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The future industrialist was born on July 30, 1863 on his father’s farm near the town of Dearborn (Michigan). Parents William Ford and Marie Litogot emigrated to America from Ireland. The boy was brought up with three brothers and two sisters.

His father and mother worked hard on the farm and were considered wealthy people. But Henry was sure that when managing the household, there was much more work than the fruits of labor, so he did not seek to continue the work of his parents.

The boy was educated only in a church school and did not even learn to write without errors. When Ford became the head of the company, he could not correctly draw up a contract. Once in a newspaper, an industrialist was called «ignorant», which is why Ford sued the publication. But the inventor was sure that the main thing for a person is not literacy, but the ability to think.

When he was 16 years old, Ford went to Detroit and became a student in a mechanical workshop. Four years later, Henry returned to the farm, where during the day he worked on the housework, and at night he worked on inventions. To facilitate his father’s daily work, Ford created a thresher that worked on gasoline. Given the demand for such equipment, a buyer was soon found. Henry sold the invention patent to Thomas Edison, and then got a job at the company of this famous entrepreneur.

In 1891, Ford again went to Detroit to become a mechanical engineer at the company of Thomas Edison. Henry held this position until 1899, but in his free time he continued to work on creating a machine. Ford did not just do what he liked, but lived on the idea of ​​creating an affordable car. In 1893, Henry managed to achieve a result — he designed his first car.

The Edison company management did not support the employee’s hobbies and recommended abandoning incredible undertakings. Instead, in 1899, the future industrialist left his job and became one of the owners of the Detroit Auto Company. But here he did not stay long and after three years left the company due to differences of opinion with other co-owners.

At this time, the invention of the young entrepreneur was not in great demand. To get the attention of customers, Ford drove around the city in his car. At the same time, Henry was often ridiculed and called names «obsessed» from Begley Street. But he was not afraid of failures and despised the fear of losing. In 1902, Ford participated in motor racing and managed to get ahead of the current US champion. The inventor’s task was to advertise the car and demonstrate its dignity, and the guy achieved the desired result.

In 1903, a businessman created the Ford Motor company and began to design Ford A cars. The inventor wanted to provide customers with a universal machine that would be reliable and economical. Ford gradually made the design of the machine much simpler, standardized various mechanisms and parts. The inventor first used the conveyor for the production of machines, which was a real innovation. A talented businessman has achieved a breakthrough in the automotive industry and has taken a leading position in this industry.

Henry Ford was not afraid of difficulties and fought even the most powerful opponent. When Ford Motor faced a syndicate of car manufacturers, a young businessman resisted. Back in 1879, George Selden got a patent for the design of the car, but did not realize it. When other companies began to manufacture cars, the inventor began to go to court. After the first case won, a number of companies bought licenses from him and created an association of car manufacturers.

A talented inventor became successful in 1908 when he produced his car. Even Ernest Hemingway chose his car, converted into an ambulance.

Ford Motor sales grew rapidly, as Ford cars were of high quality, but inexpensive. At the same time, the cost of Ford-T has fallen over the years: if in 1909 the price of a car was $ 850, then in 1913 it fell to 550.

Gradually, the industrialist purchased mines, coal mines and opened new plants. So Ford has achieved a full production cycle: from ore mining to the production of finished machines. As a result, the businessman created an entire empire that was not dependent on other companies and foreign trade. By 1914, Ford produced 10 million cars or 10% of all cars in the world.

Henry Ford tried to improve working conditions in factories. Since 1914, workers’ wages have risen to $ 5 a day. But in order to receive such money, employees pledged to spend it wisely. If the earnings were spent on drinking, then the employee was fired.

The enterprises were set to work in three shifts of 8 hours, instead of two for 9 hours. Also, the entrepreneur introduced one day off and paid leave. Although workers were required to maintain strict discipline, thousands of people were attracted to good conditions, and Ford was not short of staff.

In the early 1920s, Ford sold more cars than all competitors in the aggregate. Of the ten cars sold in the United States, seven are manufactured by Ford. During this period, the industrialist began to be called the «automobile king.»

In the early years of the Great Depression, Ford’s company kept steady afloat, but in 1931 the crisis affected Ford Motor. The decline in sales and increased competition forced Ford to close part of the plants again and lower the salaries of the remaining workers. The indignant crowd began to break through to the Rouge factory, the police dispersed people only with weapons.

Once again, Ford found a way out of a difficult situation thanks to a new invention. The industrialist introduced the Ford V 8, a sports car whose speed reached 130 km / h. The new product allowed us to resume the full-fledged work of the company and increase sales.

In 1887, Henry Ford married Clara Bryant, the daughter of an ordinary farmer. «Automobile King» lived with Clara amicably and happily. The wife became a reliable support for the talented inventor. Bryant believed in her husband when the townspeople laughed at him and his colleagues criticized him. Ford once said that he would like to live another life only if he could marry Clara again.

Ford had only one son, Edsel who later became the chief assistant to his father. When Henry Ford was old he couldn’t manage the company at the proper level, and therefore two years later he lost the reins to his grandson, Henry Ford II. The outstanding inventor died on April 7, 1947 from a brain hemorrhage. At that time Ford was 83 years old.

Literature

1. Henry Ford. «My life, my achievements».
2. Henry Ford. «My life».
3. стофактов.рф