Yet Another Legendary Story About Henry Ford

[Gene F]

"large expensive cars like the Model K" hmmmm, guess I don't recall that car. I imagine it was a protype?

[WTSHNN]

Originally Posted by Gene F

"large expensive cars like the Model K" hmmmm, guess I don't recall that car. I imagine it was a protype?

Nope. Was a production car. There's some myth and folklore about its demise but it was a good car.

This link tells some of the story. The blue car pictured is the late Tim Kelly's (he's driving in the first pic). Tim was an avid Model A'er who also branched into early Fords.

https://www.conceptcarz.com/vehicle/...d-model-k.aspx

[WTSHNN]

Originally Posted by Keith True

James had $11,900 to invest,and his sister put in $100.to make it an even $11,000.I would have to read it again to get the numbers exact,but I believe she took out $95,000 in dividends,and her payout at the end was around $262,000.Good return on a $100.investment by a schoolteacher.

In 1919 Rosetta sold back her stock to Ford, her initial $100 investment had grown to $641,142. That'd be $10.3 Million today. (Source: Henry's Lieutenants)

-Tim

[rotorwrench]

Charles Sorensen had the figures in his book about his 40-years with Ford Motor Co.

Henry's first motor company, "The Henry Ford Company", start up was taken over by the investors when they decided they didn't like the way Henry was running things. When Henry was out, the investors chose Henry Leland to repurpose the incomplete factory that was being built to manufacture Fords. Rather than sell it off, Leland talked them into building a car from his own engine design and that became the Cadillac Motor Company. Henry Leland started both Cadillac and Lincoln companies but GM bought out Cadillac in 1909 and Leland then formed Lincoln in 1917 just before the US involvement in WWI. The US economy went into recession in the years after WWI was over so Lincoln automobile sales fell off and he sold out to Henry Ford in 1922 to avoid insolvency. I'm sure Henry loved putting Leland out of the auto business. There had to have been a grudge there.

[gdmn852]

After Henry Ford bought out the investors, it became a family owned company until 1956 when they issued stock again,Ford could do what he wanted and not have to answer to investors to build the massive River Rouge plant. I can understand his reasoning, to be control steel making and all the other raw materials,would not be as likely to have to be dependent on outside suppliers, like the current computer chip shortage.

[Keith True]

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He bought the Keim Mills operation,in Buffalo N.Y. who had been stamping out the axle housings for the T.At that point he owned that part of his supply too.He operated that where it was for a couple of years,and when there was talk of a strike he simply shut the plant down.Within three days the presses were operating again,but they had been moved to Highland park.Along with that purchase came William Knudson,a huge asset,and in later years his son was a huge asset for Henry II.