Henry Ford

Henry Ford was a central figure of the American automobile industry and a founder of the Ford Motor Company. He did not invent the car, but in the early twentieth century he cut costs dramatically through the moving assembly line, interchangeable parts, and mass production, bringing the Model T to a much wider market.

Ford’s practices reshaped manufacturing organization and helped define “Fordism.” His labor policies, social views, and business methods were also complex and contested, making him a major subject in the history of twentieth-century industry.