English 10
Mrs. Toman
March 29, 2011
Research Paper: Henry Ford
Imagine how life would be if our society did not have cars. Today, our society is dependent on cars for our daily routines. From transporting our food, clothes, and technology to just going to the store across the street, cars are a very important part of our society. In the 19th century, only the wealthy and upper middle class had access to automobiles, and they only used cars for fancy transportation and to show off their money. This was due to the extreme prices of cars in the 19th century. With these high prices not many people could afford them, especially not the working class. Henry Ford revolutionized the automotive industry in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. With Ford's devotion to mechanics, he perfected the assembly line, developed cheap cars for the common people, and sparked an era of mass production. Due to this, Ford paid higher and his contributions allowed the common people to have access to cars.
Ford's innovation of the assembly line transformed the automobile industry from just an expensive piece of fancy metal with wheels to a productive machine of American society. Many may assume that Henry Ford invented the assembly line, however, they were wrong. Henry Ford only improved it drastically and used it in his factories to produce better and faster. As Winfield states, “...the assembly line was not invented by Ford...he only perfected it to be used for mass production.” The assembly line allowed for production to increase in the factories. This was because everyone had a specific task within the factory. The worker was only focused on the one task they have which cut off confusion and delay in progress. “The assembly line reflects the principle of division of labor, which breaks up complex manufacturing jobs into smaller, specialized tasks,” states Amy Sue. The assembly line allowed Ford to produce more as well as to reduce