Henry Ford and the Birth of American Roads, and the Model T

Henry Ford and the Birth of the American Road DVD

An original production published by The Classic Archives!

This DVD comes with a fully interactive menu and has a run time of about 2 hours.  A list of films included is as follows:

Shows development of transportation in the United States during the first half of the 20th century, emphasizing growth of automobile industry, roads and highways.  Quite an informative background on the birth of the American car. From Henry Ford's invention of the quadracycle, to the birth of the assembly line to the impact it had on the American way of life, this is quite an educational film.  Since it was sponsored by Ford, it focuses a lot on the Model T.

Sound, B&W, 38:09

Henry Ford's Mirror of America

Compilation of images and sequences from the Ford Film Collection, with excellent footage of United States history, culture, industry and daily life between about 1915 and 1930. Highlights include Coney Island, the increasing pervasiveness of the automobile in American life, and early manufacturing footage.

Sound, B&W, 36:09

Henry Ford II introduces this film designed to encourage private citizens to unite and support road improvement. Part of the lobbying campaign that culminated in legislation authorizing the Interstate Highway system in 1956, this film shows community efforts to improve and increase safety on the Bayshore Highway in the San Francisco Bay Area; congestion in Pittsburgh and the Golden Triangle redevelopment area; the economic benefits of Boston's circumferential highway, Route 128; and safety education in St. Joseph, Missouri. Narrator: Westbrook van Voorhis.

Sound, B&W, 30:07

Highway engineering and development in the pre-Interstate era.  This 30s Jam Handy film talks about the improvements in roads that have had to be made to keep up with innovations in cars. Divided highways, rotary traffic circles, railroad trestles, and cloverleaf junctions are particularly highlighted. This is a good historical record of the evolution of roads in the first half of the 20th century, and the breezy Jam Handy style makes it more interesting than it might be.

Sound, B&W, 8:48

DVD Menu Sampler: