Henry Ford's Automobile and It's Effects on American Culture Essay Example
Henry Ford’s Automobile & It’s Effects on American Society
Brian Miller
Professor Sheehan
10 December 2007
HIST 1120-03
Over the course of the 20th century, the automobile has gone from being an expensive toy of the rich, to being the standard for passenger transport in most developed countries around the world (Urry). Not unlike the effects of the introduction of Railways into society, automobiles have changed social interactions, employment patterns, goods distribution and the basic face of urban society. The automobile itself is a rather controversial issue. Supporters of the automobile claim that it is a “marvel of technology” that has brought about prosperity, while opponents aver it leads to urban planning that discourages walking and human interaction, uses non-renewable fuels, generates air and noise pollution, and facilitates urban sprawl and urban decay (Kay). It is also important to recognize the effects the industry of automobile production has had on the economy. Automobile producers emphasized principles of mass production, and Henry Ford himself was a pioneer of what’s called “welfare capitalism”; a system “designed to improve the lot of his workers and especially to reduce the heavy turnover that had many departments hiring 300 men per year to fill 100 slots. Efficiency meant hiring and keeping the best workers (Crowther).”
Henry Ford incorporated the Ford Motor Company in 1903 with 12 investors supplying him with only $28,000. By 1918 half of all cars in America were Ford Model T’s. The Ford Motor Company developed an assembly line which mandated that all cars produced were painted black because of the paint’s quicker drying time. Henry Ford writes that “any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black (Ford & Crowther).” By 1927, the total number of Model T’s produced was 15,007,034; a record which stood for the next 45 years.
On January 5, 1914 Henry Ford announced his new “five-dollar day” program
Brian Miller
Professor Sheehan
10 December 2007
HIST 1120-03
Over the course of the 20th century, the automobile has gone from being an expensive toy of the rich, to being the standard for passenger transport in most developed countries around the world (Urry). Not unlike the effects of the introduction of Railways into society, automobiles have changed social interactions, employment patterns, goods distribution and the basic face of urban society. The automobile itself is a rather controversial issue. Supporters of the automobile claim that it is a “marvel of technology” that has brought about prosperity, while opponents aver it leads to urban planning that discourages walking and human interaction, uses non-renewable fuels, generates air and noise pollution, and facilitates urban sprawl and urban decay (Kay). It is also important to recognize the effects the industry of automobile production has had on the economy. Automobile producers emphasized principles of mass production, and Henry Ford himself was a pioneer of what’s called “welfare capitalism”; a system “designed to improve the lot of his workers and especially to reduce the heavy turnover that had many departments hiring 300 men per year to fill 100 slots. Efficiency meant hiring and keeping the best workers (Crowther).”
Henry Ford incorporated the Ford Motor Company in 1903 with 12 investors supplying him with only $28,000. By 1918 half of all cars in America were Ford Model T’s. The Ford Motor Company developed an assembly line which mandated that all cars produced were painted black because of the paint’s quicker drying time. Henry Ford writes that “any customer can have a car painted any color that he wants so long as it is black (Ford & Crowther).” By 1927, the total number of Model T’s produced was 15,007,034; a record which stood for the next 45 years.
On January 5, 1914 Henry Ford announced his new “five-dollar day” program