As Henry Ford and eleven others filed incorporation papers at Michigan's State Capitol, the rest of the world didn't know that they would change the world forever. .
It was midway through 1903 when a consortium invested in the start of the Ford Motor Company. Henry Ford had been working on an internal combustion engine that could be used on carts to eliminate the need of horses for carriages. There were other companies that were producing cars, but they were very expensive and the average person didn't even think about owning one.
Ford was started its operations in a converted wagon factory Mack Avenue in Detroit, with only 10 staff. Just over one month of production and the first Ford was being delivered to a Detroit Doctor. .
Time went on and the model N, Fords most successful car early production car, was selling at $500. With the model Ks high price of $2500 selling poorly, friction arose between the investors. As a result, investors left the company and Henry Ford bought out their stake, eventuating to 58 ½ percent. This saw Mr Ford lead the way as President in 1906.
The company saw some minor friction, but never expected a squabble from a man named George Selden. Selden had a copyright on "road locomotives- powered by internal combustion engines. Selden set up this copyright to licence manufacturers and collect royalties for every road locomotive built. As Ford didn't have a Selden licence, the Selden group filed a lawsuit against the company. Eight years later and Ford won the battle releasing the automotive industry from Selden's monopoly over the industry. .
As Henry Ford led the way in low cost motor vehicles, he also led the way to the assembly line for automotive industries in 1913. During 1914 Ford opened up a plant in Highland Park to manufacture the Model T as well as doubling the daily wage to $5. This sparked thousands of job applicants, as the assembly line caused a job turnover of 40-60% before the wage increase.
