Bridgette Castronovo and Taylor McNeal from Kennesaw, Georgia, collaborated to create a Biodegradable Straw. As an alternative to polymer and paper straws, the team created a biodegradable straw by extracting cellulose pulp from corn husks to form a base and coating the base in a chitosan solution. Three different solutions and variations of blending times were tested to determine the best case for straw durability. Bridgette and Taylor were First-Place High School Division Winners at the K12 InVenture Prize Invention Convention.  Watch video here

Learn more below about how our Innovate Curricular activities can keep your child innovating here.

Resource Highlight: Model i Primer+, Invention Convention Curriculum
In our continued efforts to help parents, students and educators during these times of uncertainty, The Henry Ford is providing helpful tips that assist parents in adapting its educational tools for implementation at home.  

This week we are highlighting lessons from both the Model i Primer+ and Invention Convention Curriculum:

The five lesson plans from our  Model i Primer+, named after the Actions of Innovation, are designed as opportunities for students to practice the Actions and Habits introduced in the Primer. Each lesson includes age-appropriate versions for grades 2-5, 6-8, and 9-12. In keeping with this week’s theme of Collaborate, focus on the Uncover lesson. All you need for the lesson is a computer to access any historical photograph, such as those available on The Henry Ford website under Digital Collections.  

Check out the activities for Uncover and share your experience and follow others as they engage in our digital learning opportunities using the hashtag #WeAreInnovationNation.  

You can learn more about our Invention Convention Curriculum, just click on the link.  Invention Convention is a program open to students in grades K-12. The lessons teach students skills that will give young innovators the chance to design, build, and pitch an original invention to their peers and judges. Competitions are held at local or regional levels and those qualifying move on to state competition. State qualifiers can then compete at the Invention Convention U.S. Nationals held here at The Henry Ford. This week we focused on the Scamper activity.

Parents and educators can learn more about Model i at:   https://www.thehenryford.org/education/teaching-innovation/modeli/ 

educational resources, innovation learning, Model i

Seventh-gen-toilet-paper
In an ironic twist, one of the artifacts we were able to digitize remotely during the pandemic is this roll of toilet paper, on exhibit in Your Place in Time in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.

If you’ve visited our Digital Collections lately, you may have noticed they now feature more than 95,000 digitized artifacts. We’ve previously written about the process we use to digitize artifacts—as you might suspect, it involves lots of close physical contact with other human beings and with the artifacts themselves. Right now, during the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, this is not possible: some of our digitization colleagues whose work requires campus access are on temporary unpaid leave, and others whose work is more computer-based continue working from our basements, dining rooms, and dens.

Still, between March 14 and May 22, we added almost 3,300 new artifacts to our Digital Collections—all in the 10 weeks since decamping from our offices. But how can we continue to add new items to our Digital Collections without access to the actual collections themselves?

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Hallmark ""Owliday" Wish" Christmas Ornament, one of more than 700 Hallmark ornaments added to our Digital Collections during our remote work.

A lot of the answer is infrastructure. We’ve been digitizing our collections in a consistent way for almost a decade now, and over those years have built out a robust system to support adding hundreds of new items to our Digital Collections every day. Our collections database is available to us from home, and we have automated processes in place to pick up new items daily. We can do research on items, and add this information to our database, from home. But what about the images?

sample-book
A very modern-looking textile from a 1900-1901 sample book, digitized during the COVID-19 pandemic.

When we left campus, there were many objects we’d imaged in the last few months for ongoing projects that hadn’t yet been put online. We are continuing to work through this backlog, adding the images to our collections database and updating our cataloging so they can be reviewed and flagged for online use. Some notable additions in this category since mid-March are more than 700 Hallmark ornaments from the sizeable collection we acquired last year, nearly 200 items digitized through the William Davidson Foundation Initiative for Entrepreneurship (including trade cards and textile sample books), and more than 150 artifacts digitized through a grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS).

In addition, we have a number of collections that were already in digital format, whether natively or digitized by the collector, when they came to us. A sizeable example is the Dave Friedman Collection, which was partially scanned by Dave Friedman before being donated to us. There are now more than more than 32,000 auto racing photographs and documents from the Friedman collection in our Digital Collections—including the more than 1,000 we’ve added remotely.

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One of the many Dave Friedman Collection auto racing images we've added to our Digital Collections during the pandemic. This one shows the Chevrolet Corvette C1 driven by Dave MacDonald in the Production Sports Car Race before the 4th Annual Grand Prix for Sports Cars in Riverside, California, in 1961.

We also are lucky, as an institution in its 91st year of existence, to have a sizeable backlog of older images that are often quite acceptable (or can be made acceptable, by some strategic Photoshop work) for online access. We always prefer to get a new image of an artifact when possible—but during the pandemic, that has not been possible. So we’re combing through the existing images we have, whether those are scans of old black-and-white images from our first few decades, 20th century slides that were scanned later on, or images taken on 35mm film that have been transferred to digital format.

In this last category, artifacts with legacy images, to date we’ve had a couple of top priorities: 1) artifacts being utilized for our extensive series of online content and programming, and 2) artifacts that are on display in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation—since you can’t see these in person right now, you’ll at least be able to see them digitally! Since we left campus, we’ve added nearly 200 objects on exhibit in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation to our Digital Collections, bringing the total number of artifacts on exhibit in the museum that you can also see in our Digital Collections to more than 2,300—check them all out here. The recently added artifacts are mostly in Your Place in Time and Made in America, ranging from a Coty face powder box to an eight-track tape of Stevie Wonder’s Songs in the Key of Life. Next, we plan to tackle some of the many artifacts on exhibit in Greenfield Village, as well as items brought into our collection in the last couple of decades.

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Weaving You Can Wear, one of many books in Your Place in Time digitized recently from existing images.

Across all these categories, there are thousands of artifacts we can add to our Digital Collections without access to our collections—and we will continue working through them until we can safely return to The Henry Ford’s campus and are back up to full capacity. In the meantime, we invite you to dig into our Digital Collections to revisit your old favorites and maybe turn up some new surprises.

If you aren’t sure where to start, you might check out some Expert Sets we recently completed. Our curators selected artifact highlights from our collection in a number of focus areas, namely:

You can also find all of these sets, plus a search box and other ways to jump into the collection, on our Digital Collections homepage. Happy browsing!

Ellice Engdahl is Digital Collections & Content Manager at The Henry Ford.

21st century, digitization, digital collections, COVID 19 impact, by Ellice Engdahl, #Behind The Scenes @ The Henry Ford

1860s-dress
This vibrant dress was likely dyed using an early aniline purple dye. 
Dress, 1863-1870 (THF182481)

In 1856, British chemistry student William Henry Perkin made a groundbreaking discovery. Perkin’s professor, August Wilhelm von Hofmann, encouraged his students to solve real-world problems. High on the list for Hofmann (and chemists all over the world) was the need to create a synthetic version of quinine. The only effective treatment for the life-threatening malaria disease, quinine could only be found in the bark of the rare Cinchona tree. Just a teenager at the time, Perkin decided to tackle this problem in a makeshift laboratory in his parents’ attic while on Easter holiday. Perkin experimented with coal tar—a coal byproduct in which Professor Hofmann saw promise—and made his discovery. No, not the discovery of a synthetic quinine, but something altogether different and extraordinarily significant nonetheless.

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Wells, Richardson & Company "Leamon's Genuine Aniline Dyes: Purple," 1873-1880 (THF170208)

Perkin’s coal tar experiments resulted in a dark-colored sludge which dyed cloth a vibrant purple color. The purple dye was colorfast too (meaning it did not fade easily). He had discovered aniline purple—also known as mauveine or Perkin’s mauve—the first synthetic dye. Though this was not the medical miracle he had initially sought, he immediately understood the vast significance and marketability of a colorfast, synthetic dye.

Prior to Perkin’s discovery, natural dyes were used to color fabrics and inks and were derived primarily from plants, invertebrates, and minerals. Extracting natural dyes was time consuming and certain colors were rare. For example, arguably the most precious natural dye also happened to be a vibrant purple, called Tyrian Purple. This dye was found in the glands of several species of predatory sea snails. Each snail contained just a small amount of dye, so it took tens of thousands of sea snails to dye a garment a deep purple. Tyrian purple was so expensive that the very wealthy could afford to wear it. It’s no wonder purple was seen as the color of royalty!

aniline-dye-1

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Fabric Dye Swatch Book
, "Kalle & Co. Manufacturers of Aniline Colors," circa 1900 (THF286612 and THF286614)

William Henry Perkin turned out to be multi-talented, finding success both as a chemist and as an entrepreneur. By 1857, with the help of his family, he began commercially manufacturing his aniline dye near London. He first produced purple, but other colors soon followed. The water in the nearby Grand Union Canal was said to have turned a different color each week depending on what dyes were being made. In 1862, Queen Victoria attended the Great London Exposition in a gown dyed with Perkin’s mauve and the color took off. Newspapers even reported a “mauve mania” in the 1860s! These new synthetic dyes were affordable too and other manufacturers around the world began to produce them. By 1880, companies like The Diamond Dye Company of Vermont sold many colors of dye—from magenta to gold or even “drab”—for just 10 cents apiece.

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Trade Card for Diamond Dyes Company, 1880-1890 (THF214453 and THF214454)

Perkin’s discovery spawned an entirely new industry that transformed the world’s access to color. It is fitting that the very first synthetic dye created was purple—the color of Roman emperors and royalty could now be purchased for pennies. Louis Pasteur’s famous quote, “Chance favors the prepared mind,” characterizes Perkin’s serendipitous discovery well. His accidental discovery was far from simple luck – others may have dismissed it as a failed experiment. Instead, Perkin recognized the potential in his mistake and seized the opportunity to bring color to the masses.

Katherine White is an Associate Curator at The Henry Ford.

Europe, 19th century, 1850s, fashion, entrepreneurship, by Katherine White, #THFCuratorChat

This Father’s Day treat dad to two favorite dishes from our chefs at The Henry Ford – pulled pork from A Taste of History and pioneering cookbook author Fannie Farmer’s macaroni and cheese.

A Taste of History Pulled Pork
This true summertime favorite will take a little extra time, but it is so worth it. This will freeze and reheat well, so you can have many meals from it.

1 cup chili powder
½ cup ground cumin
½ cup garlic powder
2 tablespoons onion powder
2 tablespoons cayenne pepper
2 tablespoons black pepper
1 tablespoon ground coriander
1 tablespoon ground oregano
½ cup kosher salt
1 boneless pork shoulder (pork butt), about 8 pounds                    

Mix the dry ingredients together to make a spice rub. (This rub can be used to season almost anything that goes on a grill.) Generously coat the pork on all sides with the spice rub, then wrap it in plastic and refrigerate overnight. The next day, preheat the oven to 300 F. Place the meat in a covered baking dish, Dutch oven or roasting pan, leaving plenty of space around the meat. Add warm water until the pork is almost half submerged (the amount will vary according to the dish used). Bake for 5-6 hours or until fork-tender. If there is any doubt, let it cook longer. Once out of the oven, drain the liquid, reserving it for the barbecue sauce (recipe below), and let pork cool on the counter until easier to handle, about 1 hour. Using forks or tongs, shred the pork, but not too fine. Remove any large fat pieces.

A Taste of History Pulled Pork Barbecue Sauce

¼ cup olive oil
16 ounces sliced onions
2  12-ounce cans plum tomatoes
1 6-ounce can tomato paste
1 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon ground allspice
1 tablespoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon finely ground black pepper
1 teaspoon ground cloves
¼ cup kosher salt
½ cup apple cider vinegar
1 cup soy sauce
1 cup molasses
1 cup Worcestershire sauce
½ cup prepared mustard

While the pork is cooking, heat the olive oil in a large pot and cook the onions until tender. Add the rest of the ingredients and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat and simmer for an hour, whisking often. Add the reserved liquid from the cooked pork, first pouring off the fat from the top. While the barbecue sauce is still hot, pour it over the shredded pork and mix it in. Cover and keep warm until served.

Serve the pulled pork on your favorite burger buns, a baked potato, cornbread or by itself. Bread and butter pickles are a perfect side.

Fannie Farmer Mac and Cheese
½ pound butter
1 cup all-purpose flour
6 cups whole milk
Salt and pepper to taste
1 pound elbow noodles
3 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese, divided


mac-and-cheese
Preheat oven to 350 F. Melt butter in large saucepan. Add flour to butter, cooking until a very light tan while stirring constantly. Slowly add milk, stirring constantly. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Gently simmer for 15-20 minutes until flour taste is gone. Meanwhile, cook the noodles in salted water until tender; drain well. Combine the hot noodles, milk mixture and 2 cups of the cheese. Put into baking pan and sprinkle remaining cheese on top. Bake until cheese is lightly browned, about 10-15 minutes, depending on desired crispness. Enjoy immediately. It will also hold nicely for an hour if kept warm. 

summer, recipes, food