The Henry Ford, also called the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, and the Edison Institute, is a history museum in Dearborn, Michigan, United States, located in Metro Detroit. The museum's collection includes the presidential limousine used by John F. Kennedy, Abraham Lincoln's chair from Ford's Theatre, Thomas Edison's laboratory, the Wright Brothers' bicycle shop, the bus ridden by Rosa Parks, and many other historical items.

It is the largest museum complex that includes both indoor and outdoor areas in the United States and is visited by more than 1.7 million people each year. In 1969, Greenfield Village and the Henry Ford Museum were added to the National Register of Historic Places. In 1981, the site was named a National Historic Landmark as "Edison Institute."

Background

The museum is named after its founder, Henry Ford, a car manufacturer who wanted to save important historical items and show the Industrial Revolution. The museum has homes, machines, displays, and American items that are historically important, as well as everyday objects. These items help show what life was like in early America. It is one of the biggest collections like this in the country.

Henry Ford said of his museum:

History

Architect Robert O. Derrick designed the museum with an exhibit hall that covers 523,000 square feet (48,600 m²) and stretches 400 feet (120 m) behind the main entrance. The entrance is 800 feet (240 m) long and includes copies of three buildings from Independence National Historical Park in Philadelphia: Old City Hall, Independence Hall, and Congress Hall.

The Edison Institute was dedicated by President Herbert Hoover on October 21, 1929, to honor Thomas Edison, a longtime friend of Henry Ford. This date marked the 50th anniversary of the first successful incandescent light bulb. Many important people attended, including Marie Curie, George Eastman, John D. Rockefeller, Will Rogers, Orville Wright, and about 250 others. The event was broadcast on radio, and listeners were asked to turn off their electric lights until the museum’s switch was turned on.

At first, the Edison Institute was a private place used only for education. However, after many people asked about the site, it opened to the public as a museum on June 22, 1933. It originally included the Henry Ford Museum, Greenfield Village, and the Greenfield Village Schools, which was an experimental learning facility. Greenfield Village and the Henry Ford Museum were first owned by the Ford Motor Company. Today, the company supports the school and works with the Henry Ford Museum to offer the Ford Rouge Factory Tour. The Henry Ford Museum is located between the Ford Dearborn Development Center and several Ford engineering buildings, which share the same style of gates and brick fences.

On August 9, 1970, a fire damaged the East Wing of the Mechanical Arts Hall in Greenfield Village, which included the "Street of Shops" exhibit. The fire destroyed a collection of Ford Motor Company production records. Later that year, the museum purchased what it believed to be a 17th-century Brewster Chair, made for a Pilgrim settler in the Plymouth Colony, for $9,000. In September 1977, experts discovered the chair was a modern forgery created in 1969 by sculptor Armand LaMontagne from Rhode Island. The museum keeps the chair to teach people about forgeries.

In the early 2000s, the museum added an auditorium to the building’s south side. This space housed an IMAX theater until January 2016, when the museum changed the format to better match its goals. The renovated theater reopened in April 2016.

Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation

The Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation began as Henry Ford's personal collection of historic objects, which he started gathering in 1906. Today, the 12-acre (49,000 square meter) site is mainly a collection of old machines, pop culture items, cars, trains, planes, and other objects:

• The museum has a 4K digital theater that shows science, nature, or history documentaries, as well as major movies.
• An Oscar Mayer Wienermobile
• The 1961 Lincoln Continental, SS-100-X, the car President John F. Kennedy was riding in when he was assassinated.
• The rocking chair from Ford's Theatre where President Abraham Lincoln was sitting when he was shot by John Wilkes Booth.
• George Washington’s camp bed.
• A group of fine 17th- and 18th-century violins, including a Stradivarius.
• A sealed tube containing Thomas Edison’s supposed last breath.
• Buckminster Fuller’s early model of a Dymaxion house.
• The bus where Rosa Parks was arrested for refusing to give up her seat, which led to the Montgomery bus boycott.
• Igor Sikorsky’s early helicopter model.
• A Fokker Trimotor airplane that flew the first flight over the North Pole.
• Bill Elliott’s race car that set a speed record of over 212 MPH at Talladega in 1987.
• Fairbottom Bobs, a Newcomen engine.
• A steam engine from Cobb’s Engine House in England.
• A working piece of the original Holiday Inn “Great Sign.”
• The Chesapeake & Ohio Railway 2-6-6-6 “Allegheny”-class steam locomotive #1601, built in Lima, Ohio. The Allegheny was the third most powerful steam locomotive ever built, after the Union Pacific Railroad “Big Boy” 4-8-8-4 locomotive and the Pennsylvania Railroad Q2-class 4-4-6-4 locomotive.
• A Toyota Prius sedan, the first mass-produced hybrid car.

Behind the scenes, the Benson Ford Research Center uses materials from The Henry Ford, such as photographs, letters, and archives that are not usually on display, to help visitors learn more about American history, people, and events. The Research Center also holds the Ford Motor Archives.

To celebrate the 100th anniversary of the sinking of the RMS Titanic, the museum displayed many items and media about the Titanic’s journey and sinking. The exhibit ran from March 31 to September 30, 2012.

• Airplanes
• A replica of the 1903 Wright Flyer
• The 1926 Fokker F.VIIa /3M flown over the North Pole by Richard E. Byrd
• Byrd Arctic Expedition exhibit
• A 1939 Northwest Airlines Douglas DC-3

• Agriculture
• Fordson Tractor No. 1
• A steam tractor engine

• Automobiles
• The 1896 Ford Quadricycle
• A 1908 Stevens-Duryea Model U limo (brown) and a 1915 Chevrolet Royal Mail Roadster (green)
• A 1916 Apperson Touring Car
• A 1928 Model A Ford
• A 1939 Texaco tanker truck by Dodge
• A 1949 Volkswagen
• A 1952 Oscar Mayer Wienermobile
• The first Ford Mustang produced
• The bus where Rosa Parks was arrested, which started the Montgomery bus boycott

• Presidential limousines
• The Sunshine Special, the official car used by President Franklin D. Roosevelt
• The SS-100-X used by President John F. Kennedy

• Made In America
• Watt Canal Pumping Engine (1796)
• Thomas Horn Engine (1850)
• Water Engine and Electric Generator, Spokane, Washington (1903)
• A replica of the 1831 DeWitt Clinton train
• The Chesapeake and Ohio Railway locomotive C&O 1601
• Signs from McDonald’s, A&W, and White Castle

Greenfield Village

In 1929, Greenfield Village, the outdoor living history museum part of the Henry Ford complex, along with the nearby Henry Ford Museum, was officially opened. It became available to the public in June 1933. It was the first outdoor museum of its kind in the United States and inspired the creation of other outdoor museums.

Visitors enter through the main gate, passing the Josephine Ford Memorial Fountain and the Benson Ford Research Center. Almost 100 historical buildings were moved from their original locations and placed in a "village" layout. The museum’s purpose is to show how Americans have lived and worked since the country was founded.

The Village includes buildings from the 17th century to today. Many of these buildings have staff dressed in historical clothing who perform tasks like farming, sewing, and cooking. Craft buildings, such as pottery, glass-blowing, and tin shops, demonstrate traditional skills and produce items used in the Village or for sale.

The Village uses both costumed and plain-clothed presenters to share stories and information about the attractions. Some presenters work only during certain times of the year, like the "games on the green" presenters who are active in the summer. Greenfield Village covers 240 acres (970,000 m²), but only 90 acres (360,000 m²) are used for the museum. The remaining land includes forests, rivers, and pastures for sheep and horses.

Important buildings and attractions in the Village include:

• Noah Webster’s Connecticut home, which was used as a dormitory for Yale students from 1918 to 1936. Henry Ford later moved it to Greenfield Village and restored it.
• The Wright brothers’ bicycle shop and home, which Henry Ford bought and moved from Dayton, Ohio, in 1937.
• A replica of Thomas Edison’s Menlo Park laboratory from New Jersey. The replica was built using exact measurements from the original site and furnished with original or accurate copies of items.
• The Edison Homestead, the birthplace of Thomas Edison’s father. It was built in 1816 in Vienna, Ontario, and moved to Greenfield Village in the 1930s.
• Henry Ford’s birthplace, which was moved from Greenfield and Ford roads in 1944. It was furnished exactly as it was during his mother’s time.
• Henry Ford’s prototype garage, where he built the Ford Quadricycle.
• Harvey S. Firestone’s family farmhouse from Columbiana, Ohio. It was donated by Firestone’s two sons in 1983 and rebuilt over two years. The farm has operated as a working sheep farm since 1985.
• The Logan County, Illinois, courthouse, where Abraham Lincoln practiced law.
• William Holmes McGuffey’s birthplace.
• Luther Burbank’s office.
• J. R. Jones General Store, built around 1857 in Waterford, Michigan. It was moved to Greenfield Village in 1927 after Henry Ford bought it for $700. It was the first building placed at the Greenfield Village site.
• Ackley Covered Bridge, a 75-foot wooden bridge built in 1832 in Pennsylvania. It was moved to Greenfield Village in 1937.
• Cape Cod Windmill, one of the oldest in America. It was originally built in 1633 on Cape Cod and moved to Greenfield Village in 1936.
• A structure believed to be the home of Stephen Foster was added in 1935. Historians thought it was authentic, but Foster’s niece later said it was not his birthplace, and the claim was removed in 1953.
• A 1913 Herschell-Spillman carousel with an Artizan 'C' band organ that plays Wurlitzer music rolls.

The Village includes historic transportation options for visitors, such as Ford Model T cars, a 1931 Ford Model AA bus (one of about 15 known to exist), horse-drawn omnibuses, and trains pulled by steam locomotives on the Weiser Railroad.

The Weiser Railroad’s track originally ran in a straight line along the northern edge of the museum property since 1929. It was later expanded into a loop around the museum’s perimeter, completed between 1971 and 1972. The railroad uses a 4 ft 8 + 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge track and has four stations. The Smiths Creek Depot station includes a relocated building from the Grand Trunk Railway, built in 1858.

The railroad uses a modern replica of a Detroit, Toledo & Milwaukee Railroad (DT&M) roundhouse built in 1884 in Marshall, Michigan. When it opened in 2000, it was one of only seven public roundhouses in the United States. A hand-operated Pere Marquette Railway turntable, built in 1901 in Petoskey, Michigan, is also used.

The Weiser Railroad connects directly to the United States National Railroad Network. It links to a section of the Michigan Line owned by MDOT, used by Amtrak’s Wolverine service between Chicago, Illinois, and Pontiac, Michigan. Previously, Greenfield Village had a station for reserved tour groups, but it was combined with the John D. Dingell Transit Center in December 2014. The new transit center is near the Henry Ford Museum complex and has a gate for access to the museum.

Greenfield Village gallery

• General Exhibits
• Noah Webster’s home located in New Haven, Connecticut
• A garden and the Ackley Covered Bridge
• The Burbank cottage (left) and Garden House Shop
• Charles Proteus Steinmetz owned a small cabin that overlooked the Mohawk River near Schenectady, New York
• The original Postville Courthouse

• Thomas Edison Exhibits
• The upper level of Thomas Edison’s Menlo Park Laboratory
• Three crucibles in Thomas Edison’s Menlo Park Laboratory. To the left, there is a boiler and a small steam engine.

• Wright Brothers Exhibits
• Wilbur and Orville Wright’s house and bicycle shop
• The Wright Brothers’ house relocated from Dayton, Ohio
• The Wright Cycle Company building

Signature events

Each year, the Village honors the sacrifices and achievements of people who fought in the American Civil War. The Civil War Remembrance event happens during Memorial Day weekend (Saturday–Monday) every year. About 750,000 people died during the Civil War. The event includes hundreds of Union and Confederate reenactors, musicians, and historic presenters.

This event has more than 400 Civil War reenactors who stay in the Village for the entire weekend. Greenfield Village offers many ways to learn about the Civil War, such as exhibits, presentations, battle reenactments, concerts, short plays, hands-on activities, and Q&A with historians.

Motor Muster is one of two car shows that happen each year in Greenfield Village. Motor Muster is usually held on Father's Day weekend. This event includes cars made between 1932 and 1976, and between 600 and 800 cars are displayed. Special activities include car judging and a Pass in Review, where experts talk about the cars that pass by.

Every summer, the Henry Ford hosts a Summer Camp inside Greenfield Village and the Henry Ford Museum from June to August. The camp is for children in grades 2–9. Each grade has a different theme, and children can explore both the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation and Greenfield Village from new perspectives. Activities include apprenticeships, canoeing, glass blowing, and other age-appropriate tasks.

The World Tournament of Historical Base Ball happens every August. Visitors experience the game as it was played in 1867, with vintage base ball clubs from across the country competing using early rules. The event lasts two days and includes throwing, batting, and competition. Admission to Greenfield Village includes entry to this event.

For four nights around Independence Day, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra performs a patriotic concert on Walnut Grove in the Village. Each evening has between 5,000 and 9,500 visitors.

This July event, first held in 2007 and continuing through 2015, was called the Ragtime Street Fair. It featured live performers, silent movies, phonograph demonstrations, a cake walk, a cutting contest, and a musical revue in Town Hall. The event also included a display about the 1912 presidential campaign of Theodore Roosevelt. Free lessons on the ragtime one-step were offered.

The Old Car Festival happens every September, starting the first weekend after Labor Day since 1955. The festival covers the streets and grounds of Greenfield Village with hundreds of real vehicles from the 1890s through 1932.

This event includes 500–700 cars. Special activities include car judging, Pass in Review, a gaslight tour, and car races on the Walnut Grove field. Visitors can take a self-guided tour, talk to car owners, watch a Model T being assembled, and attend presentations about vintage vehicles.

The Village’s Halloween celebration includes decorations, a headless horseman, witches, costumed characters, treats, and activities. It takes place on Thursday, Friday, Saturday, and Sunday evenings in October.

The Christmas season is popular in Greenfield Village. Many buildings have period decorations, and the Village is open for self-guided walks. An ice skating rink is available. Visitors can watch live entertainment, ride in horse-drawn carriages or Model Ts, and see costumed presenters.

Rouge Tour

The Ford Rouge Factory Tour gives visitors a chance to see inside a modern car factory. Visitors board buses at the Henry Ford Museum and travel to the River Rouge Plant and Dearborn Truck Plant, a large factory area where Ford has made cars since the Model A. This plant once employed 100,000 people.

In 2003, the Ford Rouge Factory, which makes the Ford F-Series truck, reopened after major updates. At that time, the factory became a Gold LEED Building, a type of sustainable architecture designed by well-known green architect William McDonough. A new visitor center was also opened to show the factory’s eco-friendly features and explain its history and the car-making process. The visitor experience was created by award-winning designer Bob Rogers and the team BRC Imagination Arts. It includes two multi-screen theaters, many touchscreen displays, and views of the world’s largest "Green" roof, which is on top of the factory. Visitors then walk through the active car assembly area.