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Highland Park: 1914

Circa 1914. "Ford Motor Company plant, Highland Park, Detroit." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.

Circa 1914. "Ford Motor Company plant, Highland Park, Detroit." 8x10 inch dry plate glass negative, Detroit Publishing Company. View full size.

 

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More likely 1912

The power plant building in this image (far left) appears in its "1912 vintage" here. It would be expanded in late 1912, early 1913 to include the second much larger 5,000 hp (dual 2500 hp gas engines). By 1914 work would have begun to expand it even more so that eventually eleven engines would be there- the first 1500 hp engine built in Oil City at Riverside Engine Company, then the 5000 hp "gas only engine" built in Hamilton, Ohio then nine gas-steam power plants beginning late 1914 through 1916. My grandfather was the draftsman to the designer of the engines and the building (Edward Gray)- along with many design ideas that Albert Kahn incorporated into the plant. From the 1912 "Ford Factory Facts" booklet sent out to dealers and handed out to visitors of the plant.

Still in Use

This building has recently been a warehouse and the grassy area in front is now a strip mall

Unwittingly (?) brilliant

The photogapher may not have realized how prescient really this scene was. The 20th century ushered more advances thatn the prvious 19 centuries combined represented by the old and long-establish horse power being overtaken or gained on by the revolutionary horsepower. We have the contrast as well between the building on the left with its very modern appearance imparted by all the glass creeping into the scene dominated by the more traditional factory. Brilliant!

Keeping the dust down

I assume that the hose connections on the platforms next to the streetcar loops are for filling the water cars that sprinkled the streets to cut down on the dust.

On the pole in the centre of the photo is a switch box for the trolley wires.

Faster, faster

John, can't you make this horse go any faster? Destiny is starting to catch up to us.

Whoa Nellie!

I will bet that no one missed the humor of what appears to be a horse and buggy having just won the race with an automobile in front of the Ford plant.

Horse - Then Car

Poignant arrangement of the elements, I like it. There's a horse-drawn carriage, followed by a new-fangled automobile, and all in front a a fairly new (Albert Kahn?) designed plant.

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