The Ford century in Minnesota
By: Brian McMahon
Publisher: University of Minnesota Press
Published: 2016
Language: eng
Number of pages: 363
ISBN-13: 9780816637195
Subjects: Automobile factories; History; Automobile industry and trade; Ford Motor Company; Automobile industry workers
Description: In 1903, before the Ford Motor Company was even incorporated, Stephen Tenvoorde signed a contract to sell ?Fordmobiles? at his bicycle shop in St. Cloud, Minnesota. Four generations later, the Tenvoorde family still operates what is now the oldest Ford dealership in the world. Brian McMahon chronicles how the fortunes of the company and the state became intertwined during that century. Ford assembled Model T cars in the world?s tallest automobile plant in Minneapolis and a three-story structure in St. Paul?both still standing. These factories quickly became functionally obsolete after the development of the moveable assembly line. The hunt for a new site to build a modern, single-story plant stirred intense rivalry between Minneapolis and St. Paul. Henry Ford took a rare personal interest in the search and selected a 125-acre parcel in St. Paul overlooking the recently built High Dam on the Mississippi River, which allowed for navigation and hydroelectric power. The Twin Cities Assembly Plant would go on to manufacture millions of cars, trucks, tractors, and military vehicles until its closure in 2011.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references and index.
Table of contents: title: Introduction: the Ford century; title: Model T for the Northwest Territories: Ford arrives in Minnesota; title: Drawn to the river: hydroelectric power, navigation, and a new plant in St. Paul; title: "The finest plant in the world": building the Twin Cities assembly plant; title: From Model A to M-8: the Great Depression and World War II years; title: Ascent of the autoworkers: the postwar boom and challenges; title: An uncertain industry: slumping sales, labor unrest, and the Ranger pickup; title: The end of the line: the closure of the Twin Cities assembly plant; title: Epilogue: moving on.