On This Date - Weiran Liu

On October 1st, 1908 Henry Ford introduced the first Model T car, which at the time cost $825.

This event was monumental. The impact was so great that the car was even named the most influential vehicle of the 20th century. Automobiles no longer have to be custom made, take a long time to produce, only to have them be excessively expensive. In the first year of production 10,000 cars were sold. That may sound like a meager amount to our mass production world, but this was the start of it all.

The concept of mass assemblies and interchangeable parts were taken onto a national level, and quickly onto a global platform as well. The amount of resources it saved is numerous. Not only that, it provided more jobs for people since the training needed for such production was minimal. Each worker only needed to specialize on a part of a couple of processes.   

I personally (along with many others for sure) appreciate this event. I am all for efficiency. Also, had Henry Ford not come up with his style of production, who knows when the idea would have been executed? This type of production was inevitable but for it to come at an earlier time than mine has given it the time to develop into what it is today – machine aided. This significantly lowers the prices of cars even to this day; as a 16-year old who was newly licensed and looking at cars, I can certainly tell you I am grateful for him.