The Model T
Presentation to the Annandale History Club
August 4, 2014
Eric Hylen

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Eric Hylen has been interested in Model Ts from a very young age.  He worked with his dad to restore his grandfather’s 1919 Model T, but they didn’t finish it.  Years later Eric restored “every nut and bolt” of the Model T and said it is reliable and he would drive it anywhere.  Eric is a member of the T-Totalers and the Great Northern Model T Clubs.  He enjoys touring with the clubs and giving educational presentations about Model Ts.  He has an excellent “Model T” PowerPoint presentation.

1882:  Henry Ford (1863-1947) finished an apprenticeship and became a full-fledged machinist.

1890s:  Henry Ford experimented with engines.

1891:  Henry Fold worked for the Edison Illuminating Company so he could learn more about electricity.  In his free time, he worked on building a gasoline engine ignited by electricity.

1894:  The Electrobat was the first successful electric automobile.  100 cars were built.  Car companies were experimenting with gas, electric and steam engines.    

1896:  Henry Fold built his first car, the Quadricycle. 

1897:  The Stanley Steamer became a very successful car. 

1899:  Henry Ford formed the Detroit Automobile Company, which mostly revised prototypes.  They sold only a few hundred cars and dissolved in 1901.

1901: The Henry Ford Company was formed in 1901.  The company was renamed Cadillac after Henry Ford left the company in 1902.  Olds introduced the Curved Dash car.

1903:  There were 88 new car manufacturing companies in 1903 making a total of 200.  (By 1940 there were only 17 car manufacturers.)  On June 16, 1903, Henry Ford founded a car manufacturing company along with other investors.  Henry Ford’s third attempt at an automobile company, the Ford Motor Company, succeeded.  The first car, a Model A (1903-04), was sold July 15, 1903, for $850.  Models B, C and F were attempts at improving the car’s design.

Steve Tenvoorde signed the second Ford franchise on March 21, 1903, three months before Ford incorporated.  Tenvoorde Ford in St. Cloud is the oldest family owned Ford dealership. 

1906:  Ford manufactured the Model N from 1906 to 1908.  Ford manufactured Models R and S.

1907:  From 1906-1908 Ford manufactured the upscale 6-cylinder Model K, which sold for $2,800 ($3,000 with a top).  The Model J was the prototype for the Model K.  For the next two decades, Ford concentrated on entry-level cars such as the Model T.  The Model D was a delivery car.

1908:  The Model T was introduced, windshield not included.  Roll down wind screens were optional in after market.  From October 1908 to May 1927 Ford built over 15 million Model Ts.  At first it was called the Universal car. 

1913:  The Ford Motor Company added a motorized assembly line.

1912:  Ford started its first Minnesota assembly and sales distribution facility in a former warehouse in Minneapolis.

1914:  Ford instituted a $5 per day pay rate for his workers, leading to happier and faster workers, fewer turnovers, and less down-time to train new workers.  Sales increased, because Ford employees could afford to purchase automobiles.

1920:  Model T touring cars had running boards and manifold cookers.  Food could be cooked while driving.

John Lundeen obtained a Ford franchise in Annandale.  In 1910 John Lundeen started selling automobiles for other dealers, including Model Ts, from his Albion Township farm.  He moved the business to Annandale in 1917 and obtained a Ford franchise in 1920.

1922:  The Model T sedan had center doors to climb into the front or back.   There were no heaters, although some heat came from the motor.

1925:  The Ford plant in St. Paul was in operation 1925 to 2011.  At the time of its closure it was the oldest Ford plant still in operation.  Model Ts were manufactured at the plant.

1927:  The Model A was introduced in December.  Four million Model As were produced 1927 to 1931.

2003:  In the centennial year of 2003, Ford made six brand new 1914 Model Ts.

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There’s no proof that Henry Ford said, “any color as long as it’s black,” as written in a newspaper.  The 1909 Model T was red, the 1910 and 1911 models were blue, the 1910 runabout was grey, the 1911 touring car was green or blue.  Early paints were poor quality.  Pigments weren’t durable and within a year became darker.  Black paint with Gilsonite was durable, economical and fast drying.  From 1914 to 1926 the Model Ts were black.   Starting in 1927 there were color options.  The touring car was maroon and the two-door was green.

There were 14 different body styles from two-seat runabouts, five-seat touring cars, delivery cars, one-ton trucks, tractor conversions, fire cars, tow trucks and Model T snowmobile conversion kits.  By 1920 half of the cars in the world were Model Ts.  Two million cars were manufactured per year.  The peak year was 1923 with the manufacture of 2.7 million Model Ts.  The Model T was one of the most successful cars in history.     

Prices started at $850 the first six years. By the end of the 1913 model year, improvements in a moving assembly line resulted in price reduction to $550.    From 1914 to 1919, Ford Motor Company didn’t advertise because it couldn’t keep up with demand.  In 1919, the electric start option was available.  In 1923, the price of the Model T was $235 when the average household income was about $1,000.   The Model T was the “car for the great multitudes.”

It is estimated that over 300,000 Model Ts still exist.  It is the most popular car to buy and restore.  Used and new reproduction parts are readily available.  There are two international Model T clubs with 11,000 members.  There are 300 members in three local chapters. They tour once a month to enjoy the old cars and share the experience.  They stay on rural and back roads and drive at cruising speed.   

Note:  Eric Hylen displayed his1912 Ford in the pre-tour of the 28^th annual, 120-mile New London to New Brighton Antique Car Run, which is limited to cars 1908 or earlier or 1 and 2 cylinder cars up to 1915.  Pre-1908 automobiles in the 2014 run were REO, Maxwell, Buick, Ford, Autocar, Columbia, St. Louis, Jeanperrin (1898), Buick, Cadillac, Stevens-Duryea, Oldsmobile, Stanley, Franklin, and Overland.   A 1911 LeZebre, 1910 IHC, and 1911 Brush were also included in the 58 entries.  Stops are made in Litchfield, Kingston, and Buffalo.

Notes by Annandale History Club Secretary