Ford's Assembly Line

Explain how specialization lowered the price of cars.

Warm-up, learn, try it together, practice, then a quick check. About 15 minutes.

What children learn in Level 31

In 1900, cars were toys for the rich. Each was built slowly, by skilled workers. Henry Ford of Detroit wanted a car that ordinary families could buy.
Ford's Model T was simple and tough. In 1908, it cost about 850 dollars, still too much for most families.
In 1913, Ford's factory tried a moving assembly line. The car rolled past, and each worker added one part. That's specialization: each person does one job, again and again.
Building a Model T had taken about 12 hours. Soon it took about an hour and a half. Ford could make more cars for less money, so the price fell below 300 dollars.
Ford also paid 5 dollars a day, a high wage then, so that workers stayed. The work was dull and tiring, but millions of families could now buy a car. Roads, gas stations, and suburbs spread.

Georgia Standards of Excellence in Social Studies:

SS5H2.b — Describe the cultural developments and individual contributions in the 1920s of the Jazz Age (Louis Armstrong), the Harlem Renaissance (Langston Hughes), baseball (Babe Ruth), the automobile (Henry Ford), and transatlantic flight (Charles Lindbergh).
SS5E1.c — Describe how specialization can improve standards of living and productivity (e.g., how Henry Ford's use of the assembly line reduced the price of automobiles).