Henry Ford 1863-1947

Henry Ford's parents were immigrants from Ireland. They immigrated during the potato famine and settled in Michigan. His formal education was limited yet he was adept at working with machinery. He worked for the Detroit Edison company, advancing from machine-shop apprentice to chief engineer. At the age of 30, Ford built a gasoline engine and a few years later he built his first car.

Ford envisioned to incorporate ideas from other industries -- standardized parts as Eli Whitney had used with gun manufacturing, or assembly line methods George Eastman tried in photo processing -- to make the process more efficient. After 1913 demand for the affordable car soared as production went up. By the time Ford stopped making the Model T in 1927, 15 million had been sold, and Ford had become the leading automobile manufacturer in the United States.