The People's Tycoon

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Title: The People’s Tycoon – Henry Ford and the American Century

Author: Steven Watts

Publisher: Vintage Books 2006 (First published 2005)

ISBN: 978-0-375-70725-4

Pages: 536

Henry Ford revolutionized the way Americans commuted, providing a cheap way to travel comfortably. His Model T cars put what was till then a privilege of the moneyed class within the reach of ordinary folk. The book, written splendidly by Steven Watts, who is a professor of history at the University of Missouri, is a biography of the American legend of early 20^th century and how this down-to-earth man achieved so much from humble farm beginnings. It is not only a biography of Ford, but about the forces which were at play in the American social, economic and industrial spheres also, which culminated in the transformation of American civil society to a dizzyingly high standard of living when compared to other regions of the globe. Exploiting all avenues of competition and mass appeal provided by a democratic society, Ford successfully steered the organization he hatched from naught to the status of a huge conglomerate employing hundreds of thousands of workmen. The book examins in comprehensive detail the man, the germination of a successful idea in his mind, how he put it into effect, how he dealt with the employees – winning their hearts first with impressive pay hikes and then degenerating into thuggish practices to dissolve labour unions, and how his outlook and demeanour appealed to the common man, who were on his side for most of his career, except towards the end. What differentiates the book positively from other biographies is its focus on analysing the striking contrast between Ford’s actions in developing an essential urban milieu as a result of his industrial production and his inner conviction that society should once again go back to a rural landscape which provides avenues for industrial opportunities as well. Ford’s life and character made itself felt in three areas, 1) he was a prophet of America’s new consumer culture in the early 20^th century, 2) he played a key role in shaping the mass culture with consumer abundance and 3) he rooted innovation in the rich soil of populism, glorified the common man and made him the benchmark of achievement and growth.

Henry Ford was born the eldest son of William and Mary in 1863 at Dearborn, Michigan. He had only a semiofficial schooling, his mother tutoring him most of the time. When his beloved mother died in labour, he moved to Detroit, much against his father’s wish. With a natural flare for machines, he joined the Detroit dry dock company as a machinist. Soon after, he returned to Dearborn and settled in farm land gifted by his father and developed extensive working knowledge of steam engines for farm use. He experimented with nascent gasoline engines, along his much cherished desire of inventing a horseless carriage. He was selected as electrical engineer by Edison Illuminating Co in 1891 and moved back to Detroit. He continued his trials in spare time and in 1896, made ‘Quadricycle’, the first car built by him. Ford and others instituted the Detroit Automobile Co in 1899, but he couldn’t piece together a manufacturable prototype. The company soon wound up. In 1901, the Henry Ford Motor Co was formed for the same purpose, but this also was a nonstarter as Ford lost all interest in a cheap car and kept tinkering with a conceptual race car. He was ousted in 1902, the company later became Cadillac. Ford continued work on his brain child and developed a powerful racing car and set new speed records in the nascent industry. The fame helped him found the Ford Motor Company in 1903, with Model A reaching out to an enthusiastic society. However his indomitable individualism couldn’t stomach the control of his directors, who eventually had to go out of the company by selling their minority stakes to Ford. Model N soon followed, but his dream of putting together a sturdy, but lightweight and cheap car found realization in the Model T, introduced in 1908. This car sold millions and made the fortune of its successful designer.

A novel production technique, the ‘Assembly Line’ was first experimented in the company’s Highland Park factory in 1913 for producing Model T. Assembly line obviated the need for skilled workers – there was no need for workers to think about the work they were performing. This process attracted fierce criticism and ridicule from opponents like Charlie Chaplin whose film Modern Times make fun of the Assembly Line method. Whatever may be the tirades against it, Assembly Line shot up production from 82,000 units in 1913 to 585,000 in a few years. However, all was not smooth sailing for Ford. A patent issue threatened to stop the company which pleaded infringement of a peculiar patent called ‘Selden Patent’ which was really a very vague one. Every car maker was forced to pay royalty to an association of manufacturers who managed to obtain rights to the patent. Ford resisted the demands and got a favourable decree in a long legal battle. This proved to be publicity victory for him, as he seemed to successfully resist the attempts of big capitalists. Ford achieved the pinnacle of reputation in 1914, when he dramatically doubled the salaries of workers, claiming that they deserved more. A minimum of five dollars a day was guaranteed to every worker who was married or had to support aged parents. This ushered in a new era of five-dollar day in American industry, much to the chagrin of other industrialists. A sociological department was introduced in the Ford company, which monitored the workers – sometimes obtrusively, against drinking and domestic violence. They were also expected to live in a clean, sanitised place and was responsible for the well being of their children. The confidence he grabbed from these projects helped him to buy off minority stake from all such holders.

Ford began to dabble in politics during this period with his strong anti-world war I propaganda. His pacifism infuriated many in the country, making him the butt of all jokes. He claimed the war as a result of greed and unethical business practices of big financials, accusing Jews in particular. He demanded neutrality of U.S in the war and identified terrible waste with joining the war. He organized a Peace Ship and sailed in it to Europe to offer mediation. Nothing came of it and Ford returned soon after he set foot in Europe. He also ran for the Senate from Michigan in 1916 but was narrowly defeated.

The 1920s saw the empire built by Ford slowly beginning to crumple. Streaks of antisemitism and wayward religious beliefs like reincarnation put him in a bad light in public view. Though a staunch moralist on Victorian lines, it didn’t prevent from siring a child with a female employee. He turned into an autocrat, with sycophants trailing him at every step. Old time managers left the company one by one, often forced out by the machinations of unscrupulous hangers-on. After 1923, sales of Model T began to plummet, since the public was fed up with an unchanging model for 15 long years. Ford made his son, Edsel, president of the company in 1919, but continued intervention in its affairs, overriding his gentle son. Ford was forced to apologise to a Jewish businessman in a case of libel, but it didn’t deter him to receive Hitler’s ‘Order of the Grand Cross of the German Eagle’, an honorary medal in 1938. Acrimonious run-ins with President Roosevelt and his National Recovery Authority (NRA), built for tiding over the Great Depression put immense strain on Ford Motor Company. When U.S. plunged into World War II, Ford wholeheartedly converted his manufacturing setup to produce war planes. Resentment at the high handed attitudes of his father subjected his son to immense pressure and he died in 1943. This was a huge setback for Ford, who lapsed into a mentally unstable state. Ford died of cerebral haemorrhage in 1947.

Ford changed the face of America once and for all. For him, leisure – the new found luxury for working class people – was neither idleness of shiftlessness, but an activity with positive industrial value, because it increased consumption. His advertising stress was to Buy a Ford and Spend the Difference, as spending was the only way in which abundance was to grow. Saving would result in scarcity and abject poverty, as he argued. Society lives by circulation, not by congestion. He openly advocated for spending and self-fulfillment rather than saving and self-control.

The book is a product of great insight and wide scholarship. Watts’ description of the late-19^th century American society which stood at the brink of a wide chasm between the strict forms of Victorian era and a free-for-all future is dazzlingly appropriate. It is logically and sequentially separated into many chapters with proper titles like Producer, Folk hero, Reformer, Politician and such. A synopsis of the contents of a chapter is given as its first section which really helps the user to preview what is coming. It covers the fortunes of the company over a long span of five decades and gives a clear message to the readers that a company and its founder could enjoy unrestricted privileges as long as the company is making profit. Whenever it slips into red, problems start which might grow to such extremes as to jeopardise the whole operations.

There is nothing much to point out against this wonderful work, apart from its sheer size. Passing over 536 pages of smaller sized print is sure to tire even expert readers when the end is reached. Watts could have provided an epilogue detailing the future travails of the company after Henry Ford died and control went to his grandson.

The book is highly recommended.

Rating: 3 Star