Ford Valve Plant

Last updated • 2 min readFrom Wikipedia, The Free Encyclopedia

Ford Valve Plant
FordValvePlantNorthvilleMi.JPG
Ford Valve Plant. Note water wheel at extreme right.
USA Michigan location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Ford Valve Plant
Interactive map
Location235 E. Main St., Northville, Michigan
Coordinates 42°25′56″N83°28′40″W / 42.43222°N 83.47778°W / 42.43222; -83.47778
Area4 acres (1.6 ha)
Built1936
Architect Albert Kahn
Architectural style Art Deco
NRHP reference No. 95000866 [1]
Added to NRHPAugust 01, 1995

The Ford Valve Plant is a factory building located at 235 East Main Street in Northville, Michigan. The plant was built as part of Henry Ford's vision of decentralizing manufacturing and integrating it into rural communities. [2] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1995. [1]

Contents

"Village Industries"

Northville's Valve Plant was the first of Henry Ford's "Village Industries" factories. [3] The Village industries were designed to bring the economic advantages of industrial jobs to rural communities through the establishment of decentralized, non-disruptive manufacturing plants. [2] [3] In particular, Ford intended the Village Industries to stabilize the income of farmers who would otherwise have little winter income, [3] [4] and he gave his workers leaves of absence to work their farms. [5]

Over the span of the 1920s and 1930s, Ford established over thirty more Village Industries factories, making everything from copper welding rods to lamp assemblies to wheels. [3] The plants tended to be small, employing around 100 workers. As in Northville, all of the factories were built on a riverbank (many at the former site of gristmills), and utilized hydroelectric power. [3] [4]

History

Henry Ford purchased the property this building sits on in 1919. [2] The lot contained an old gristmill which was reconfigured into a valve manufacturing facility by moving machinery in from the Fordson and Highland Park plants. [6] Between 1919 and 1936, the plant manufactured over 180 million valves, [6] at a cost of less than half what it would be in the larger Highland Park plant. [5]

In 1936, Ford replaced the mill with an Albert Kahn-designed factory building. [2] The building reflects the then-current industrial architecture, as well as hints of Art Deco in the brickwork and entryway styling [7] but still incorporated a water wheel. [2]

The Village Industries program was discontinued in 1947, but the factory continued to produce valves. [2] The building was enlarged in 1956, and in 1969 over 150,000 valves were produced every day. [6] The plant continued operations until 1978, the longest lived of any former Village Industries factory, [2] and was later sold. [6] The building has been renovated into office space for use by design firms, such as HKS, Inc., an architecture firm, and Spider9, an environmental technology developer. [8]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Northville, Michigan</span> City in Michigan, United States

Northville is a city in Wayne and Oakland counties in the U.S. state of Michigan. A western suburb of Detroit, Northville is located roughly 27 miles (43.5 km) northwest of downtown Detroit, and 17 miles (27.4 km) northeast of Ann Arbor. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 6,119. It is entirely surrounded by Northville Township to the south, and Novi to the north.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Albert Kahn (architect)</span> American architect (1869–1942)

Albert Kahn was an American architect noted for his collaborations with his brother Julius Kahn in designing industrial plant complexes such as the Ford River Rouge automobile complex. Based in Detroit, he also designed skyscrapers, office buildings, and mansions in the city and suburbs, as well as many buildings at University of Michigan in Ann Arbor. Kahn has been called the "architect of Detroit" as the designer of nearly 900 buildings in the city.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Highland Park Ford Plant</span> United States historic place

The Highland Park Ford Plant is a historic former Ford Motor Company factory located at 91 Manchester Street in Highland Park, Michigan. It was Ford's third factory, it was the second American Model T production facility and it was the first factory in history to assemble automobiles on a moving assembly line. Highland Park became a National Historic Landmark in 1978.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Piquette Avenue Plant</span> Former car factory

The Ford Piquette Avenue Plant is a former factory located within the Milwaukee Junction area of Detroit, Michigan, in the United States. Built in 1904, it was the second center of automobile production for the Ford Motor Company, after the Ford Mack Avenue Plant. At the Piquette Avenue Plant, the company created and first produced the Ford Model T, the car credited with initiating the mass use of automobiles in the United States. Prior to the Model T, several other car models were assembled at the factory. Early experiments using a moving assembly line to make cars were also conducted there. It was also the first factory where more than 100 cars were assembled in one day. While it was headquartered at the Piquette Avenue Plant, Ford Motor Company became the biggest U.S.-based automaker, and it would remain so until the mid-1920s. The factory was used by the company until 1910, when its car production activity was relocated to the new, larger Highland Park Ford Plant.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stinson Aircraft Company</span> Defunct American aircraft manufacturer

The Stinson Aircraft Company was an aircraft manufacturing company in the United States between the 1920s and the 1950s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">River Rouge (Michigan)</span> River in Michigan

The River Rouge is a 127-mile river in the Metro Detroit area of southeastern Michigan. It flows into the Detroit River at Zug Island, which is the boundary between the cities of River Rouge and Detroit.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford River Rouge complex</span> Historic automobile manufacturing complex in Dearborn, Michigan, USA

The Ford River Rouge complex is a Ford Motor Company automobile factory complex located in Dearborn, Michigan, along the River Rouge, upstream from its confluence with the Detroit River at Zug Island. Construction began in 1917, and when it was completed in 1928, it was the largest integrated factory in the world, surpassing Buick City, built in 1904.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Register of Historic Places listings in Wayne County, Michigan</span>

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Wayne County, Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District</span> Historic district in Michigan, United States

The Piquette Avenue Industrial Historic District is a historic district located along Piquette Street in Detroit, Michigan, from Woodward Avenue on the west to Hastings Street on the east. The district extends approximately one block south of Piquette to Harper, and one block north to the Grand Trunk Western Railroad Line. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Register of Historic Places listings in Detroit</span>

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Detroit, Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln Motor Company Plant</span> United States historic place

The Lincoln Motor Company Plant was an automotive plant at Livernois, 6200 West Warren Avenue Detroit, Michigan, later known as the Detroit Edison Warren Service Center. The complex was designated a National Historic Landmark in 1978, due to its historic association with World War I Liberty engines and the Lincoln Motor Company. However, the main structures were demolished in 2003 and NHL designation was withdrawn in 2005.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dundee Historic District</span> Historic district in Michigan, United States

The Dundee Historic Village is a historic district located in Dundee, Michigan. The district was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 20, 1990. This area is commonly referred to as the downtown area of Dundee and was settled almost concurrently with the Old Village Historic District in nearby Monroe. Both were built in their respective locations due to the River Raisin. Originally, the buildings within the district were small, wood buildings, but these were eventually replaced with two-story, brick storefronts. Most of the surviving buildings were built between 1866 and 1900, although the district traces its origins to Dundee's establishment in 1825.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Old Mill Museum (Dundee, Michigan)</span> United States historic place

The Old Mill Museum, also known as the Alfred Wilkerson Grist Mill, is a historic structure located along the River Raisin at 242 Toledo Street in Dundee, Michigan. It was designated as a Michigan Historic Site on August 3, 1979. It was later listed as a contributing property within the Dundee Historic District, which was added to the National Register of Historic Places on August 20, 1990.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nankin Mills Nature Center</span> Historic site in Westland, Michigan

The Nankin Mills Nature Center is a historic and nature interpretive center located at 33175 Ann Arbor Trail in Westland, Michigan. It was originally built as a grist mill, and was one of Henry Ford's "village industries." The mill was designated a Michigan State Historic Site in 1967. Today, Nankin Mills serves as the headquarters of Wayne County Parks, and sits at the center of Hines Park.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Schuyler Mill – Ford Soybean Plant Complex</span> United States historic place

The Schuyler Mill, also known as the Ford Soybean Plant Complex, is an old mill site that Henry Ford turned into one of his small village industry factories. It is located at 555-600 Michigan Avenue in Saline, Michigan, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1996.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Village industries</span> Former rural factories in Michigan, United States

Henry Ford's Village Industries were small factories located in rural areas of Michigan. Ford developed his Village Industries in part to provide farm workers a stable source of income during the winter months.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">National Register of Historic Places listings in Downtown and Midtown Detroit</span>

This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Downtown and Midtown Detroit, Michigan. It is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Downtown and Midtown neighborhoods in Detroit, Michigan, United States. Latitude and longitude coordinates are provided for many National Register properties and districts; these locations may be seen together in online maps.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Louden Machinery Company</span> American engineering, manufacturing and design company

The Louden Machinery Company was an American engineering, manufacturing and design company based in Fairfield, Iowa. Founded by William Louden, the company in its early years manufactured and sold the patented hay carrier that he invented in 1867. The company later expanded into a wide variety of farm equipment and, in 1906, began an Architecture Department that reportedly designed more than 25,000 barns from 1906 to 1939. During World War I, Louden's monorail equipment carrier began to be applied to industrial and military applications. By the 1920s, much of the company's revenues were derived from industrial applications of its monorail equipment carriers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ford Motor Company Brooklyn Plant</span> United States historic place

The Ford Motor Company Brooklyn Plant is a former industrial plant once owned by the Ford Motor Company, located at 221 Mill Street in Brooklyn, Michigan. The plant was one of Ford's village industries, which were small factories located in rural areas in southern Michigan. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2017.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edward N. Hines Park</span> Linear park in Western Wayne County, Michigan

Hines Park is a linear park in western Wayne County, Michigan, following the course of the Middle River Rouge. Hines Park serves as a flood control mechanism for the Middle Rouge, which experiences frequent floods due to its heavily urbanized drainage basin. Hines Park consists of 25 recreation areas linked by Edward N. Hines Drive, a 17.5-mile (28.2 km) scenic drive.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. March 13, 2009.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "Ford Valve Plant". Michigan State Housing Development Authority: Historic Sites Online. Archived from the original on June 6, 2011. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 "Village Industries Program". Ford Motor Co. Archived from the original on December 5, 2009. Retrieved May 26, 2010.
  4. 1 2 Lewis, David L. (1976), The Public Image of Henry Ford: An American Folk Hero and His Company, Wayne State University Press, pp. 162–163, ISBN   0-8143-1892-4
  5. 1 2 Henry Ford; Samuel Crowther (May 12, 1926). "Village Industries Prove Real Success; Solve Big Problem". The Milwaukee Sentinel. p. 4.
  6. 1 2 3 4 Louie, Barbara G. (2001), Northville Michigan, Arcadia Publishing, ISBN   0-7385-2359-3
  7. Farley, Ren. "Ford Valve Plant (Northville)". detroit1701.com.{{cite web}}: Missing or empty |url= (help)
  8. "HKS Detroit Office Relocates". dBusiness.com. Retrieved May 27, 2010.

Further reading