How Did Henry Ford Influence American History

With the American civilization growing you have to wonder who has greatly influenced the growth of this country. Another thought you might have is that there are too many people that have influenced the American civilization to name them all. But The Atlantic has asked 10 eminent historians and together they prepared a list of 100 Americans that had a great influence in American History. One of those people is Henry Ford. Some people or Historians might argue that he shouldn’t be on the list but I think he had a great influence on American History and should remain on the list. Henry Ford should remain on the list because he started the Ford Motor Company which helped America transition from an agricultural country to a more industrial country (2). He was also a very generous employer because he paid high wages which in turn encouraged the highest level labor productivity and this helped him become a very successful businessman. Also with him being a successful businessman he was a creative force behind an industry of unprecedented size and wealth

He was a committed anti-Semite which means he was hostile to, prejudice, or discriminated against jews. He also published a number of anti-Semitic writings including 1921 pamphlet, “The International Jew: The World’s Foremost Problems” (1). He was also awarded the Grand Cross of the German Eagle, the most important award Nazis gave to foreigners, by Adolf Hitler in 1938 (1). Also Hitler mentioned him by name in “Mein Kampf” saying“You can tell Herr Ford that I am a great admirer of his. I shall do my best to put his theories into practice in Germany” (Rudin) Including being an anti-Semite Henry Ford was also hostile toward trade Unions and he didn’t want any part with them (Pettinger). Even though he discriminated against Jews and was hostile towards trade unions he still had many characteristics that should keep him on the most influential Americans