Edsel Ford succeeds father as president of Ford
On this day in 1919 Edsel Ford the son of Model T inventor and auto industry pioneer Henry Ford succeeds his father as president of the Ford Motor Company.The younger Ford ascended to the top spot after his father resigned the position in December 1918 following a disagreement with stockholders However father and son soon managed to purchase these dissenting investors stock and regain control of the company.Edsel Bryant Ford the only child of Henry Ford and his wife Clara was born November 6 1893 in Detroit Michigan.A decade after Edsels birth Henry Ford (1863-1947) established the Ford Motor Company five years later he introduced the Model T an affordable car for the masses.
Henry Ford was also credited with pioneering the moving assembly line and introducing in 1914 the 5-per-day minimum wage and the eight-hour workday.This made it possible for ordinary factory workers to buy the cars they built and helped to create the American middle class.As president of Ford Motor Company one of Edsel Fords key contributions was to the styling of the companys cars.Unlike his father whose legendary rule regarding the utilitarian Model T was You can have any color as long as its black he believed that Fords could be stylish as well as functional.
In 1922 the Ford Motor Company made its first foray into the upscale vehicle market when it acquired the failing luxury automaker Lincoln Motor Company for 8 million.Edsel Ford who encouraged his father to buy Lincoln was involved with developing such elegant prestigious models as the Lincoln Continental which launched in the late 1930s and was reportedly described by architect Frank Lloyd Wright as the most beautiful car ever made.Edsel Ford who was also an arts patron and philanthropist (in 1936 along with his father he set up the Ford Foundation which grew into a leading global philanthropic organization) died of cancer at the age of 49 on May 26 1943.His father then resumed the presidency of the company.
Edsels oldest son Henry Ford II succeeded his grandfather as head of Ford in 1945.In the 1950s the Ford company launched the Edsel car division named for its second president.However the cars which debuted with the 1958 model year were plagued with mechanical problems and design issues and the Edsel name came to be synonymous with failure.Ford discontinued the line with the 1960 model year.
