GREAT EUROPEANS: I have experience with many car brands, but I had not realized something. My favorite marque was built by an innovative company. This company was inspired by a fellow Irishman.

Okay, I know Henry Ford was American-born and bred.  However, his father, William Ford, was a 21-year-old Irish farmer when he left West Cork in 1847.  Under Irish law, this makes America’s venerable Henry Ford an Irish national.

One has to concede that Ireland in 1847 was under the English jackboot. Therefore, he qualified for British nationality too. But, who doesn’t these days?  We will dismiss the British connection, as they were the cuckoo in the Irish nest.

In 1912, sentiment drew Henry Ford and his son Edsel back to his father’s humble cottage. This included its 30 acres of land in Lisselane. 

On arrival, Dad and lad discovered that three of Edsel’s brothers were still resident.  On the advice of a priest, the renegade three refused to sell up. 

Renowned for his pragmatism, Henry withdrew his offer. However, he did take away the cottage hearth. Afterwards, he rarely returned to his father’s home and hearth. Ford’s family and his place of birth still pay tribute to their esteemed son. 

Ford named his Edsel car (1958 to 1960) after Edsel B. Ford, his son. The Edsel was launched just as the U.S. economy entered a recession, and consumers were beginning to favor smaller, more fuel-efficient cars.

Many Irish, English, and Scottish family histories from the time tell fascinating sagas. This includes the journey of the Henry Ford family. It captures the challenges of emigration and hardship. His then 21-year-old father had settled into a farming community near Dearborn, Michigan.  

Henry, born in 1863, seemed destined for life as a farmer.  It was in the farm’s outdoor sheds that Henry worked on the principle of the petrol-driven motor car.

Having built his first car, he founded the Ford Motor Company in 1903.  The first Ford Cars were seen in Ireland in 1907 at the Irish Motor Show.

Hazel Ford Buttimer, a direct descendant, stated that Henry Ford was inspired to create the assembly line concept. He was inspired after he observed wool production moving from sheep to a textile factory in Ireland.

The stimulus transformed the United States, and Ford became one of the great industrialists of the 20^th Century.

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