At the start of the 20th Century, there were 8,000 cars in the US and 25,000 worldwide. By 1985 there were more than 375 million cars worldwide (“Car”). One company that changed the way of car production was The Ford Motor Company. The owner of this company was named Henry Ford. He was born on July 30, 1863, and died on April 7, 1947, (Gelderman). Ford came up with an idea where he would just make one car model called the Model T so he could mass produce cars. He did this so that he would use the same types of materials and save money. Doing this also reduced waste because he used the same materials every time. On October 1, 1908, Ford successfully produced the first Model T. In 1914 the assembly line was created and that made it possible …show more content…
One big change was the way Americans got their food. In 1948, a small burger shack called In-N-Out was built in California (Barksdale). In-N-Out was the first fast food restaurant where people would drive up to a window and order. The idea of this restaurant came from Texas. The waiters came out and asked for a person's order in their cars, then brought the food out for them. These were called Pig Stands. In-N-Out became a hit, and not long after, another fast food restaurant opened up called McDonalds. By the 1980’s there were many fast food places opened up like Jack n the Box and Wendy’s. Fast food restaurants were all over the US and became an American crave. Not long after fast food came out banks and pharmacies started to have drive throughs as well, this made getting prescriptions and getting money out of a bank account more convenient. Cars made it possible for these restaurants and places to open up in the first place, and if cars never existed then these fast food places would never have opened up and the way Americans eat would have changed …show more content…
Cars may be loved by all Americans around the US, but what people don't think about is the negative effects cars have. One major effect that cars create is pollution. Cars run off of gasoline, and when the gasoline is being used, the car emits the exhaust through the exhaust pipe. This gas that is released has a huge impact on the environment because it pollutes the air we breathe. Not only that, but it affects the atmosphere's ozone layer which protects Americans from harmful gases. Without the ozone layer the world would not be sustainable to live on. Another thing the pollution from the cars causes is global warming. Pollution affects the earth's temperatures, which can affect places that are usually cold. So, even though cars have many positive effects on Americans pollution is one negative effect cars have on the
Ford hired Fredrick Taylor, a motion study expert, to evaluate and refine the efficiency of his factories after years of trying to find ways himself (History.com, 2009). Taylor took what he saw in the factories to make a more efficient workforce while Henry Ford developed tools and equipment to help with a better flow of the workforce. Together, they realized four distinct things from other smaller businesses that they wanted to immolate and bring to the big stage. These four principles were the use of interchangeable parts, division of labor, continuous flow, and reduced wasted effort (Science Odyssey, 1998). With these four principles in mind and the dream to produce a more cost efficient vehicle, Henry Ford and Fredrick Taylor created the first large scale assembly line in 1913 (Goss, 2014). This assembly line was able to transfer the time it took to build a single Model T from twelve hours to a mere two hours and thirty minutes (History.com, 2009). With its eighty-four distinct steps in the flow of the assembly line, a division of labor was created where a worker could be trained to do one specific task making him more efficient at that task and able to do a much better job (History.com, 2009). Secondly, having interchangeable parts that would could be used between any model of Ford allowed Henry to focus on machinery that would produce these
With the success of the assembly line, Ford was very please however he had a bigger goal set. Ford wanted to produce cheap cars for the common people to use. Ford made many different types of cars and experimented with each of them. They were all good but not good enough. After many different models, Ford achieved his goal with his invention of the Ford Model T. The Model T was a fully functional compact automobile with a good transmission and torque as well as comfort and size. Apart from that, the most important aspect of the Model T was that is was extremely cheap. As Sobel states,”...the model T was only worth $290 in 1924.” This was a huge
The automobile industry put American citizens into action. Mass production was a big component in the success of automobiles. Although successful, it became very repetitive. Skilled workers who were once worshipped, were no longer needed. Henry Ford was described as racist, bitter, but he brought success to citizens in the 1920s. Ford started the Ford Motor Company in 1903 with the help of a limited amount of workers in a shed. It was not until 1914 where custom-made cars turned into many cars, such as the Model T, moving down an assembly line. The Model T was a very popular car that benefitted cheap labor and easy mobility for its owners. Ford became a billionaire from the help of the federal government’s actions. At this point, the government decided that funds should be spent more on roads. Automobiles introduced
When you think about Ford, an automobile will usually come to mind. Most people don’t think about the man behind that name, Henry Ford. Henry Ford was the man responsible for the Ford Motor Company (FMC). He was also the creator of the invention that changed the mass production industry, the assembly line. As you read on you will learn about Henry Ford’s life, the FMC, and the assembly line.
There is no doubt that Henry Ford had a strong impact on America during the Progressive Era. His Ford Motor Company revolutionized mass production and consumerism through his development of the assembly line. However, many people were opposed to the routinized unskilled labor he employed that caused many of the workers to be easily replaceable. Despite this, Henry Ford still contributed heavily to society. Ford employed thousands of workers at salaries that were unprecedented for that day to those who he thought qualified for them thereby redistributing his own fortune and improving the lives of the lower class. The gospel of wealth describes how “people of great wealth… had not only great power but also great responsibility to use their riches
Automobiles play a major role in today's society. Almost every American owns at least one motorized transportation vehicle. Some say they make our lives better by reaching places faster than before. Others say they are a harmful to the environment. Have they made our society better or worse? They may be fast, but do we as humans want our environment to suffer because of time. Face it, cars pollute. And they release destructive chemicals into the air. Air pollution can threaten the health of many subjects in the environment including human beings.
A motor car for the great multitude a goal for Henry Ford(Schlager 593). In the 1920s, automobiles are rapidly changing the American lifestyle forever because of their affordability and also the development of new assembly technology to lower the cost. Technological innovations of assembly begin to expand and advance for the better throughout the 1920s, which impacts Americans and the people of the world today. Henry Ford, a bold figure during the 1920s, owner of Ford automobiles. His ideas and innovation like the assembly line forever changes the automobile and the way goods are produce. Although there are many technological advancement during the 1920s, the assembly line designed by
When Americans get into their vehicles every day to go to work or school, they do not normally think about how much transportation has evolved over the years. People started out walking and then later moved to horse and buggies. During the early 1800’s, railroads were being built from east to west in this country and trains began to take over. As cities grew, people looked for ways to travel more efficiently. The work of Henry Ford made a lasting impact on America in regards to both transportation and manufacturing.
The automobile industry made owning an automobile more available to the public. Factories began producing cars in higher numbers than one craftsman would ever be able to. “The first automotive production on a commercial scale began in France in 1980, but the United States in the 1900’s became equal to the European automobile factories. The Europeans used engineering and handcraft methods, while the U.S. had plants that used the assembly line” (The History). Frank Duryea of Springfield, Massachusetts developed the first gasoline powered automobile in the United States, and over the next twenty years 8 million cars were manufactured and sold (Clayton 501). On the other hand, Henry Ford’s first working gasoline engine was completed at the end of 1843, and “by 1896, he had completed his first horseless carriage, the Quadricycle, so called because the chassis of the four- horsepower vehicle was a buggy frame mounted on four bicycle wheels” (Curley 165). Ford revolutionized factory production with his assembly line methods (Curly 163). The assembly line remained hard on laborers, required them to perform routinely repetitive tasks for hours on end. To retain workers, Henry Ford paid workers five dollars a day, and employees only work eight hour days. Mass production techniques rapidly increased worker productivity and output, allowing more cars to be made and to sell for less money. By the 1920’s, the number of registered vehicles rose over fifteen million, because of Henry Ford’s assembly line, which made manufacturing automobiles more time efficient and less costly, making automobiles less expensive. In 1929, Ford, who was one of Thomas Edison’s greatest admirers, asked him to design a battery for a self-starter, to be introduced on the Model T, which was Ford’s car for the common man (Curley 139). At the time of his death in 1947, Henry Ford’s
The 1920 's were a time where North America became modernized. Whether it was the music, the culture or the growth in technology, this time era is known to most people as the point where America advanced itself to become a world renowned country. An advancement that will be focused on is the Ford Model T. During this time owning a car was a symbol of wealth. Henry Ford, the creator of the Model T, made a system that revolutionized the automobile industry as we know it today. Henry Ford made it possible for people with an average income to own a motor vehicle by creating the assembly line and the theory of mass production. "The horse, which had been the chief means of land transportation for 3,500 years, had given way to the automobile, and
In 1908 Henry Ford had constructed the Model T; the time it took him to create this automobile was 13 days. Now eager to achieve more, Ford knew that he needed a place to construct these cars. He also knew that to sell mass amounts he would have to sell cheap, and buy parts and supplies even cheaper (Douglas, 25). The construction of the first Ford Motor plant used the world’s only conveyer belt. This was part of the Fords plan to build fast, when he constructed the assembly line cars were pumped out in as fast as 15 minuets, this was down from 19 days. Ford was able to make the automobile a car for everyman, a working man with a family.
First, cars pollute the environment. In 2012 the EPA reported that a whopping 28% of emissions came from transportation. As it says in the article “Running off the Road”, by Grover Kingsley, “With their largely petroleum based fuel, cars constantly spew carbon monoxide into the air.” We are responsible for the
In 1896, Ford constructed his first model for a horseless carriage, the Ford Quadricycle. After attending a meeting with executives and proposing automobile ideas, Thomas Edison encouraged to build another model. Seven years later, after continuing to strive for improvement, Ford established the Ford Motor Company and his first car was assembled. Back then, only two or three cars were produced in one day, and it took the effort of groups of men. Ford wanted a more efficient production assembly, and that was when the Model T was born. Ford created the system of paying workers a steady wage to guarantee their loyalty, and moving assembly lines for mass production, which included interchangeable parts. This idea of efficiency revolutionized the American
When trying to make connections between democracy and capitalism, and how they play a role in our everyday society, looking closely at the emergence of a powerful company can be very informative. Throughout the documentary Henry Ford American Experience, we are introduced to the humble beginnings of the one well-known company in today’s society, the Ford Motor Company. With the in-depth account of the creator himself, Henry Ford and the focus on the labor practices used in his company, one can understand how the establishment came to be.
A man that went by the name of Henry Ford, once said, “I invented nothing new. I simply assembled the discoveries of other men behind whom were centuries of work…” The Ford Motor Company is an American continental automobile maker founded by Henry Ford on June 16, 1903. During the 1920s, this firm marketed automobiles that were reliable, low-cost, easy-to-operate and easier-to-fix device for the masses (Rise of the Automobile). In addition, the Ford Motor Company led the world into the expansion and refinement of the assembly line; revolutionizing our society to greater heights through its mobile products. Meanwhile, the company’s contributions benefited society through the means of the renovation of the suburbs and the invention of new services. Like no other during the 1920s, the Ford Motor Company supplied to the boom of innovations; marking its footprint to a superior society.