Gain perspective. Get inspired. Make history.
THE CONNECTING WITH COMMUNITY ISSUE
MAGAZINE JANUARY-MAY 2021
ERADICATING THE GREAT ONLINE DIVIDE
BRINGING DETROIT CENTRAL MARKET BACK TO LIFE
FIGHTING THE GOOD FIGHT AGAINST FOOD INSECURITY
The Connecting with Community Issue
Is food insecurity an isolated issue?
How do ordinary objects tell stories of togetherness?
Can grassroots efforts eradicate the great online divide?
Are there simple solutions to the internet’s inequities?
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How do w fight the good figh against fo insecurity
Can online curator chats keep stories of innovation in the conversation?
Can an old structure spur new connections?
MAGAZINE
JANUARY-MAY 2021
Contents
DEPARTMENTS FEATURES Our Mission 4 Behind the Scenes 5 Letter from the President 6 Off the Shelf 8 Ask + Answer 10 Screen Time 11 A Look Back 84
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FIND YOUR SUSTENANCE How two chefs and a group of students foraged personal paths to nourishing communities
INNOVATION 32 GENERATION 15 MARKET DAY
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INSIDE THE HENRY FORD
ht ood y?
Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation Greenfield Village Ford Rouge Factory Tour Acquisitions + Collections Membership Spotlight 2021 Events
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The historic Detroit Central Market’s vegetable shed will re-create a local food environment within Greenfield Village
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LET’S TECH TOGETHER Welcome to the digital era. Now what?
PLAN YOUR VISIT 67
STAY CONNECTED
As we continue to grapple with one of the most challenging times in our history, our priority is the health and well-being of our staff, students and visitors while continuing to be a place that activates a can-do spirit in all of us. Please visit thf.org, subscribe to our eNews or follow us on Facebook for the most up-to-date information on venues, upcoming exhibits, events, programming and pricing.
DIGITAL EDITION This issue of The Henry Ford Magazine is being distributed as a digital publication; print copies are not available. The digital publishing platform, ISSUU, expands our distribution globally and provides readers with the ability to easily share content they love through social media and email.
INDIVIDUAL COVER PHOTOS COURTESY OF GETTY IMAGES
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OUR MISSION
Who We Are and What We Do
Gain perspective. Get inspired. Make history. THE HENRY FORD: A NATIONAL TREASURE AND CULTURAL RESOURCE The Henry Ford in Dearborn, Michigan, is an internationally recognized cultural destination that brings the past forward by immersing visitors in the stories of ingenuity, resourcefulness and innovation that helped shape America.
A force for sparking curiosity and inspiring tomorrow’s innovators, inventors and entrepreneurs, The Henry Ford fosters learning from hands-on encounters with authentic artifacts. Through its 26 million artifacts, unique venues and resources — Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation®, Greenfield Village®, Ford Rouge Factory Tour, Benson Ford Research Center® and Henry Ford Academy®, as well as online at thf.org and through the TV programs The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation and Did I Mention Invention? — The Henry Ford helps all individuals to unlock their potential and help shape a better future. The Henry Ford leads the Invention Convention Worldwide community and works to make STEM + Invention + Entrepreneurship (STEMIE) learning accessible to educators and students worldwide. As part of our leadership in invention education, The Henry Ford powers events like Invention Convention U.S. Nationals and curriculum and professional development. For more information, visit thf.org.
We need your help now in securing our future. The Henry Ford is facing unprecedented financial challenges because of the impact of COVID-19, which caused a nearly 16-week closure and reduced operations in a way that is expected to last for several months to years. Without donations from people like you, we will struggle to provide the imaginative and inventive programming and experiences for which we are known and loved. Love The Henry Ford? Please support all that we treasure. Give today at thf.org/donate.
MISSION STATEMENT The Henry Ford provides unique educational experiences based on authentic objects, stories and lives from America’s traditions of ingenuity, resourcefulness and innovation. Our purpose is to inspire people to learn from these traditions to help shape a better future.
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TO MAKE A DONATION OR A LEGACY GIFT
Chairman of the Board S. Evan Weiner Vice Chairman Sheila Ford Hamp President and Secretary Patricia E. Mooradian Treasurer Lisa A. Payne Board of Trustees Lynn Ford Alandt Gerard M. Anderson Linda Apsey Paul R. Dimond Edsel B. Ford II Henry Ford III William Clay Ford, Jr. William Clay Ford III Ralph J. Gerson Eliza Kontulis Getz Christopher F. Hamp John W. Ingle III Elizabeth Ford Kontulis Richard A. Manoogian Hendrik Meijer Bruce Meyer Mark L. Reuss Hau Thai-Tang Alessandro F. Uzielli Carla Walker-Miller Amb. Ronald N. Weiser
J. Spencer Medford Vice President & Chief Advancement Officer 313.982.6016 spencem@thehenryford.org Jeff Dunlap Senior Director of Principal Gifts 313.982.6167 jeffd@thehenryford.org Sherri Howes Senior Director of Institutional Advancement 313.982.6028 sherrih@thehenryford.org SPONSORSHIP INFORMATION
Anna Cronin Head of Institutional Advancement Services & Foundation Relations 313.982.6119 annac@thehenryford.org MEMBERSHIP INFORMATION
The Henry Ford Contact Center 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily 313.982.6001 GENERAL INQUIRIES AND GROUP RESERVATIONS
The Henry Ford Contact Center 9 a.m.-5 p.m. daily 313.982.6001 RESEARCH INQUIRIES
313.982.6020 research.center@thehenry ford.org
Life Trustees George F. Francis III Steven K. Hamp Roger S. Penske
CHIEF CONTENT CURATOR
The Henry Ford Magazine is published twice a year by The Henry Ford, 20900 Oakwood Blvd., Dearborn, MI 48124. Copyright 2021. All rights reserved. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is prohibited.
DESIGN, PRODUCTION AND EDITORIAL SERVICES
Kristen Gallerneaux, Curator of Communications & Information Technology, The Henry Ford
313.974.6501 info@octanedesign.com Bill Bowen, Creative Director Julie Friedman, Art Director Jennifer LaForce, Editor Kathy O’Gorman, Copy Editor
Notable Colleagues and Correspondents
BEHIND THE SCENES
HOW DO YOU CHOOSE TO CONNECT WITH YOUR COMMUNITY? Our contributors share with us.
LIZ GROSSMAN
DIANA J. NUCERA
SYLVIA PERICLES
DEBRA A. REID
I stay connected to my community by partnering with local charities for our “live lit” reading series, Between Bites. Since we started it in 2013, we’ve raised more than $60,000 for charities like the Greater Chicago Food Depository, the James Beard Foundation Scholarship Program and more.
I choose to connect with my community through thought and knowledge sharing in my garden. In winter, I hope to continue wonderous conversations around a fire or on a good oldfashioned phone call.
I choose to connect with my community by sharing my art via social media.
I have lived in many communities during my career, but I have always held firmly to my “home” on a farm in rural southern Illinois. It is my place of origin and central to my identity. I do feel a close connection to all the communities in which I have lived. They enlightened me, and I tried to connect and contribute to them. My life is richer for living in many places and engaging in many communities.
Liz Grossman has been a Chicago-based writer, editor and storyteller for 20 years. She’s currently the managing editor of Plate magazine, an award-winning national trade publication for the professional chef industry. Her live storytelling experience includes reading from her middle school diary on stage at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall and as part of the Netflix series The Mortified Guide. Her work has appeared in Newsweek, Southwest Airlines Spirit, Robb Report and more. Follow her on Instagram at @elizabites_chi. Find Your Sustenance, Page 20
Diana J. Nucera, aka Mother Cyborg, is an artist, educator and community organizer who explores innovative technology with communities most impacted by digital inequalities. Her specialty is developing popular educational experiences, supported by dynamic documentation, that empower communities to use media and technology as visionary tools. She has been working as a media artist and technology educator for the past 17 years. Let’s Tech Together, Page 44
Sylvia Pericles is an illustrator and a UI/UX designer. Art is a very important part of her culture, allowing her to explore her inner capabilities and giving her insights into how she can imagine and use different means to relate to others. Her art focuses on the highly purified beauty of minimalism when combined with energetic colors. She hopes to inspire and empower people through her art. Let’s Tech Together, Page 44
Debra A. Reid is The Henry Ford’s curator of agriculture and the environment. Her rural and farm background, combined with her training in history and museum studies, prepares her well for the task at hand — documenting the community of entrepreneurs that sustained Detroit’s local food environment during the 19th century. Market Day, Page 32
STAY CONNECTED
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LETTER FROM THE PRESIDENT
As a nation, we have proven time and time again that we work smarter when we work together, and as an institution, deeply rooted connections are key to activating our mission every single day. To fulfill our goals of inspiring a better future, The Henry Ford is making great strides in building back from a global pandemic while standing in solidarity for equality and opportunity for all. I’m so proud of the work we are doing to make The Henry Ford accessible to everyone, whether it’s through the expansion of our sensory-friendly programming or our new advisory committee to address our approach to diverse storytelling. This issue of The Henry Ford Magazine quite fittingly focuses on community, and this year we have a number of new initiatives and exhibitions that speak to the idea of bringing people together to create both opportunities and solutions regarding the issues we face today. In 2021, we will launch inHub, a global resource and community designed to activate innovative mindsets through an unparalleled collection of artifacts, stories and experiences of innovation, invention and entrepreneurship covering 300 years of American history. You can learn more about it on Page 16 of this magazine. Think of
inHub as a virtual venue welcoming large groups of like-minded learners of all ages from all over the world to access curated stories of innovators and their unique journeys. In 2003, The Henry Ford acquired the vegetable building from Detroit’s Central Market, saving it from demolition. With the help of our donors and members of the Carver-Carson Society, I’m pleased to say that the newly erected market will open this year in Greenfield Village. Built in 1860 and considered one of the oldest surviving urban markets of its kind in the country, this structure will once again be a hub of ingenuity and innovation for farmers and thought leaders to gather and help educate and engage our community on critical issues like food insecurity and environmental sustainability. We look forward to what this new year has in store for us, and I want to thank all of you for standing with The Henry Ford. I hope you enjoy this issue of the magazine.
With gratitude,
PATRICIA E. MOORADIAN, PRESIDENT AND CEO
STAY CONNECTED
PHOTO BY ROY RITCHIE
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@akgerke08 @familytravel.life
@fosterzerowaste
@coachnicolejackson
Powerful Reflections. Inspiring Moments. Lifelong Memories.
Love The Henry Ford? Please support all that we treasure.
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OFF THE SHELF
Recommended Films, Fine Reads and Dot-coms
WHAT ARE WE READING + WATCHING? No! My First Book of Protest Cynthia Jones, The Henry Ford’s general manager of innovation experiences, marvels at how this sturdy children’s book from author Julie Merberg and illustrator Molly Egan taps into the fascinating stories of some of the most impactful protest movements and famous activists to teach kids about social action. I remember sitting on my mom’s lap reading my childhood favorite, Dr. Seuss’ Yertle the Turtle. Today, I appreciate how books for the youngest readers distill complex stories into compelling images and clear, action-oriented ideas. My latest read is No! My First Book of Protest. Little ones will enjoy saying “No, No!” with each activist. They will learn that a “No!” followed up with collective action can change the world. Many social innovators featured on these pages have a home in our collections, programs and exhibits, including Frederick Douglass, Alice Paul and Rosa Parks. Judith Heumann, a disability rights activist, is someone I knew less about and was glad to discover. Greta Thunberg influenced some of our recent collecting, including signs made by students for the climate marches of 2019-2020. I hope all of us take this book’s message to heart: “Great people made big changes when they said ‘No, No!’ Someday you can protest too (when you’ve had time to grow).”
“MANY SOCIAL INNOVATORS FEATURED ON THESE PAGES HAVE A HOME IN OUR COLLECTIONS, PROGRAMS AND EXHIBITS, INCLUDING FREDERICK DOUGLASS, ALICE PAUL AND ROSA PARKS.” —C YNTHIA JONES, GENERAL MANAGER, INNOVATION EXPERIENCES, THE HENRY FORD
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ONLINE Watch the calendar of events for The Henry Ford’s PNC Tinkering for Tots preschool program in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation. According to general manager Cynthia Jones, No! My First Book of Protest could become a pick for a storyteller book reading during an upcoming Tinkering for Tots program thf.org/eventsc
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Other children’s books that The Henry Ford’s Cynthia Jones said help get to the core of how we as a society are thinking about, working toward and shaping the future: Antiracist Baby by Ibram X. Kendi and A Is for Activist by Innosanto Nagarac
COMMUNITY DECONSTRUCTED
Grow your knowledge about community making, the power of an organized voice and the role of farming, past and present. This list of favorites is compliments of The Henry Ford archives and our library staff.
Brent Embry
Senior Graphic Designer, The Henry Ford Make Change: How to Fight Injustice, Dismantle Systemic Oppression, and Own Our Future by Shaun King Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You: A Remix of the National Book Award-winning Stamped from the Beginning by Jason Reynolds and Ibram X. Kendi The COVID-19 quarantine has allowed me to spend time with family and revisit some of my favorite stress-relieving hobbies, like guitar and Chinese martial arts. But the current political climate has stirred my inner community activist. Friends recommended the following books to me: Shaun King’s Make Change along with Stamped: Racism, Anitracism, and You. Both reads are very timely and offer insights to solutions and alternatives during this wake-up call for racial and social reform in America.
PHOTO COURTESY OF SHAUN KING
Anita Davis
Program Manager, Corporate Professional Development, The Henry Ford black-ish ABC-TV This American TV sitcom series chronicles the complexities of raising an upper-middleclass Black family in Los Angeles’ white suburbia. While rooted in comedy, the show addresses hard-hitting cultural and social topics that Black Americans face on a daily basis. It is presented in a way that doesn’t lose its significance and provides multiple vantage points on Black culture. I find the show to be very timely and poignant during a time when an overconsumption of political news can be discouraging.
Sophia Kloc
Historical Resources Administrator, The Henry Ford Driving the Green Book Macmillan Podcasts The Negro Motorist Green Book has been at the forefront of the cultural psyche for the last three years, but the Macmillan podcast, Driving the Green Book, brilliantly journeys into its roots, from the Underground Railroad to firsthand accounts of racism today, by highlighting Black female entrepreneurship, civic pioneers and communities, both physical and social.
BOOKS Farmers’ Markets of the Heartland by Janine MacLachlan Making Local Food Work: The Challenges and Opportunities of Today’s Small Farmers by Brandi Janssen The Claims of Kinfolk: African American Property and Community in the NineteenthCentury South by Dylan C. Penningroth Thinking Small: The United States and the Lure of Community Development by Daniel Immerwahr Historical Roots of the Urban Crisis: African Americans in the Industrial City, 1900-1950 Henry Louis Taylor Jr. and Walter Hill, eds. The Different Drum: Community Making and Peace by M. Scott Peck My Community: Then and Now by Lynn Bryan
DID YOU KNOW? /
You can see an original edition of The Negro Motorist Green Book in the Driving America exhibition in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation.
Here Comes Everybody: The Power of Organizing Without Organizations by Clay Shirky Preserving the Family Farm: Women, Community and the Foundations of Agribusiness in the Midwest, 1900-1940 by Mary Neth Twitter and Tear Gas: The Power and Fragility of Networked Protests by Zeynep Tufekci Frontier Settlement and Market Revolution: The Holland Land Purchase by Charles E. Brooks
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ASK + ANSWER
Questions and Replies about Today’s Trends, Talk
ASK: HOW DO EVERYDAY THINGS REFLECT COMMUNITY?
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ANSWER:
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Everyday objects are more than just things. Ultimately, they are about people — and about community. As humans, we need a sense of belonging — it’s what connects us to each other and to the larger world. While our individual strengths are important, they are even stronger when joined within a common goal and purpose. Ordinary objects — like a bucket, hardware, piano, blouse and computer — might attract little notice. Yet they reflect larger stories of community that engage, unite and inspire. Everyday objects. Rich stories.
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Jeanine Head Miller is curator of domestic life at The Henry Ford. 5
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Fire Bucket, 1803 Community was once defined by geographic location and close patterns of human interaction. And, as this 1803 fire bucket shows, often involved collective action. In the event of a fire, people formed a bucket brigade to come to each other’s aid.
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L. Miller & Son Store Display of Snips, Planes, Plumb Bobs and Measuring Tools, 1923-1928 Tools and hardware from Louis Miller’s Chicago store provide a lens into an Eastern European immigrant community of the 1920s. To make it easier for customers who did not speak English, Miller showcased his store’s stock in an extensive wall display. His customers simply pointed to the item they wished to buy.
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Piano, Used at Club Harlem, Detroit, Michigan, 1934 This unassuming little piano belies its jazzy past at Club Harlem in Detroit’s Paradise Valley. Racial discrimination had sequestered the city’s Black population into a tight-knit, vibrant community where Black-owned businesses dotted the streets. Paradise Valley — with its clubs, theaters and dance halls — became Detroit’s major entertainment spot in the 1930s and 1940s.
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Blouse, Made for Farm or Factory Workers During WWII, circa 1943 This unpretentious work blouse reveals a powerful World War II story of community. As men left to join the military, women heeded the call to “do the job he left behind,” working in factories to produce planes, jeeps and tanks. They helped win the war.
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Google Pixel Slate, 2018-2019 Computers and the internet have offered new — and increasingly complex — layers of virtual community. No longer bound by physical proximity, communities form online and cover the globe.
PHOTOS FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
Interact with The Henry Ford’s Expanding Digital World
SEARCH, WATCH, DOWNLOAD From digital content and exhibits to interactives, inHub and Innovation Nation, and from our campus to the rest of the world, digitization of our collections now underpins much of what we do.
#1
Most Popular Digital Collections Artifact of All Time
Thanks to the 2019 film Ford v Ferrari, it’s a photo of Ken Miles at the 1966 24 Hours of Le Mans race. To see more most viewed artifacts, click here.
PHOTOS FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
DIGITIZING DEFINITION: CATALOGING The process of documenting collections objects by recording information (like who made the object, where it was used, its measurements, what it’s made of, etc.) in a computer database. DIGITIZING DEFINITION: CONSERVATION Cleaning, special handling or more extensive stabilization or restoration needed to care for an artifact before it’s photographed.
SHADOWS & LIGHT Let our photography team take you behind the scenes in our Photo Studio as they work to capture glass, dealing with challenges like minimizing reflections. thf.org/explore/ photographing -glass
SCREEN TIME
GET THF CONNECTc Download the THF Connect mobile
app so you can gain exclusive access to museum tours and interactive AR experiences. Members can also access their digital membership card through the app. thf.org/connectapp
CONTENT CELEBRATION
In November 2020, The Henry Ford digitized its 100,000th artifact — go to Page 84 to see it. That kicked off a monthlong online celebration. Check out highlights from the content-packed month and dive into our roundup post. thf.org/explore/digitization100k-wrap-up
MOVING THE VERY BEST Collections management — locating, moving, packing and unpacking artifacts — is a critical component of the digitization process. Read what Collections Operations Logistics Coordinator Victoria Morris has to say about the challenges of our efforts to digitize thousands of Hallmark ornaments. Click here
a Kimberly Bryant, founder of Black Girls Code
ONLINE Discover how The Henry Ford is using its digital collections to help amplify stories of communities that have — and still are — experiencing marginalization or other social injustice at thf.org/explore/social -justice-and-injusticec thf.org
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You’re an inspiration to us all The Henry Ford is making a difference in our neighborhood. Helping the local economy thrive is just one of the many positive attributes you bring to our area. Extending your abilities and resources to the community through service and other initiatives makes you a true leader. We’re proud to work with The Henry Ford. Visit us at bankofamerica.com/local.
©2020 Bank of America Corporation | 2935478 | ENT-225-AD
Strength Through Technology
™
Creative minds translate new ideas, generated in motorsports to highvolume innovative solutions, including suspension and dampers, lightweight body structures and active aerodynamic devices.
multimatic.com
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Profiles of people curious enough to challenge the rules and risk the failures
INNOVATION GENERATION The Henry Ford is committed to ALL audiences and to inspiring the next generation of inventors, entrepreneurs and innovators, regardless of backgrounds or barriers. Our Archive of American Innovation serves as the cornerstone for all of our innovation learning experiences, programs and curricula, which are designed to accelerate the innovative mindsets of all learners from across the globe.
Introducing the inHub Learning Community 16 Programming, Resources + Events 18
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INNOVATION GENERATION
INHUB INNOVATION LEARNING COMMUNITY
INTRODUCING INHUB The Henry Ford’s innovation learning community built by educators for educators In 2018, The Henry Ford introduced its comprehensive The Innovation Project fundraising campaign, launched its Model i learning framework and acquired The STEMIE Coalition, a nonprofit global consortium of youth invention and entrepreneurship programs. An overarching goal of these bold moves: to strengthen invention education offerings to children across the country and around the world and to help millions of kids learn how to be innovative, inventive and entrepreneurial. After raising more than $100 million for The Innovation Project, offering a free Model i primer and lesson plans to hundreds of teachers and welcoming thousands of K-12 students to The Henry Ford for Invention Convention Worldwide events, The Henry Ford is announcing the next step in its aggressive push to help prepare all learners, regardless of backgrounds or barriers, to be world-changing innovators, inventors and entrepreneurs. It’s called inHub.
DID YOU KNOW? / The Henry Ford is the host site of Invention Convention Michigan and Invention Convention U.S. Nationals. See Page 19 for information about the 2021 conventions.
IN THE SPRING OF 2021, The Henry Ford is set to launch inHub. A global resource for activating an innovative mindset, inHub is a learning community powered by The Henry Ford and Invention Convention Worldwide. Built by educators for educators, it is accessible online, membership based, and most importantly, it leverages The Henry Ford’s Archive of American Innovation. “At The Henry Ford, we are strategically focused on creating an innovation learning movement, on developing products and resources rooted in our artifacts and experiences that support this movement, and on building a community where educators can communicate with each other about their successes, failures, hopes and dreams for this movement,” said Matthew Majeski, The Henry Ford’s managing director and chief marketing/digital officer. InHub, according to Majeski, is the “how” to increasing teacher and student access to The Henry Ford’s artifacts, experiences and stories that layer on core disciplines such as STEM, social studies and language arts. It is the mechanism or portal that will help morph and expand already successful programming, such as The Henry Ford’s Model i learning framework, which is focused on helping teachers teach the habits and actions of innovation and innovators. It is also the connecting tissue that will further build the Invention Convention Worldwide infrastructure and help reach its mission to see 10 million children learn how to unlock real-world skills for identifying
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problems, sharing solutions and implementing ideas. Within inHub, members, depending on their level of membership, will gain access to exclusive content for four areas of focus and impact: curriculum resources, digital asset library, professional development and certification, and virtual field trips and experiences. That equates to giving teachers and their students unparalleled access to The Henry Ford’s Model i lesson plans, speaker series, sponsored workshops and webinars, professional development and certification, digital content, events such as Invention Convention and so much more. To start, inHub will be offered to educators across the United States only, with both a free and paid membership level available. Majeski added that future-forward plans include offering inHub memberships to other partners and affiliates. Long term, The Henry Ford and the Opportunity Insights Project at Harvard University are working together to identify schools, school districts, cities and states that are the least likely to provide innovation opportunities for students. Then they will strategize on how best to provide those areas with innovation learning and access to inHub to address the innovation opportunity gap. “We want to level the playing field,” said Majeski. “InHub is our portal, our tool that can give us a leading role in the innovation learning movement. We want everyone to have the opportunity to become the next Thomas Edison, Henry Ford or Rosa Parks.”
ACTIVATE AN INNOVATIVE MINDSET
BUILD INVENTION SKILLS
INSPIRE ENTREPRENEURIAL THINKING
CONNECT CORE DISCIPLINES TO THE REAL WORLD
INHUB PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT PILOT In fall 2020, 15 elementary, middle school and high school educators from across the United States participated in a pilot of inHub’s first professional development course. The eight-week online course focused on The Henry Ford’s innovation learning strategy and Model i framework. Through live sessions, videos and opportunities to connect with peers and The Henry Ford’s experts, participants learned how they can practice the habits of innovators and actions of innovation and worked to create unique implementation plans for their classrooms. According to Olivia Marsh, The Henry Ford’s program manager of educator professional
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development, many of the pilot testers were current or former The Henry Ford Teacher Innovator Award winners and Invention Convention participants. “We had a good mix of people,” said Marsh. “Some who were familiar with us and others who were not.” In the pilot’s first week, teacher feedback was overwhelmingly positive, with a 2020 Teacher Innovator Award winner from California commenting: “... There are lots of conferences, but very few have this sort of in-depth learning cycle and specific skill set for perspective modification. I’m glad to be a part of this community of innovators and can’t wait to see where this leads.”
“THIS PLATFORM WILL ATTRACT A CERTAIN KIND OF TEACHER — IT’S A CHANCE TO MEET LIKEMINDED PEOPLE FROM ACROSS THE WORLD IN A MORE MEANINGFUL WAY THAN JUST THROUGH CHATS.” —A LLISON JAMES, CHICAGO INVENTION CONVENTION AFFILIATE
The feature story “Mind Over Matter” in the January-May 2019 issue of The Henry Ford Magazine to gain perspective on the institution’s continued push to leave no innovator behind and to remove barriers to accessing its content. Visit issuu.com/thfmagazinec thf.org
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INNOVATION GENERATION
PROGRAMMING, RESOURCES + EVENTS What to watch, read, do to inspire big thinking
WATCH The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation and Did I Mention Invention? Episode information about Innovation Nation can be found at thf.org/innovationnation, and episode clips are on youtube.com/thehenryford. Seasons one and two of Innovation Nation on DVD are also available exclusively at thf.org/shop and The Henry Ford gift storesc
THE HENRY FORD’S DRIVERS CLUB Giving auto enthusiasts a place to connect, share and experience While the COVID-19 pandemic has limited on-site activities and face-to-face engagement, Matt Anderson, The Henry Ford’s curator of transportation, has been holding a series of virtual chats and tours with members of The Henry Ford’s Drivers Club, a community dedicated to sharing the stories of automotive innovations. As a club member, individuals also have unlimited access to Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation and Greenfield Village, along with other exclusive experiences dedicated to the auto enthusiast. “Early last April as the pandemic shut everything down, we decided right away that we still wanted to keep our Drivers Club members interested and engaged,” said Anderson. It started with simple Thursday afternoon online chats between Anderson and the club’s 50 members. It quickly morphed into more, including a virtual deep dive into the new Driven to Win: Racing in America exhibition in the museum. In addition to lively discussions about Ford’s win in 1967 at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and a one-on-one with The Henry Ford’s then entrepreneur-in-residence Jessica Robinson, executive director of the Michigan Mobility Institute, Anderson has also taken members on virtual tours of privately owned vehicle collections as well as the Stahls Automotive Foundation museum in Chesterfield Township, Michigan. To learn more about the club and how to become a member, visit thf.org/drivers-club.
DID YOU KNOW? / The Henry Ford partners with a diverse array of community-based organizations that provide direct social services to resource-challenged clientele in the metro Detroit area through its Community Outreach Program. Over 125 community partners currently share their field expertise on local needs that include tutoring, literacy, job training, accessibility, addiction and health and human services. For nearly 15 years, The Henry Ford has collaborated with these partners to engage the underserved and underrepresented individuals and families they serve in complimentary on-site shared “family” experiences (parent/child, mentor/mentee, caregiver/client, etc.) and connect their organizations with additional resources to help inspire a brighter future. 18
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Each month, The Henry d
DEMENTIA PROGRAMMING The Henry Ford provides an often-isolated audience with enrichment and engagement For the past four years, The Henry Ford and the Alzheimer’s Association have been collaborating on a monthly series of programs for individuals with dementia and their care partners. Prior to The Henry Ford’s temporary closure for the COVID-19 pandemic last spring, these programs took place on-site. The programs have since gone virtual. Well received and well attended, these programs often attract even more attendees than the on-site programming. Each month’s program has a different theme and a presentation by one of The Henry Ford’s curators. Themes of the virtual programs have included superheroes (in which The Henry Ford collaborated with the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, with musicians playing superhero music from their homes), ice cream, luggage design, racing, the invention of chocolate chip cookies and the making of The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation. Providing an often-isolated audience with muchappreciated opportunities for enrichment and engagement, this programming leaves participants excited for more. Continuing with this success, The Henry Ford looks forward to growing this and other accessibility programs into the future. — CAROLINE BRADEN, ACCESSIBILITY SPECIALIST, THE HENRY FORD
Ford’s virtual dementia programming has different themes, which have ranged from superheroes (shown above) to ice cream and auto racing.
SAVE THE DATES THE 2020 INVENTION CONVENTION U.S. NATIONALS Virtual awards ceremony honors young inventors In July 2020, more than 60 students from across the nation took home top honors for their outstanding inventions and problem-solving solutions during the annual Invention Convention U.S. Nationals presented by Raytheon Technologies. The students were among nearly 500 award-winning K-12 inventors who were celebrated at a virtual awards ceremony hosted by The Henry Ford’s Innovation Nation correspondent Alie Ward. During the 2019-2020 school year, K-12 inventors from across the country competed at local affiliate events to showcase their inventions at Invention Convention U.S. Nationals. As part of the awards ceremony, The Henry Ford sponsored two awards, including the President’s Choice Award, selected by Patricia Mooradian, president and CEO of The Henry Ford, and the Model i Youth Inventor Award, selected by The Henry Ford’s staff, as examples of innovation.
2021 Invention Convention Michigan Awards Ceremony April 24 The state’s convention winners are announced as national finalists as all participating Michigan inventors are celebrated. Virtual event.
2021 Invention Convention U.S. Nationals presented by Raytheon Technologies Awards Ceremony June 24 The nation’s best young inventors and innovators are honored, chosen from the pool of Invention Convention national finalists identified at competitions held across the nation. Virtual event.
Jadyn & Sienna Smith | Perceive the Puzzle The 2020 President’s Choice Award winners, Jadyn and Sienna (at right) Smith from Ann Arbor, Michigan, are the brains behind the invention Perceive the Puzzle (pictured below). Driven by their desire to help a family member diagnosed with autism, the two 12th-graders created a portable EEG for autistic individuals. This allows caregivers to monitor brain activity, helping them address stress episodes quicker and easier. Jadyn and Sienna’s Perceive the Puzzle device can easily fit on a baseball cap and is comfortable and practical enough to be worn by someone in public. The invention also makes existing EEG technology more accessible to those with autism at a significantly lower price than almost every other personal EEG on the market.
Danny Mefford | The Quick Click The 2020 Model i Youth Inventor Award winner, Danny Mefford, is a sixth-grader from Blanchester, Ohio. A multiyear winner and serial inventor, Danny invented The Quick Click (above right), which seeks to solve the frustration, headache and time that it takes to install an infant car seat. His invention aims to make the installation easier, giving users more time to focus on other safety aspects of the car seat installation process. The Quick Click attaches to the seat belt’s latch plate and slides the seat belt through the car seat. In addition to the Model i Youth Inventor Award, Danny also received top honors in the Manufacturing and Tools category of the Industry Awards.
ONLINE Visit The Henry Ford’s YouTube channel to watch the full 2020 Invention Convention U.S. Nationals Awards Ceremony or visit inventionconvention.org for a full list of the 2020 winnersc
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FINDYO SUSTEN How two chefs and a group of students foraged personal paths to nourishing communities By Liz Grossman
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OUR NANCE What does food insecurity look like? Is it found in a college student at a liberal arts school in the Midwest? Or maybe in a sixth-grader doing e-learning on the East Coast? Or maybe it’s a Native American elder in Arizona who’s still holding a place for frybread at the table.
The fact is that all three face barriers to food justice, even if it’s not apparent on the surface. The founders of Feed Your Brain saw it after students at Hamline University in St. Paul, Minnesota, revealed in a survey that hunger was affecting their ability to learn. Chef Dan Giusti realized it when he took a closer look at the flaws in school food service and sent professional chefs in to help through his organization,
Brigaid. And Diné/Navajo chef Brian Yazzie knows firsthand how poor diets have long affected the health of Indigenous communities and is working to reconnect them to their Native ingredients. The Henry Ford Magazine took a look at how all three have set out on their own food justice journeys and, even through COVID-19, continue to fight for sovereignty in these communities and beyond.
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BRAIN FOOD BARRIER BREAKERS On October 26, 2017, students of Twin Cities-based Hamline University left work and class to flock to a few benches in a campus parking lot where more than 2,000 pounds of nonperishable food items were stacked.
WHO: An GaragiolaBernier, Emma Kiley, Elise Hanson WHAT: Co-founders, Feed Your Brain WHY: Because someone needs to be the voice for hungry college students
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About one-third of college students are food insecure* * College & University Food Bank Alliance
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“We ran out in 30 minutes,” recalled An Garagiola-Bernier. A sophomore at the liberal arts school at the time, she organized the donation event, called Feed Your Brain, with fellow students Elise Hanson and Emma Kiley. Even if the administration couldn’t see it, these three became acutely aware of food insecurity at Hamline after a sit-in over immigration laws earlier that year. “Students posted about immigration laws being changed, and some testified to experiencing so much hunger it was affecting their ability to learn,” said Garagiola-Bernier. The three friends wanted to dig deeper. They sent a survey to all undergrads to assess how food insecurity was affecting them. They included questions that addressed sourcing culturally appropriate food and healthy options for those with allergies or chronic conditions. “They were questions nobody was asking but students were really concerned about,” said Garagiola-Bernier. Of the nearly 360 students who responded, 76% admitted to having trouble accessing food, and findings revealed heavier insecurity among Muslim, Hispanic, trans and gay/lesbian students. “We wanted to make the administration, and even the general public, aware that food insecurity is a profound indicator of poverty on college campuses,” said Garagiola-Bernier. “And if someone is food insecure, they’re also likely housing insecure or experiencing trouble with
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utilities or health care services.” The findings contradicted Hamline’s reputation (and that of private college campuses in general) as being places of privilege where food insecurity is an unexpected issue. “College students fall into a type of policy gap where they’re considered dependents of their parents. However, we know they’re living in financially independent situations,” said Garagiola-Bernier. The first free food pop-up more than proved that, and a second one was held a month later. Feed Your Brain pop-ups continued monthly over the next two academic years (some intentionally set up in front of administration offices), and the founders continued to research food justice and work with faculty to help find a home for a food pantry. “It was relentless advocacy and action first, and then asking for forgiveness later if we broke the rules,” said Garagiola-Bernier. It was important for the pop-ups to offer students access to nonperishable, noncommodity foods and fresh produce. Not only do all three founders suffer from dietary health issues, Garagiola-Bernier, a descendent of the Bois Forte Band of Chippewa, has seen the effects of unhealthy foods. “Being a Native woman, food sovereignty is a big issue,” she said. “Being able to choose what goes into your body and the repercussions of that, whether good or bad, and not just have commodity foods
The College & University Food Bank Alliance, a professional organization of campus-based programs focused on alleviating food insecurity, hunger and poverty among college and university students in the United States. Visit cufba.orgc
CAMPUS CUISINE Feed Your Brain free food pop-ups on campus at Hamline University are making healthier pantry and produce options available to hungry college students. The passion project to address food insecurity is “more about caring for your neighbor and less about feeling bad for people or stigmatizing experiences,” said co-founder Emma Kiley (pictured second from left with fellow students from left: Maggie Bruns, Maddie Guyott, An Garagiola-Bernier and Najma Omar). TOP PHOTO COURTESY OF ANDY KING; MIDDLE PHOTO BY SABRINA MERRITT/THE ORACLE; ALL OTHER PHOTOS COURTESY OF HAMLINE UNIVERSITY
switched on you is vital. I’ve seen how having access only to unhealthy foods leads to extreme health conditions.” In 2019, Feed Your Brain found a permanent home with the help of Kiley, who became the first campus food access AmeriCorps VISTA (Volunteer in Service to America), and the organization started hosting dinners and discussions on topics like the stigma of food insecurity. “It was a space where students could have meaningful conversations around topics that are hard to talk about,” said Kiley, who has since graduated and passed the reins of VISTA on to fellow student Sophia Brown. This year’s survey solidified the importance of those conversations as a 15% increase in food and financial insecurity was seen among students since COVID-19 hit. “When we started, food was the easiest entry point into this work. But at its core, it’s always been more about justice and reparations, and we used food to have those conversations,” said Kiley. “There’s a high percentage of students that are food insecure, but it’s about more than that. We have to change the way we think about distributing food so it’s more about caring for your neighbor and less about feeling bad for people or stigmatizing experiences.”
ONLINE To find out more about the Feed Your Brain campaign, visit sites.google.com/ hamline.edu/feedyourbrainc
“IT WAS RELENTLESS ADVOCACY AND ACTION FIRST, AND THEN ASKING FOR FORGIVENESS LATER IF WE BROKE THE RULES.” — AN GARAGIOLABERNIER, FEED YOUR BRAIN
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INSTITUTIONAL FOOD FRONT-RUNNER In mid-August of 2020, Dan Giusti posted a picture on Instagram of an empty cafeteria. Communal tables were stacked against the walls, and single spaced-out desks and chairs took their place. “Maybe a new norm?” he asked in the caption.
WHO: Dan Giusti WHAT: Founder, Brigaid WHY: Because kids eating in school cafeterias deserve healthy food that tastes good
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One in four students faced food insecurity in 2020, up from one in seven in 2019* * No Kid Hungry
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Giusti, the founder of Brigaid, a program that sends professional chefs to work within federally funded food service operations, used to worry more about the food being eaten on those tables than figuring out how to serve it at a safe distance. The configuration was just one idea to keep students safe inside the cafeteria of Bennie Dover Jackson Middle School in New London, Connecticut, but regardless of the layout they chose, “school staff across the country must be commended in advance for what’s going to be a challenging year,” Giusti recognized at the end of the post. But Giusti, who spent three years as head chef of the Michelin-star Noma in Copenhagen, never let a challenge stop him before. “There wasn’t a service that didn’t matter,” he recalled. “When I was at Noma, it was all about Noma, until I looked up and decided what was next.” He knew it wasn’t a restaurant. “I had no desire to compete in that kind of forum. There are a lot of problems in the world that revolve around food,” said Giusti. “I figured I could use my skill set to solve some of them.” In 2016, he returned to the States and began working on Brigaid. “The only idea I had was I wanted to put a chef in a school. I never worked in a school or did school food,” said Giusti, who learned about the strict nutritional guidelines, minuscule budgets, undertrained staff and illequipped kitchens that have affected school food service. “The problem with most scenarios in
ONLINE For more information on Brigaid, visit chefsbrigaid.comc
school food is not that their food isn’t nutritious, it’s that it doesn’t taste good and the majority ends up in the trash. So our original focus was to make it taste good and have chefs develop relationships with students to get them to try new things.” Brigaid started in a few K-12 schools in New London and has since added more in the Bronx, New York; Southampton, New York; and Richmond, Virginia. This year, the company started working with a senior center in Manhattan, and more institutions were on the way until the pandemic hit. Suddenly, their mission became more about figuring out how to get food to kids doing e-learning and keeping kitchens safe rather than making meatballs from scratch. “We’re focused on helping schools logistically do this and feed all the kids that need to be fed and keep staff safe,” said Giusti. “That’s the priority right now.” But in the future, when those communal cafeteria tables are bustling again, Giusti may have a new arsenal of chefs on board. His fall 2020 webinar series sold out and attracted professional attendees from more than 40 states and 10 countries. “I think the restaurant industry is going to change in a big way, and I think there are chefs who might consider a different career path,” he said. “It would be amazing if more people chose to work in institutional food; it would go a long way in making it better.”
SCHOOL FOOD FOCUS Chef Dan Giusti (top) is taking his training as a head chef at a Michelinstar restaurant to the school cafeteria, bringing in professionals to make food that tastes good and, equally as important, to build relationships with the students so they’ll try new things. TOP PHOTO BY STAN GODLEWSKI; BOTTOM PHOTOS COURTESY OF BRIGAID
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“THERE ARE A LOT OF PROBLEMS IN THE WORLD THAT REVOLVE AROUND FOOD. I FIGURED I COULD USE MY SKILL SET TO SOLVE SOME OF THEM.” — DAN GIUSTI, BRIGAID
PHOTO COURTESY OF BRIGAID
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NATIVE FLAVORS TRAILBLAZER Catch a glimpse of Brian Yazzie’s left arm, and you’ll see cranberries, sumac and sunflowers near his wrist, blue Hopi corn on his forearm and Navajo squash holding court at his elbow. An illustrated sleeve of more produce and wild game are up next for the right.
WHO: Brian Yazzie WHAT: Executive chef, Gatherings Cafe WHY: Because this world needs advocates for Indigenous foodways
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Nearly 15% of American Indian and Alaska Native adults have diagnosed diabetes — the highest prevalence rate among all U.S. adults* * Centers for Disease Control and Prevention
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The inspiration behind the ever-growing tattooed bounty of Native American produce started at age 7 for Yazzie, when the aromatics of Navajo blue corn mush or the sound of a knife tapping on a cutting board drew him into the kitchen to help cook for his large family. Raised by a single mother in Dennehotso, Arizona, located on the northeast part of the Navajo Nation, Yazzie remembers eating traditional and freshly foraged foods like wild spinach and pine nuts but also commodity foods like government cheese, canned chicken and powdered milk. “That was what we grew up on,” said Yazzie. “But for me, as long as we had food, we were OK.” He discovered his passion for cooking but at the time was equally lured into gang life, spending his teenage years in and out of detention centers and county jails, and skipping classes, sometimes to just hide out in the home economics classroom. “I was blessed never to end up in prison or passing on,” said Yazzie, whose sisters would call to tell him to come home because they missed his food. “That was their way of checking up on me. Cooking always kept me out of trouble; it’s what saved my life.” It’s also what prompted Yazzie and his wife, Danielle Polk, to settle in the Twin Cities in 2013. They wanted opportunity but also to stay connected to Native communities. “The Twin Cities has one of the top five Native urban populations in the U.S.,” said Yazzie, who works closely with the Dakota and Ojibwe tribes there while continuing to help the Dennehotso reservation and other tribal communities around the United States.
In 2014, Yazzie enrolled at Saint Paul College, where his first assignment as a culinary student was to perfect any dish from around the world. “I wanted to make something beyond frybread, but I realized at least 50% of ingredients inside Navajo tacos are native to the Americas,” said Yazzie. Toppings like summer squash, peppers and eggplant reminded him of French ratatouille, and he found his dish. More importantly, he discovered the larger influence of Indigenous foods and his passion for reviving, celebrating and recognizing their ancestral origins. He and Polk started a Native American Club on campus and connected with local chef/author/educator Sean Sherman, CEO of The Sioux Chef, to cater one of their events. “Seventy-five percent of the appetizers he served were foreign to me,” said Yazzie, who went on to work for Sherman before he and Polk started their own catering company, Intertribal Foodways. “We wanted to bring awareness to what’s been overlooked for so long.” Along with showcasing Native ingredients and techniques, that’s also meant addressing health issues like diabetes that have long affected Indigenous communities. “We try to implement food as medicine,” said Yazzie, now executive chef of the Gatherings Cafe inside the Minneapolis American Indian Center. “Especially during this pandemic, we have to keep our elders strong and safe; a lot of them hold lost languages and teachings.” After COVID-19 hit, Yazzie and his team started making 200 healthy meals a day for elders in the Twin Cities, established a Dennehotso COVID-19 relief fund and regularly
“REGARDLESS OF WHO YOU ARE, WE ARE ALL INDIGENOUS TO A CERTAIN PLACE AND TIME IN THE WORLD. IT’S ABOUT RECOGNIZING AND LEARNING YOUR EDIBLE LANDSCAPE.” — BRIAN YAZZIE
send healthy food and supplies to the Apache County community. He works with local farmers and foragers to bring Native ingredients into his food whenever he can, even if it means taking baby steps with dishes like unhealthy frybread (created by Yazzie’s Navajo ancestors while they were in internment camps at Fort Sumner, New Mexico, in the 1860s). “It’s still on the table across North America as a survival staple for tribal communities, especially during the pandemic, so I had to take a step back and listen to my elders, but we’re getting there,” said Yazzie, who lightens up the wheat-heavy bread with amaranth flour or wild rice flour. Today, Yazzie uses YouTube, his podcast and virtual cooking classes to advocate for Indigenous foodways and continues to educate and feed not only the elders but also Native and non-Native kids and families around the country.
“Regardless of who you are, we are all indigenous to a certain place and time in the world,” said Yazzie. “It’s about recognizing and learning your edible landscape. Indigenous food is not a trend; it’s something that’s always been here.”
ONLINE For more information on Brian Yazzie and his Indigenous narratives, visit yazziethechef.comc ONLINE Read more about Sean Sherman, The Sioux Chef group and its commitment to revitalizing Native American cuisine at sioux-chef.comc WATCH The documentary Gather to learn more about Indigenous foodways at gather.filmc PHOTO COURTESY OF BRIAN YAZZIE
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TRIPLE THE FLAVOR The three ingredients considered staples across Native American microregions are winter squash, corn and tepary beans, known as the “Three Sisters.” Iroquois legend claims the three crops need each other to survive. “They call them the Three Sisters because they help each other grow out in the field,” said chef Brian Yazzie, who likes to make Three Sisters soups, salads and stews. Yazzie was happy to share his recipe for Three Sisters soup with The Henry Ford. “This dish is about tasting the landscape,” he said. Three Sisters Soup Yield: 4-6 servings 1 bone-in turkey breast 1 bunch sage, thinly sliced Salt, as needed Garlic to taste Sunflower oil for rubbing 5 cups vegetable stock 1 cup pure maple syrup 1 whole acorn squash, halved and seeded 2 bunches dandelion greens, thinly sliced 5 cups nixtamalized hominy, cooked 4 cups black beans, soaked and cooked Garlic powder, to taste 2 bunches green onions, thinly sliced 1 cup roasted sunflower seeds turkey breast with sage, salt, garlic 1 Rub and oil. Place in a small roasting pan, pour in stock, cover roasting pan and bake at 275 F for 2 ½-3 hours. Uncover and rub with maple syrup. Bake at 400 F for 5-7 minutes uncovered until skin is golden brown. Cool 15 minutes and slice or shred. squash into medium cubes. Place 2 Cut on a sheet pan, toss with additional sunflower oil and bake at 400 F for 5-7 minutes until tender. Cool. dandelion greens over medium 3 Saute heat until wilted. squash, hominy and beans to 4 Add greens and heat thoroughly. Add salt and garlic powder to desired taste. vegetables in bowls and top with 5 Spoon turkey, green onions and sunflower seeds.
JUST GROW IT
It sounds simple, the notion of solving hunger and malnutrition by just growing what you need. Having enough food to meet your caloric and nutritional needs is much more complicated than growing the fruits, vegetables and protein sources needed to keep you healthy, happy and wise. Why are so many people food insecure? Because inequity and injustice restrict access to land, limit individuals’ freedom to grow the foods they need and undermine opportunities to make healthy choices. Furthermore, extreme weather and virulent diseases can destroy crops and livestock with catastrophic effects on food supplies across the planet. How can each of us take a more proactive role in meeting our own nutritional needs or in reducing food insecurity for others? Here are five steps you can take to start to make a difference. — DEBRA A. REID, CURATOR OF AGRICULTURE AND THE ENVIRONMENT, THE HENRY FORD
GO ON A DISCOVERY QUEST Learn about the interconnectedness of U.S. agricultural policy and social services designed to reduce hunger and malnutrition.
GROW YOUR OWN If you can grow fruits or vegetables in containers, a hydroponic kit or in your own backyard, do it. By doing so, you can get a better sense of the physical and economic investment needed to feed yourself (even if you raise only one tomato).
GET ACQUAINTED WITH THE LOCAL LANDSCAPE Invest in local growers, learn their names, find their locations on a map, learn about how they grow and market their crops and how they adjust depending on the weather. Doing so can help you understand the fragile nature of the local, national and global food supply system.
DO THE TIME Volunteer at a food bank, soup kitchen or other service agency dedicated to helping people meet their food and nutritional needs.
DONATE TO THE CAUSE Contribute to a nonprofit dedicated to helping people feed themselves. Check the nonprofit’s rating to ensure that most donations go toward the cause and not administrative costs.
ILLUSTRATION BY GETTY IMAGES/HOLAILLUSTRATIONS
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FORD MOTOR COMPANY FUND
Driving a Brighter Future As the philanthropic arm of Ford Motor Company, Ford Fund's mission is to strengthen communities and help make people's lives better. Working with dealers and nonprofit partners in more than 60 countries, Ford Fund provides access to opportunities and resources that help people reach their full potential. Since 1949, Ford Fund has invested more than $2 billion in programs that support education, promote safe driving, enrich community life and encourage employee volunteering.
Ford Motor Company Fund is proud to partner with the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation to bring learning and inspiration to life.
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THE HISTORIC DETROIT CENTRAL MARKET’S VEGETABLE SHED
By Debra
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WILL RE-CREATE A LOCAL FOOD ENVIRONMENT WITHIN GREENFIELD VILLAGE
a A. Reid
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that vendors historically managed ethnic tensions and provided a social safety net to the homeless, impoverished and downtrodden. All of this content will be carefully curated and managed by The Henry Ford’s dedicated staff, who will ensure programming on the stuff of life in perpetuity.
mid-19th-century public market structures survive. Detroit’s vegetable shed or building, which opened in 1861, is one of the oldest of those survivors in the nation. The shed’s story is certainly harrowing. It escaped fire in 1876 and dismantling in 1894. A relocation to nearby Belle Isle saved it. There, it served many purposes until 2003 when The Henry Ford acquired it. And now, generous donors have made its reconstruction in Greenfield Village possible. As a reconstructed event space, the shed will serve as an open-air market of ideas, a place where food and common cause will bring people together to discuss meaty subjects, such as land use and regenerative agriculture, social entrepreneurship, urban and alternative agriculture, and food security (see sidebar on Page 43). It will shelter a vibrant historic market vignette where florists, fishmongers, hucksters (hucksters being another term for market gardener, a person who raised vegetables for sale at market to retail customers) and peddlers all vied for sales. The scripted exchanges will inform us about ways
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Public Markets and Civic Culture in Nineteenth-Century America and Public Markets by Helen Tangires. The latter, said The Henry Ford’s curator Debra Reid, is a coffee-table book with large illustrations drawn from Library of Congress collections on public marketsc
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HEART OF A CITY The Henry Ford’s vision for the restored Detroit Central Market vegetable shed as a communal centerpoint in Greenfield Village is akin to what Detroit city officials envisioned when they adopted a nearly 1,000-year-old tradition to establish a public market in 1802. The market grew near the city hall and was maintained by the city for decades, calling attention to the symbiotic relationship between urban governments, the market gardeners and farmers in and near the city, and the health and well-being of city dwellers. The market, in fact, was called City Hall Market until the city hall moved across the centrally located downtown gathering space known as Campus Martius. Thereafter, the name Detroit Central Market came to be — denoting the market’s location — central to the civic, cultural and ceremonial heart of the city. Within an easy walk lay city hall, the Michigan Solders’ and Sailors’ Monument, churches, schools, playhouses and the opera, among other attractions. Within this vibrant environment, vendors went about their daily business helping customers feed themselves, a routine that fed a city. Theoretically, a thriving city market eased Detroiters’ worries about the source of their next meal. It freed them to build a livelihood around something other than agriculture, while farmers and market gardeners knew they had a steady market for their produce and fresh meat. Today, we would call Detroit’s Central Market a “local food environment,” the place where customers bought foodstuffs directly from butchers, hucksters, florists, fishmongers and confectioners.c
b The vegetable building of the Detroit
Central Market was located on Michigan Grand Avenue (now Cadillac Square) between Bates and Randolph streets until 1894. Constructed with 48 stylish cast-iron columns, the building provided shelter to dozens of market gardeners, florists and other vendors selling everything from apples to eggs.
PHOTO FROM THE HENRY FORD
ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
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DID YOU KNOW? / The National Farmers Market Directory helps connect growers, vendors and various small businesses with consumers in their own communities nfmd.orgc
A community grew within and around the market that facilitated entrepreneurism. Vendors, usually sole proprietors and startups, had a fixed number of resources — the vegetables, fruit and flowers they raised, fish they caught, fresh meat they butchered, knickknacks or “Yankee trinkets” they sold, or services such as chimney sweeping that they hawked to customers. They had to be ingenious to draw attention to their resources and thus increase the likelihood of a sale. This made for vibrant market days.
PEOPLE & PREJUDICES Practicality dictated that the market be in the center of downtown Detroit and in the shadow of city hall. These were heavily trafficked areas, and structures were built as enclosed spaces to protect vendors and customers from the weather. The Detroit Common Council authorized, funded, maintained and updated structures and built new ones as needed. It authorized a “clerk of the market” to collect rents, monitor compliance, mediate conflicts and report to elected officials. All was not glamorous at Detroit’s Central Market, however. The fish market in the Catholic city of Detroit was, by many accounts, the poorest fish market in the country. Why? As one fish dealer explained, people in Detroit fished. Therefore, they did not have to buy. Yet care went into designating northern stalls in the new vegetable building as the purview of fishmongers, available for auction and then for rent by the month, for 10 months of the year. Records indicate that there was no love lost between fishmongers and butchers, likely because butchers held power that fishmongers did not. Butchers were organized. Some even served as elected officials. They held membership in community associations and had strong ties to ethnic and immigrant communities. The vegetable shed at Detroit Central Market most obviously housed hucksters, many of them women. Of the 32 greengrocers and market hucksters who listed their business address as City Hall Market (CH Market) in the 1864-1865 Detroit City Directory, one-third (or 10) were women. In 1874, the percentage of women hucksters increased to nearly 40%.c
COMMUNITY GROWS Men (left) stand around a small wooden cart selling and buying their wares while people look at flowers for sale at the Detroit Central Market (above). PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE BURTON HISTORICAL COLLECTION, DETROIT PUBLIC LIBRARY; VEGETABLE ILLUSTRATIONS BY GETTY IMAGES/ALHONTESS
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WHERE THE PEOPLE GO Detroit Central Market reflected the landscape of the city, acting as a shoppers’ world for flowers and veggies (left) and a bustling hub for commerce and connection (below and bottom). TOP AND BOTTOM PHOTOS COURTESY OF THE BURTON HISTORICAL COLLECTION, DETROIT PUBLIC LIBRARY; MIDDLE PHOTO FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
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The Farmers’ Market Book: Growing Food, Cultivating Community by Jennifer Meta Robinson and J.A. Hartenfeld for a deeper dive into the social, ecological and economic power of farmers marketsc
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The blog post “Detroit Central Market Coming to Life” for the stories behind the people, programming and fundraising efforts that helped make the market’s reconstruction in Greenfield Village possible at thf.org/explore/blog/ detroit-central-market-coming-to-lifec
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WITHIN THIS VIBRANT ENVIRONMENT, VENDORS WENT ABOUT THEIR DAILY BUSINESS HELPING CUSTOMERS FEED THEMSELVES, A ROUTINE THAT FED A CITY. Racial diversity existed. Several Black hucksters had market addresses over the years. At least one had a relatively stable business selling garden vegetables at the market from the early 1860s to the mid-1870s. Overall, however, newspaper accounts stereotyped hucksters as country bumpkins unable to handle their market wagons. This indicated a lack of respect on the part of city dwellers who depended on these growers for their food. Cultural conflict erupted at the market as individuals from numerous ethnic groups, some well-established and others newcomers, had to cohabitate and compete at the public market. Louis Schiappecasse, an Italian immigrant identified as the first outdoor fruit merchant in Detroit, provides a good case in point. He established himself on Jefferson Avenue across from the Biddle House in 1870. When he died in 1916, the headline read: “Millionaire Fruit Merchant Is Dead.” Yet, in the fever pitch of anti-immigrant sentiment in 1890, a newspaper reporter, without naming names, quoted shop owners near Central Market who were frustrated with Italian fruit salesmen too cheap to pay rent for a market stall. Instead, they claimed that fruit salesmen set up pop-up stands that obstructed sidewalks and made it difficult for patrons to enter some stores. Finally, one of the most notable entrepreneurs at Central Market, who appears regularly in minutes of Detroit Common Council meetings, gained attention for her refusal to accept the city’s decision to close the market. Mary Judge was a widow, listed her address as an alleyway at least once and changed her market specialty almost every year — sometimes selling vegetables, sometimes flowers, some-
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times candy, sometimes refreshments. She also received special dispensation from Detroit’s Committee on Markets when she was cited for violating three market standards. She was allowed to sell vegetables out of stall No. 44 because she was “very poor and unfit for any other occupation.” This last affirmed the function of the public market as a social safety net. Vendors practiced benevolence, too, operating as social entrepreneurs, at least in relation to residents in the Home for the Friendless. The Ladies’ Christian Union organized the Home for the Friendless in May 1860 to aid homeless women, children (including the children of incarcerated individuals) and elderly women. Twice each week, on Wednesdays and Saturdays during the market season, boys from the home carried a basket to the market. Butchers and hucksters filled the basket with produce and meats, which helped make ends meet at the home.
NATIONAL PLATFORM The Detroit Central Market vendors helped feed hundreds of thousands of mouths in downtown Detroit. When reconstructed in Greenfield Village, the vegetable shed where they once sold their wares will support programming that will enrich millions of minds on topics as wide ranging as agricultural ethics and food justice. Countless stories await exploration — stories based on the lives of vendors and their customers, the city council members and market staff, and the business owners, entertainers and entrepreneurs at work around the marketplace all can teach us lessons that we can adapt to help shape a better future. l
DID YOU KNOW? / National Farmers Market Week is a celebration started by the U.S. Department of Agriculture that highlights the essential role farmers markets play in the nation’s food system. The campaign runs throughout the first full week of August each year and is formally declared by a USDA proclamation.
Of Cabbages and Kings County: Agriculture and the Formation of Modern Brooklyn by Marc Linder and Lawrence S. Zachariasc thf.org
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Feeding a City What does it take to ensure that urban residents who cannot grow their own can purchase enough fruits, vegetables and meats to satisfy their needs?
1802: A city charter is approved, and Detroit is incorporated, for the first time, as a city of about a third of a square mile.
COURTESY OF DETROIT HISTORICAL SOCIETY
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Taking a Stand Vendors rented the same market stands year after year, listing their address in city directories as City Hall Market (CHM) between 1865-1882 or Central Market (CM) after 1885.
1870: Detroit’s population is now nearing 80,000, with almost half of those living in the city born in a different country.
COURTESY OF THE BURTON HISTORICAL COLLECTION, DETROIT PUBLIC LIBRARY
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At the Center of It All Detroit officials ensured access by locating the market in the city center, within the reach of residents traveling roadways in horse-drawn buggies, taking horse-drawn or later electric street cars, or walking the footpaths that led to the market.
PHOTOS FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION EXCEPT WHERE NOTED
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Market in the Making
Sketch a Shed
Detroit first appropriated funds to construct a public market in 1802. Over the next 90 years, the market will move, be renamed and new sheds will be constructed frequently, with most vendors in the open air until 1860. Eventually, a new shed over the vegetable market at city hall is authorized because “public necessity and economy, a proper regard for the health of our citizens, and justice to the persons occupying the market and paying liberally, as they do, for the privilege” demanded it.
stle & Hustle
chers operated a meat rket on the first floor he Central Market ding between 1880 its dismantling in 4. The Central Market’s me location adjacent Campus Martius, a for frequent parades public gatherings, ranteed steady traffic butchers and vendors in vegetable shed behind brick structure.
COURTESY OF HATHITRUST.ORG
John Schaffer, an immigrant from Bavaria, advertised his training at King Ludwig’s Academy of Munich (likely the Royal Academy of Fine Arts) in the mid-1850s. He drafted plans for the new shed over the vegetable market at city hall in 1860.
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A City Constant The market at city hall remained in operation through the relocation of Detroit’s city hall in 1871, a fire in 1876, frequent threats to close the market and a name change after construction of the new Central Market building in 1880. Silas Farmer illustrated his history of The City Hall or Central Market with vendors in front of the vegetable shed in his History of Detroit and Michigan (1884).
Seeds of Prosperity
1879: Detroit’s Council
Black-and-white still images do not do justice to the everchanging nature of market life. A newspaper article listed the colorful mignonette as a flower sold by vendors at the market in 1891.
of Estimates approves the purchase of Belle Isle to establish a public park.
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On the Move City officials abolished Central Market in 1892; then, when vendors refused to leave, they razed Central Market and moved the vegetable shed to Belle Isle in 1894. In the market’s place, they created open space — Cadillac Square.
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MARKET DAY
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Life on the Isle Seventy Glimpses of Detroit, a souvenir booklet, featured the relocated vegetable shed at its new location on Belle Isle, serving its new purpose as a horse stable.
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Saving a Structure Nearly 110 years after its relocation to Belle Isle, representatives from The Henry Ford, the City of Detroit and contractors met at the historic structure to strategize dismantling and removal to Greenfield Village. The process began in July 2003.
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Stable Deconstructed The deconstruction process brought to light the historic fabric of the 160-year-old market structure, including hand-carved ornamental wooden brackets.
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A New Home Work continued in fall 2020 with market columns moved from storage to the construction site in Greenfield Village — all in anticipation of groundbreaking.
PHOTOS FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION EXCEPT WHERE NOTED
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In Market: What will bring you to Detroit’s Central Market in Greenfield Village?
THE CARVERCARSON SOCIETY
The first strawberries of the season, the sweetest sweet corn, the ripest peaches? If these taste sensations lure you to your local market, then you share cravings with Detroiters who helped keep the Central market humming from the 1860s to the 1890s. When Greenfield Village opens the reconstructed vegetable building or shed from Detroit’s Central Market, guests will engage with hucksters (the historic term for market gardeners), interact with entrepreneurial vendors and learn about food access and social safety nets on which city residents depended. Vendors left little to chance as they appealed to their customers’ taste buds. Each knew that they needed the other to survive. Some of the historic characters likely featured in upcoming performances in Greenfield Village will included Irish immigrant Mary Judge, who gained a reputation over the years for her resilience, her flexibility (adapting to the needs of market customers) and her challenging circumstances. Other interpretations may feature relationships between residents in Detroit’s Home for the Friendless and the vendors in the market who filled baskets every Wednesday and Saturday to help feed the friendless. Finally, the vegetable shed from Detroit’s Central Market provides a perfect location for Greenfield Village guests to engage with Clara Ford, who likely frequented the market during the first years she and Henry lived in the city. Their story aligns with those of hundreds of thousands of other Detroiters who lived and worked downtown and relied on hucksters at Detroit’s Central Market to satisfy their food needs.
GENEROUS SUPPORT MAKES MARKET A REALITY An amazing thing happened at The Henry Ford during the summer of 2020. A new donor society formed, raised six times more than its fundraising goal and launched its first virtual conversation with a panel par excellence. The charter donors to the Carver-Carson Society responded to one fundraising challenge — closing the gap required to reconstruct the vegetable building from Detroit’s Central Market in Greenfield Village. Their support guarantees programming on life-or-death topics, including food security, food and agricultural ethics and environmental sustainability. They take inspiration from the society’s namesakes, agricultural scientist George W. Carver, who was born into slavery and who later advocated for regenerative agriculture before the term had cachet, and marine biologist Rachel Carson, whose popular science writing galvanized action to save the environment and the planet. For more information on The Henry Ford’s CarverCarson Society, visit thf.org/carver-carson-society. To find out more about other donor societies of The Henry Ford, visit thf.org/societies.
d Once constructed, the Detroit Central
Market vegetable building will complement Greenfield Village’s extensive foodways programming, already supported by resources such as the village’s four historic farmhouses with working gardens and on-site dining experiences featuring historical food preparation.
WATCH Coming Soon: The Vegetable Building on The Henry Ford’s YouTube channel youtu.be/18zpw1MRMUUc
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LET’S TECH
TO GE TH ER WELCOME TO THE DIGITAL ERA. NOW WHAT? By Diana J. Nucera (edited by Puck Lo) Illustrations by Sylvia Pericles
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LET’S TECH TOGETHER
IN the fall of 2020, for the first time, an entire generation started school on a screen. As the new coronavirus abruptly cut many of us off from the world outside our homes, for those of us fortunate enough to enjoy digital communication tools, the internet has become one of the most essential tools for surviving the COVID-19 pandemic. As sci-fi and scary as this may seem, there is also an opportunity here to transform — again — the internet. As COVID-19 continues to dramatically upend our lives, an ever-evolving digital world pushes us to rethink the purpose of the internet and challenges us to re-create our digital and political lives as well as the internet itself. The challenge is ensuring that all people will have the skills, knowledge and power to transform the internet and shift its dependence on a commerceand clickbait-driven economic model to become instead a universally guaranteed utility that serves people’s needs and allows creativity to flourish.
SOCIETAL REFLECTION This challenge has been a long time coming. Before the COVID-19 pandemic, the internet was on questionable ground. In early 2020, misinformation campaigns, privacy breaches, scams and trolls proliferated online. When COVID-19 hit and the world was forced to shift the important tasks of daily life online, we saw (again) how digital inequalities persist — forcing poor and vulnerable communities to rely on low-speed connections and cheaper devices that can’t handle newer applications. The internet is a reflection of who we are as a society. We know that there are people who scam and bullies who perpetuate injustice. But there is also beauty, creativity and brilliance. The more perspectives there are shaping this digital era,
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the more potential we have to tap the best parts of us and the world. There is no silver bullet that will keep violence or small-mindedness at bay — online or off — but I know from 13 years of working on digital justice in Detroit that teaching technology is the first step toward decolonizing and democratizing it.
A CITY’S STORY Over the years, Detroit has faced many economic hardships, which has meant that digital access has too often taken a back seat. Bill Callahan, director of Connect Your Community 2.0, compiled data from the 2013 American Community Survey and found that Detroit ranked No. 2 for worst internet connectivity in the United States. Following that report, in 2017 the Quello Center of Media and Information Policy at Michigan State University reported that 33% of Detroit households lacked an internet connection, fixed or mobile. Yet the world had already moved online. By 2011, many government agencies had transitioned away from physical spaces, making social services only accessible via the internet. My colleagues and I at Allied Media Projects (a nonprofit that cultivates media strategies for a more just, collaborative world) understood that access to and control of media and technology would be necessary to ensure a more just future. As Detroiters, we needed to figure out how to create internet access in a city that was flat broke and digitally redlined by commercial internet providers. We also needed to address the fact that many Detroiters who had never before used digital systems had a steep learning curve ahead of them. The question we asked our communities, and answered collectively, originated from and addressed Detroit’s unique reality: What can the role of media and technology be in restoring neighborhoods and creating new economies based on mutual aid? To answer this question, the concept and practice of community technology — a method of teaching and learning technology with the goals of building relationships and restoring neighborhoods — emerged. If we want to harness the potential of the digital future ahead of us, we need to reshape our current relationships with the digital world. We need to understand how it works, demand our rights within it and be aware of how digital tools shape our relationships with each other and with the larger world. Ultimately, the goal of community technology is to remake the landscape of technological development and shift the power of technology from companies to communities. The place where this begins is by rethinking our digital literacy and tech education models.c
DID YOU KNOW? / The Equitable Internet Initiative supports and develops historically marginalized residents to build and maintain neighborhood-governed internet infrastructures that foster accessibility, consent, safety and resilience.
RESEARCH
Other organizations and community projects working toward digital equity across the United States, such as Community Tech NY and Red Hook WiFi, a project of Red Hook Initiative, along with ConnectHomeUSA, which is working to close the digital divide in HUD-assisted housing, at communitytechny.org, redhookwifi.org and connecthomeusa.orgc
RESEARCH
New America and the Open Technology Institute, which looks at how, in this digital age, we can promote safe, affordable and universal access to connectivity, at newamerica.orgc
33%
OF DETROIT HOUSEHOLDS LACKED AN INTERNET CONNECTION, FIXED OR MOBILE, IN 2017. QUELLO CENTER OF MEDIA AND INFORMATION POLICY
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LET’S TECH TOGETHER
Community technology is inspired by the citizenship schools of the civil rights movement. Founded by Esau Jenkins and Septima Clark on Johns Island, South Carolina, in the 1950s, citizenship schools taught adults how to read so that they could pass voter-registration literacy tests. But under the innocuous cover of adult-literacy classes, the schools actually taught participatory democracy and civil rights, community leadership and organizing, practical politics, and strategies and tactics of resistance and struggle. I saw a through line from the issues that encouraged citizenship schools to emerge in the 1950s to the struggles that Detroit faced in the early 2000s. In the 21st century, communities with high-speed internet access and high levels of digital literacy enjoyed a competitive advantage. The denial of these resources to low-income and communities of color compounded the existing inequality and further undermined social and economic welfare in those neighborhoods. Like the citizenship schools, community technology embraces popular education, a movement-building model that creates spaces for communities to come together in order to analyze problems, collectively imagine solutions, and build the skills and knowledge required to implement visions. This educational model structures lessons around the goal of immediately solving the problem at hand. In the citizenship schools, lessons were planned around the goal of reading the U.S. Constitution. Along the way, participants developed the profound technical and social skills needed to solve the problem. In 2008, when I first started teaching elders in Detroit how to use and understand the internet, it was always hard to know where to start. There were so many things to do online. The first question I asked was: “What do you wish you could do with the internet?” Oftentimes, folks wanted to be able to view images of their grandchildren that had been sent to their email, or they would want to communicate with loved ones across seas. It would be nearly impossible for me to teach a class that attended to all of those individual needs while keeping everyone engaged. I wondered: If I taught problem-solving rather than teaching technology, could I support the same elder who couldn’t view a digital photo of their grandchild to build and install Wi-Fi antennas and run an internet service provider (ISP) in their neighborhood? As impossible as that may sound, it worked. In 20 weeks, I saw former Luddites work with their neighbors to build wireless networks. This curriculum went on to shape the Equitable Internet Initiative, which has trained over 350 digital stewards (see Page 50) throughout Detroit, New York and Tennessee.
“Can we remake the internet a community that we can all and move away from the met of the internet as an informat superhighway? Perhaps we c to build the equivalent of side public parks and bike lanes.” — DIANA J. NUCERA
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t into inhabit taphor tion can begin ewalks, ”
DIGITAL LIBERATION Over the eight years I ran the Digital Stewards Program, what I realized is that relevance can engage someone to learn, but curiosity is what cultivates the kind of lifelong learning that leads to liberation. Citizenship schools remind me that liberation is not a product of having learned a skill but rather the continued ability to participate in and shape the world to meet your and your communities’ needs. Becoming a lifelong learner of technology — and aspiring constantly to use it for liberatory ends — is essential because technology is constantly changing. Every software program I ever learned in college is now obsolete. To meaningfully participate in the digital era, we need to be able to adapt technology to meet our needs rather than change ourselves to adapt to new technologies. In order to cultivate the agency and self-determination necessary to rescue this digital era from corporations and trolls, we will need to change how we as a society pass on knowledge and how — and for whom — we cultivate leadership and innovation. Too often, technological knowledge is presented as a pathway for individual advancement through participation in a digital economy that further consolidates power and wealth for corporations. During this time of physical isolation, how do we change the experience of being forced onto endless video meetings and classrooms into something more like inhabiting and co-creating a digital commons? Can we create environments that allow people to engage with technology from a community context rather than as distanced individuals stuck staring at our screens? The internet’s culture is currently being shaped by corporations. Social media platforms, ISPs and algorithms control our movements through almost all online space. Can we remake the internet into a community that we can all inhabit and move away from the metaphor of the internet as an information superhighway? Perhaps we can begin to build the equivalent of sidewalks, public parks and bike lanes. As a generation faces an unprecedented first year of school online, we would be wise to realize that this is an opportunity for all of us to learn together, become more critical of how we engage technology and more aware of what we see is lacking. How do we want to form a community online, navigate and create and adapt online spaces for our collective survival? Perhaps, unwanted though it is, the global pandemic can inspire us to finally create a digital world that is befitting our time and presence there — and can inspire the justice, equality and hope that our IRL world so badly needs right now. l ONLINE Learn more about Allied Media Project’s mission to cultivate media for liberation at alliedmedia.orgc thf.org
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LET’S TECH TOGETHER
Digital Stewards Demystified DIGITAL STEWARDS UPLIFT THE DIGITAL ASSETS OF THEIR COMMUNITIES AND SUPPORT PEOPLE IN DISCOVERING AND USING THOSE ASSETS
They are interested in how technology can be used to strengthen a community.
They are patient with people as they learn, knowing that technology is intimidating and can easily frustrate people.
They are curious educators who discover with people and don’t pose as if they have all the answers.
Most importantly, they love to watch people light up as they learn how to harness technology and have fun while they do it.
LOCAL AREA NETWORKS
In 1973, Ethernet was developed by Robert Metcalfe at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center, a pioneering center for innovation in technology. Ethernetconnected technology grew in popularity in the mid-1980s, becoming the global standard for wired connectivity. A typical scenario in Ethernet’s early years might involve linking multiple computers together in an office environment using shared coaxial cables, allowing people to share laser printers and data storage. The model pictured above, created by Excelan, demonstrates the possibilities of an Ethernet-wired office in the 1980s. Today, while many people rely on Wi-Fi connections on laptops and smartphones, hardwired Ethernet connections remain a popular option for desktop computers because of their reliable security, speed and stable connection. — KRISTEN GALLERNEAUX, CURATOR OF COMMUNICATIONS & INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY, THE HENRY FORD
PHOTOS FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
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DID YOU KNOW? / You can watch excerpts from a candid, no-holds-barred conversation The Henry Ford conducted with Ethernet’s inventor Robert Metcalfe at thf.org/explore/bob-metcalfec
There’s no time like the present to thank you for all you’re doing.
The Henry Ford is proof that today can make a world of difference when committing to change. We’re proud to be a part of what you do.
pnc.com ©2020 The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. All rights reserved. PNC Bank, National Association. Member FDIC CON PDF 0618-0106
Prepare to be astounded by our attractions and resources
Please visit thf.org, subscribe to our eNews or follow us on Facebook for the most up-to-date information on venues, upcoming exhibits, events, programming and pricing.
INSIDE THE HENRY FORD Flip through the following pages to find out what’s happening inside this mind-blowing cultural institution and how to make the most of your annual membership.
Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation Greenfield Village Ford Rouge Factory Tour Acquisitions + Collections Membership Spotlight 2021 Events
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HENRY FORD MUSEUM OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
CURATORS CONNECT Finding new ways of sharing The Henry Ford’s stories of innovation during a global pandemic WHEN THE HENRY FORD campus closed in March 2020 because of the COVID-19 pandemic, curators began to work from home with little idea of what that would entail. We’ve been pleasantly surprised ever since, shifting some of our work to involve sharing our expertise and passion for many of the artifacts and stories told within Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation in an expansive variety of online and virtual ways. It started with THF Curator Chats on Twitter, in which a different curator each week presents a topic of their choice through a series of tweets with related images. Early chats featured several signature artifacts from the museum floor, like the prototype Eames fiberglass chair, Lamy’s Diner and Holiday Inn sign. During these chats, which continue today, we are able to engage with our followers through questions and comments. Next, we were invited to provide our expertise through weekly live interviews for The Henry Ford’s Learning & Engagement program called Innovation Journeys. Presented to school-age audiences via videoconference, the programming
ONLINE For more information, hours and pricing for Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, visit thf.org/museumc
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delved into the stories of real people who embodied the habits of innovators. This experience allowed us to dig deeper into the lives and accomplishments of many different innovators and has given us practice and experience to help with Learning & Engagement’s upcoming virtual field trips to the museum as well as Greenfield Village (see story on Page 16). Curators have connected virtually with members and donors in a variety of ways, including our Drivers Club donor society (supporting our Driven to Win: Racing in America exhibition) and our CarverCarson Society (supporting our Detroit Central Market — see story on Page 43 — and other environmental and food sustainability initiatives). Curators are also providing their expertise through virtual presentations to audiences with disabilities, many of whom are reluctant to return to our physical site (see story on Page 18). We love sharing our expertise with others, and we now have more ways than ever to do that. The possibilities for connecting with existing and new audiences seem endless. — DONNA BRADEN, SENIOR CURATOR AND CURATOR OF PUBLIC LIFE
TOUCH-FREE MATHEMATICA When Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation reopened in July 2020 after months of shutdown because of COVID-19 restrictions, museumgoers were excited to be back on the floor. Many of them were super excited to get back to one of their favorite exhibitions, Mathematica: A World of Numbers... and Beyond — a favorite because it’s so hands-on. And therein lay the problem, said Jake Hildebrandt, historic operating machinery specialist at The Henry Ford. With COVID-19, the hands-on interactivity of Mathematica caused it to remain closed. Mixing a little bit of ingenuity, technology and lots of problem-solving skills, Hildebrandt, along with master craftsman Brian McLean, ensured the exhibition could remain interactive yet hands-free and open to the public. The push-start buttons on the Moebius Band and Celestial Mechanics installations, for example, are now initiated with a wave of the hand. No touch necessary. And the 27-button panel of the Multiplication Machine has been covered with plexiglass for safety and new software installed so random math problems run on the cube throughout the day for visitor education and enjoyment. “Projects like these, DIY challenges that have high criteria, limited time and budget, are my favorite kinds of projects,” said Hildebrandt. All the alterations to Mathematica are easily reversible, he added, and when you head to the museum to see them, you’ll notice the respectful attention given to the exhibition’s classic Eames styling.
ONLINE Follow @TheHenryFord and #THFCuratorChat on Twitter to see past chats and participate in upcoming topicsc
PHOTO BY JILLIAN FERRAIUOLO
The Henry Ford’s prototype Eames c
fiberglass chair was a topic of discussion by Katherine White, associate curator of digital content, during a June 2020 THF Curator Chat on Twitter.
PHOTO FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
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GREENFIELD VILLAGE
TAKE A TOUR
Online platforms give curators the ability to keep experiences of Greenfield Village top of mind THE MONTH OF APRIL typically marks the public opening of Greenfield Village for the season. That wasn’t the case last year as the COVID-19 pandemic shuttered The Henry Ford campus throughout the spring. While the public couldn’t witness favorite village goings-on like the Merino sheep shearing at Firestone Farm or enjoy the annual visit of Thomas the Tank Engine, that doesn’t mean the stories and experiences of Greenfield Village went dark. Just as curators were chatting on Twitter about Lamy’s Diner and Charles and Ray Eames and their Mathematica: A World of Numbers... and Beyond exhibition in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation (see story on Page 54), they were also creating buzz around Greenfield Village structures and experiences. Within days of Greenfield Village reopening to the public in July 2020, for example, Senior Curator Donna Braden hosted a virtual visit of some of Greenfield Village’s most beloved
buildings on Twitter. Encouraging visitors to return to Greenfield Village, Braden shared the makeover stories of the Firestone and Daggett farmhouses, Eagle Tavern, the Mattox House and more. That simple Twitter chat later blossomed into a blog post. Soon several other curator Twitter chats were expanded into blog posts, including Curator of Agriculture and the Environment Debra Reid’s “Multiple Takes on Tomatoes” chat and Curator of Decorative Arts Charles Sable’s exploration of the Arts and Crafts Movement. So, as you gear up for the 2021 season at Greenfield Village, take a look at the stories, research and perspectives shared by The Henry Ford’s curators on a variety of online platforms. It will give you a renewed appreciation for the authenticity, richness and historical relevance of Greenfield Village as an educational treasure.
HALLOWE’EN HITS 40 Last fall, The Henry Ford’s Hallowe’en in Greenfield Village celebrated its 40th anniversary — delightfully reimagined to ensure every guest’s visit was safe, responsible and fun. And it was just that, said Jim Johnson, director of Greenfield Village and curator of historic structures and landscapes at The Henry Ford. “The year 2020 and its COVID-19 pandemic will be looked back on as a turning point for not only the Hallowe’en in Greenfield Village program, but for all of The Henry Ford,” said Johnson in a recent blog post. New in 2020: Guests could move through Greenfield Village at their own pace with no prescribed walking path, and they could take ghostly journeys on the all-new Hallowe’en Express train. Storybook experiences from classics like Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland and Peter Pan were also new to the programming. The new features like the Hallowe’en Express were so well received by guests in 2020 that they could become a permanent fixture of Hallowe’en in Greenfield Village. Stay tuned for event details for 2021 at thf.org.
— JENNIFER LAFORCE
PHOTO BY EE BERGER
ONLINE For more information, hours and pricing for Greenfield Village, visit thf.org/villagec
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ONLINE To read the Twitter curator-chatsturned-blog-posts on The Henry Ford blog, click herec
DID YOU KNOW? / Last October, the Greenfield Village Pottery Studio hosted a behind-the-scenes demonstration on Facebook Live, giving viewers an inside glimpse at how many of The Henry Ford’s classic Hallowe’en craft collectibles are created. Visit The Henry Ford on Facebook or shop for handcrafted exclusives at giftshop.thehenryford.orgc
c The Henry Ford curator Debra Reid
used a number of photographic prints, including this one of a man inspecting a tomato plant in a World War II Victory Garden in 1944, to illustrate her September 2020 blog post, “Multiple Takes on Tomatoes.”
PHOTO FROM THE HENRY FORD
ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
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FORD ROUGE FACTORY TOUR
FACTORY RECHARGED The tour reopens, a plant is retooled and an all-new facility is announced IN NOVEMBER 2020, the Ford Rouge Factory Tour reopened briefly to guests after a monthslong shutdown because of the COVID-19 pandemic. While visitor capacity was limited, all of the tour’s features were on the menu, from the multisensory Manufacturing Innovation film experience to the assembly plant walking tour and observation deck offering an up-close view of the Dearborn Truck Plant’s 10.4-acre living sedum roof. As Cynthia Jones, The Henry Ford’s general manager of innovation experiences, said, “We reopened the plant tour in a focused, guided method that was safe for our guests.” While the tour was shut down in the spring and summer, its visitor center was repurposed, serving as a training site for new Ford Motor Co. hires who were ramping up for the 2021 model year changeover at the Dearborn Truck Plant. In late 2019, Ford announced the pending launch of its new Ford F-150 hybrid at the plant, which had recently undergone a multimillion-dollar retooling. As part of that update, the entire plant now operates using renewable energy, which equates to
ONLINE For the most up-to-date information, hours and pricing for the Ford Rouge Factory Tour, visit thf.org/rougec
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dramatic reductions in carbon emissions. Last summer, Ford also announced it was building a new facility on the massive Ford Rouge Complex that will assemble both an all-electric version of the Ford F-150 and manufacture electric batteries. Production at the new plant, a visually contrasting glass-and-steel structure, is scheduled to begin in 2022. The hybrid and all-electric Michigan-built F-150s are part of Ford’s overall $11 billion investment in electric vehicles, a story of sustainability and mobility that The Henry Ford is eager to share with its factory tour visitors. Much of the materials, resources and presentations on the tour will obviously be updated to reflect the future-forward environmental efforts of Ford Motor Co. and to showcase the trucks set to be built within the Rouge Complex. “Ford is literally investing in sustainable design, realizing that even in the truck segment, where many customers may be laser focused on towing power, there is now a demand for balance between fuel economy and traditional truck features,” said Jones.
LEGACY LINEUP The hybrid and all-electric Ford F-150 will join a long list of landmark vehicles manufactured in facilities on the historic grounds of the Ford Rouge Complex. As Matt Anderson, The Henry Ford’s curator of transportation, pointed out, several of these vehicles are on display in the Ford Rouge Factory Tour’s Legacy Gallery, including the Ford Model A (below), Ford V-8, 1949 Ford, Ford Thunderbird and Ford Mustang. Other vehicles that once called the Ford Rouge Complex their manufacturing home base: the 1939 Mercury, the Ford Fairlane and Country Squire station wagon of the 1960s, as well as the Mercury Cougar, Comet and Capri of the 1970s and ‘80s.
PHOTO FROM THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
DID YOU KNOW? / A portion of the Dearborn Truck Plant’s renewable energy comes from DTE Energy’s wind farms in central Michigan, the same farms that feed the grid helping power Ford’s Michigan Assembly Plant in Wayne.
c Ford’s all-electric F-150 will
come in addition to the all-new Ford F-150 hybrid. During a capability test, the all-electric F-150 prototype successfully towed more than 1.25 million pounds of railcars and pickups.
PHOTO COURTESY OF FORD MOTOR CO.
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ACQUISITIONS + COLLECTIONS
TOOLS FOR SOLIDARITY The Henry Ford acquires a poster portfolio as a way to document one of the largest protest movements in U.S. history “JUSTICE CAN’T WAIT,” “Make Good Trouble,” “No Justice, No Peace!” These are just a few of the messages that appear in a collection of letterpress posters recently acquired from Signal-Return printshop by The Henry Ford. In the history of well-designed posters, brevity of words and a strong visual impact work together to communicate messages at a glance. Boldly capitalized, imprinted in flat black ink on brown or white chipboard by the embossing strike of a printing press — these posters are meant to generate a feeling of urgency. In early June 2020, Detroit’s nonprofit letterpress organization Signal-Return responded to the civil unrest sparked by the deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery and others by producing free protest posters. The project was undertaken in solidarity with the principles behind the Black Lives Matter movement with the intent that the posters would be carried by supporters in protests. Using social media to spread the word about their project, Signal-Return offered to create small batches of custom posters for the metro Detroit community, free of charge. As stated in their announcement, “The printing press has been, since its
invention, a powerful tool of protest and an agent of change. Let us provide posters to aid in this effort.” Each recipient was asked to submit a concise five-word message through an online form. A few days later, the posters were ready for pickup “social distance style” across the roped-off front entry of the printshop. Many of these posters were visible throughout Detroit in the summer of 2020 at protests and taped to store windows, streetlight poles and freeway overpasses. By September, Signal-Return’s director, Lynne Avadenka, counted a total of 168 individual requests. Some requests repeated popular protest language of the day while others were entirely unique and personal. Thanks to Signal-Return’s donation, The Henry Ford has acquired a portfolio of 44 examples as a way to document one of the largest protest movements in the history of the United States. The method by which they were acquired — called “rapid response collecting” by museum professionals — allows museums to collect stories of current events and major moments in history as they unfold.
PICTURE OF A PANDEMIC As the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded, museums stepped forward to collect evidence of its impact. At The Henry Ford, our approach to collecting this time period reflects who we are and what we represent as an institution. Using the filter of our mission statement, we have begun to collect 3D objects, archival materials and stories of the COVID-19 pandemic. In collecting these stories, we ask: How are we — as a nation, as groups and as individuals — responding to this continually changing crisis with resilience, creativity and novel approaches? What challenges are we encountering along the way? You can learn more about our collecting plan, what we hope to collect and how you can contribute at thf.org/ covid-19-collections.
— KRISTEN GALLERNEAUX, CURATOR OF COMMUNICATIONS AND INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
d The Henry Ford is collecting
ONLINE To see the digitized Signal-Return Press Solidarity Protest Poster Collection, click herec
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READ
Learn more about Signal-Return and the modern letterpress movement in the June-December 2017 issue of The Henry Ford Magazine on issuu.com/thfmagazinec
COVID-19 stories both big and small, from hand sanitizer and masks to this Ford Transit van, used as a prototype for a mobile COVID-19 testing unit.
d As part of its rapid response
collecting method, The Henry Ford acquired a portfolio of letterpress posters from Detroit nonprofit printshop SignalReturn last September as a way to document one of the largest protest movements in the history of the United States.
POSTERS FROM THE HENRY FORD
ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
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MEMBERSHIP SPOTLIGHT
NAME: Meera Meerkov & Sri Maddipati + Maya & Sonia
NUMBER OF YEARS AS MEMBERS:
4
MUST-DOS: Spending time near the train (Allegheny Steam Locomotive) and tractor (Sperry-New Holland Combine) in the museum. Stopping by the Glass Shop in Greenfield Village, going to “school” in the one-room schoolhouses and finding and riding the zebra on the Herschell-Spillman Carousel. Plus stopping for a creamy frozen custard at the village stand.
MEMBERSHIP SPOTLIGHT
WHAT’S YOUR SPARK?
FAVORITE MEMBER PERK: We love being able to stop in for a quick visit and keep up with new exhibits. There is always so much to do and see in both Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village.
Meera Meerkov and Sri Maddipati and their young daughters appreciate the hands-on nature and historical authenticity of trains, tractors and centuries-old buildings brought to life
WHEN MEERA AND SRI and their eldest daughter Maya moved back to metro Detroit in 2015, a good friend brought them to Greenfield Village. The bond was immediate. For little Maya, it was the beginning of a long-term adoration of a train ride and a carousel — one she later passed on to her younger sister Sonia. For the adults, it was an initial astonishment and then an enduring appreciation for attractions built around actual historical structures within Greenfield Village. Amazement over a collection of presidential vehicles in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, added Meera, has also bloomed. And the girls can’t ever miss a bit of playtime at the water tower, in the boiler tunnel or on the 1931 Model AA truck in the village’s historically themed playscape.
Take It Forward as a Member Enjoy benefits like free admission and parking, discounts on events and tours, exclusive member previews and more.
PHOTO BY EE BERGER
WHAT’S YOUR SPARK? Let us know what inspires you on your next visit and what takes you forward from your membership. Email us at membership@thehenryford.org. 62
JANUARY-MAY 2021
ONLINE thf.org/ membershipc
This search engine runs on gasoline INSURANCE DRIVERS CLUB CAR CULTURE MARKETPLACE
+1-800-922-4050 | Local agent | Hagerty.com Policies underwritten by Essentia Insurance Company. Membership by Hagerty Drivers Club, a non-insurance subsidiary of The Hagerty Group, LLC. Only the Hagerty Drivers Club Program Guide contains a complete description of benefits. Purchase of insurance not required for membership in Hagerty Drivers Club. All third party makes, models, and vehicle names are property of their respective owners. Their use is meant to reflect the authenticity of the vehicle and do not imply sponsorship nor endorsement of Hagerty nor any of these products or services. Hagerty is a registered trademark of the Hagerty Group LLC, Š2020 The Hagerty Group, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
INSIDE THE HENRY FORD
EVENTS
2021 EVENTS
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FREE FOR MEMBERS
HENRY FORD MUSEUM OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
Louis Comfort Tiffany: Treasures from the Driehaus Collection Member Preview: March 5 Open: March 6-April 25 Magnificent stained-glass windows. Intricate floral vases. Stunning lampshades on regal metalwork bases. Louis Comfort Tiffany’s artistry and craftmanship will be on display in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation for a limited time when the Louis Comfort Tiffany: Treasures from the Driehaus Collection exhibition makes its tour stop at The Henry Ford in 2021. Organized by the prestigious Richard H. Driehaus Museum in Chicago, and toured by International Arts & Artists, the exhibition features more than 60 objects spanning more than 30 years of Tiffany’s prolific career. “If you are at all interested in Tiffany or want to learn about him, his creative process and the collaborative community of Tiffany Studios, this is a must-see exhibit,” said Charles Sable, curator of decorative arts at The Henry Ford. The visiting Driehaus exhibition opens to the public on March 6 in The Gallery by General Motors in the museum. ONLINE To learn more, visit thf.orgc
OPPOSITE PAGE: TIFFANY STUDIOS, GROUP OF LAMPS (BIRD’S-EYE DETAIL). PHOTOGRAPH BY JOHN FAIER. ©2013 THE RICHARD H. DRIEHAUS MUSEUM.
SO TAKEN WITH TIFFANY Ask Charles Sable, curator of decorative arts, what you should do after you take in the beauty, craftsmanship and decorative creativity of the Louis Comfort Tiffany: Treasures from the Driehaus Collection exhibition in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, and he’ll tell you to plan a future visit to the Davidson-Gerson Gallery of Glass in Greenfield Village. There, an electric Tiffany table lamp circa 190320, the first created by celebrated Tiffany Studios designer Clara Driscoll, is on display. “When I first saw this lamp, I hated it,” quipped Sable. “It looked monochrome, it was filthy and appeared as if it had spent decades forgotten in an attic.” Then The Henry Ford’s conservation team began working their magic with alcohol swabs and distilled water. “Over the next six months, the lamp started to regain its iridescence and vibrancy, showing off its many shades of color,” said Sable. Driscoll was a leader and unparalleled contributor to a unique all-female community within Tiffany Studios known as the “Tiffany Girls.” This 27-person team labored behind the scenes to create many of the high-end masterpieces now inextricably linked to the Tiffany name. “Our lamp is Clara Driscoll’s first design for Tiffany Studios,” noted Sable. “It shows her willingness to experiment with art glass. She’s learning and will go on to produce a series of 60 or 70 elaborate and intricate designs for Tiffany that so many people loved.”
Other Premier Exhibitions + Events HENRY FORD MUSEUM OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
Marvel: Universe of Super Heroes Through Jan. 31 The biggest Marvel exhibition ever wraps up its run at The Henry Ford. Featuring more than 300 artifacts and thousands of characters. ONLINE To learn more, visit thf.org/marvelc
HENRY FORD MUSEUM OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
The Jim Henson Exhibition: Imagination Unlimited
FREE FOR MEMBERS
June 5-Sept. 6 Read Curator of Public Life Donna Braden’s blog post on Jim Henson and his legacy — thf.org/explore/celebrating-jim-henson-and -his-legacy — in preparation for the exhibition visiting The Henry Ford this summer. Featuring more than 100 objects and 25 historic puppets, including Kermit the Frog. ONLINE To learn more, visit thf.orgc
MARVEL PHOTO BY © SANDRO VANNINI JIM HENSON AND HIS ICONIC CREATION KERMIT THE FROG, IN FRONT OF A MURAL BY COULTER WATT. PHOTO BY JOHN E. BARRETT. KERMIT THE FROG © DISNEY/MUPPETS. COURTESY OF THE JIM HENSON COMPANY/MOMI
All programs and dates are subject to change. For the latest updates and more information on special events and programs, call 313.982.6001 or visit thf.org. thf.org
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Focused on the future
Our purpose is to inspire human progress. As a company built on innovation, we are proud to encourage the next generation of scientists, engineers and entrepreneurs through our presenting sponsorship of Invention Convention U.S. Nationals. Learn more at RTX.com
COLLINS AEROSPACE PRATT & WHITNEY RAYTHEON INTELLIGENCE & SPACE RAYTHEON MISSILES & DEFENSE
How to make your travel plans to The Henry Ford quick and easy
PLAN YOUR VISIT At The Henry Ford, you’ll discover America — its culture, inventions, people and can-do spirit — and hundreds of ways to explore it, enjoy it and be inspired by it. Maximize your visit — whether it’s for three hours, three days or a full year — and see for yourself why The New York Times called The Henry Ford one of the world’s coolest museums.
OUR PARTNERS
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PLAN YOUR VISIT Preferred Hotel Partners
OVERNIGHT VACATION PACKAGES The Henry Ford offers overnight packages through several lodging partners that meet a variety of needs, including full service, limited service, historic charm, B&B style or campground. When you book with one of The Henry Ford’s official lodging partners, be sure to ask about available double and family vacation packages, which include attraction tickets and overnight accommodations.
FULL SERVICE
FULL SERVICE
HISTORIC
BEST WESTERN GREENFIELD INN
DOUBLETREE BY HILTON DETROIT DEARBORN
THE DEARBORN INN, A MARRIOTT HOTEL
3000 Enterprise Drive Allen Park, MI 48101 313.271.1600 bestwesterngreenfield.com
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5801 Southfield Expressway Detroit, MI 48228 313.336.3340 dearborn.doubletree.com
20301 Oakwood Boulevard Dearborn, MI 48124 877.757.7103 dearborninnmarriott.com
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Packages start at $139.99. Don’t wait; book your date at America’s Greatest History Destination today at thf.org/vacations. Double Package
Room and two tickets to two attractions (Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge Factory Tour) Family Package
Room and four tickets to two attractions (Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation, Greenfield Village, Ford Rouge Factory Tour)
HISTORIC
LIMITED SERVICE
LIMITED SERVICE
THE WESTIN BOOK CADILLAC
COMFORT INN & SUITES - ALLEN PARK
COMFORT INN & SUITES - DEARBORN
1114 Washington Boulevard Detroit, MI 48226 313.442.1600 marriott.com/dtwcw
3600 Enterprise Drive Allen Park, MI 48101 313.323.3500 choicehotels.com/mi463
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20061 Michigan Avenue Dearborn, MI 48124 313.436.9600 choicehotels.com/ michigan/dearborn/ comfort-inn-hotels/mi385
See ad on Page 71
Contact hotel directly for room availability. Packages and pricing vary by hotel.
LIMITED SERVICE
LIMITED SERVICE
LIMITED SERVICE
COMFORT INN & SUITES - TAYLOR
COMFORT SUITES SOUTHGATE
COUNTRY INN & SUITES - DEARBORN
6778 S. Telegraph Road Taylor, MI 48180 313.292.6730 choicehotels.com/ michigan/taylor/ comfort-inn-hotels/mi189
18950 Northline Road Southgate, MI 48195 734.287.9200 choicehotels.com/michigan/ southgate/comfort-suites -hotels/mi176
24555 Michigan Avenue Dearborn, MI 48124 313.562.8900 countryinns.com/ dearbornmi
See ad on Page 76
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LIMITED SERVICE
HAMPTON INN - DEARBORN 22324 Michigan Avenue Dearborn, MI 48124 313.562.0000 detroitdearborn.hamptoninn.com
See ad on Page 73
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PLAN YOUR VISIT Accommodations at a Glance
CAMPING
BED & BREAKFAST
LIMITED SERVICE
HISTORIC
FULL SERVICE
HOTEL
LOCATION AREA
DRIVE TIME*
SLEEPING ROOMS
POOL
PETS
MEETING ROOMS
MEETING SPACE (sq. ft.)
AD ON PAGE
4
1,047
71
16
12,000
77
14
26,000
74
11
6,600
73
14
14,000
81
17
17,000
72
20
36,658
80
Best Western Greenfield Inn
Dearborn (I-94 corridor)
10
209
Indoor
DoubleTree by Hilton Detroit-Dearborn
Dearborn
10
347
Indoor
The Henry, an Autograph Collection by Marriott
Dearborn
5
323
Indoor
Detroit Metro Airport Marriott
Airport (I-94)
15
249
Indoor
Sheraton Detroit Metro Airport
Airport (I-94)
15
359
Indoor
The Dearborn Inn, a Marriott Hotel
Dearborn
3
229
Outdoor
The Westin Book Cadillac
Downtown
15
453
Indoor/ Spa
Comfort Inn & Suites - Allen Park
Dearborn (I-94 corridor)
10
163
Indoor
2 (15 each)
Comfort Inn & Suites - Dearborn
Dearborn
4
116
Indoor
1
Comfort Inn & Suites - Taylor
Dearborn (I-94 corridor)
10
78
Indoor
1 (15)
76
Comfort Suites - Southgate
Downriver (I-75 corridor)
15
78
Indoor
1 (50)
74
Country Inn & Suites - Dearborn
Dearborn
7
100
Indoor
1 (55)
72
Courtyard by Marriott - Detroit Dearborn
Dearborn
10
147
Indoor
2
Hampton Inn - Dearborn
Dearborn
3
96
Indoor
0
Hampton Inn & Suites - Allen Park
Dearborn (I-94 corridor)
10
101
Indoor
1
650
74
Holiday Inn Express & Suites - Allen Park
Dearborn (I-94 corridor)
10
106
Indoor
1
300
74
Holiday Inn Express & Suites - Southgate
Downriver (I-75 corridor)
15
114
Indoor
1
400
76
Red Roof Inn - Dearborn
Dearborn
7
111
Staybridge Suites - Dearborn
Dearborn
7
99
York House Bed & Breakfast
Dearborn
10
3
Camp Dearborn
NW Oakland County
45
191
Outdoor
Detroit Greenfield Campground/RV Park
I-94 corridor
20
212
On lake
Indoor
•
•$
•
•
•
80 250
1,274
71
76 73
•
0
73
•$
1 (35)
73
0
81
0
81
•
Outdoor pavilion
600
81
*Drive time in minutes to The Henry Ford.
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Find New Inspiration.
Series 6 Diversity in Design Discover our artists at LIFEWTR.com 70
JANUARY-MAY 2021
LIFE W TR
®
LIFEWTR and the LIFEWTR Logo are trademarks of PepsiCo, Inc. 23719005
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R E V I V E TH E PLE A SU R E O F TR AV EL .
The Dearborn Inn puts you at a distinct advantage of being just three blocks from The Henry Ford. Built in 1931, this 23-acre colonial retreat offers a setting reminiscent of a classic American inn, with a AAA four-diamond rating and the level of service and amenities you expect from Marriott. For reservations and group bookings, call 313-271-2700 or visit DearbornInnMarriott.com THE DEARBORN INN, A MARRIOTT HOTEL 20301 OAKWOOD BOULEVARD DEARBORN, MICHIGAN 48124
Stay PRODUCTIVE. Feel REFRESHED. • Free high-speed Internet access • Complimentary hot ‘Be Our Guest’ breakfast • Comfortable spacious rooms • Indoor heated pool • Fitness center • And more!
24555 Michigan Avenue Dearborn, MI 48124 (313) 562-8900 • countryinns.com/dearbornmi
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Stop by and see the BRAND-NEW Detroit/Dearborn location for yourself. You’ll see why travelers love Hampton, with amenities like our hot breakfast, free Wi-Fi, and our clean and fresh Hampton bed. • Complimentary breakfast • Complimentary shuttle within 5 miles of the hotel • Easy access to businesses, Detroit attractions, malls, casinos and sports venues • Walking distance to many local restaurants Hampton Inn Detroit/Dearborn 22324 Michigan Ave. Dearborn, Michigan 48124 313.562.0000 www.detroitdearborn.hamptoninn.com
• Indoor heated swimming pool • Free business center • Free internet/Wi-Fi access in every room • Gym/fitness center
Nice Place. Nice Price. ®
g ® urin Feat xtGen e N s! new gn room desi
• Free Breakfast Daily • Complimentary Dinner Mondays-Wednesdays • Complimentary Wi-Fi • Courtesy Shuttle Anywhere Within 5 Miles of Hotel and Detroit Metro Airport • Business Center • Indoor Swimming Pool • Hot Tub • Courtyard with BBQ Pits • Living Room with Big-Screen TV • Extended Stay 24105 MICHIGAN AVE. DEARBORN, MI 48124 • 313.565.1500 STAYBRIDGESUITES.COM
Enjoy our friendly staff, comfortable rooms and our relaxing lobby lounge area. Check in to the Detroit Metro Airport Marriott Hotel. • Free Shuttle Service to and from Detroit Metro Airport • Complimentary Wi-Fi • Enclosed Heated Pool and Jacuzzi • Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner Restaurant • Room Service • Gift Shop • Private Meeting Rooms Detroit Metro Airport Marriott
30559 Flynn Drive Romulus, MI 48174 734.729.7555 • marriott.com/dtwrm
Discover the newest Red Roof redesign in the country and the next generation of Red Roof design and style. • Large, flat-screen TVs • Free Wi-Fi, local calls, long-distance calls in the continental U.S. and up to 10 fax pages in the continental U.S. • #1 in Customer Satisfaction — online reviews, Market Metrix, 2010 & 2011 • Superior King Rooms with large workstation, in-room coffee, microwave and refrigerator • Free Redi-Set-Go breakfast • Children 17 and under stay free • Pets stay free Red Roof Detroit-Dearborn – #182 24130 Michigan Avenue • Dearborn, MI 48124 phone: 313.278.9732 For reservations visit redroof.com or call 800.RED.ROOF (800.733.7663)
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16400 Southfield Rd Allen Park, MI 48101 313-383-9730
Brand New Hotel Where Guests are Treated to Award Winning Hamptonality! Our Spacious rooms feature microwave, refrigerator and free WiFi. Indoor pool, 24 hour Fitness Center, Business Center and Treat Shop. Complimentary Breakfast served daily!
www.hamptonallenpark.hamptonbyhilton.com • 308 Guest Rooms and Suites • Indoor Swimming Pool and Fitness Center 9000 Enterprise Dr. Allen Park, MI 48101 313-383-9790 www.hiexpress.com/allenparkmi
• TRIA Restaurant for Breakfast, Lunch and Dinner • Discount Tickets available at the Front Desk • Close to Shopping and Area Restaurants.
BRAND NEW HOTEL: we keep it simple and we keep it smart
Our Spacious rooms features microwave, refrigerator and free WiFi. Indoor Pool, 24 hour fitness center, business center and pantry. Complimentary hot breakfast served daily.
FAIRLANE PLAZA, 300 TOWN CENTER DRIVE DEARBORN, MICHIGAN BEHENRY.COM | 313 441 2000
A better us. For the best you. • •
reakfast
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• Luxurious, Spacious Suites
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734.287.9200 comfortsuitessouthgate.com
Comfort Suites 18950 Northline Rd. Southgate, MI 48195
7.0 in.
EXPLORE THE
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GREAT INDOORS. With world-class gaming, dining, and entertainment — plus a luxurious hotel and spa — there’s no better way to get away than MotorCity Casino Hotel. Book your stay today at MotorCityCasino.com.
A M I LLI O N M I LE S AWAY, R I G H T D O W N T H E S T R E E T.
MotorCity Casino Hotel and MotorCity Casino Hotel design are trademarks of Detroit Entertainment, L.L.C. ©2020 Detroit Entertainment, L.L.C. All rights reserved.
19MFM0139_A-MFP Motor City Casino Hotel_MF Henry Ford Magazine Close 11/15; Insert 6/1/2020 4C Magazine M. Puhy
J. Fetterman
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Michigan’s Largest Outlet Center 90000001 204277
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Over 185 shopping, dining and entertainment options with more than 25 that can’t be found K. Hawkey V. Roberts anywhere else in Michigan.
Text “PASSPORT” to 248.294.0005 to receive exclusive visitor offers.
Mention this ad at the Great Lakes Crossing Outlets Visitor Center or text “Passport” to 248.294.0005 to receive exclusive visitor offers.
I-75, Exit 84 • Auburn Hills, MI greatlakescrossingoutlets.com • @greatlakescrossingoutlets
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VACATION PACKAGES
STARTING
UNDER
$140 • Complimentary breakfast • Indoor pool & fitness center • Business center • Free shuttle to The Henry Ford with package purchase • Free parking • Shuttle within 5 miles of hotel • 15 minutes from Detroit airport & downtown Detroit
13333 Heritage Center Dr. Southgate, MI 48195 734.324.5800 www.ihg.com
INCLUDES: tickets to any two attractions and overnight accommodations. Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation®, Greenfield Village® or Ford Rouge Factory Tour.
MORE PLAY IN YOUR STAY With ideal comfort and accommodations, we’ll help you craft the ultimate getaway. Located just minutes from the Henry Ford Museum and offering our own Henry Ford Package, you’ll experience a weekend to remember. Book your room or package by visiting DearbornCourtyard.com Courtyard by Marriott Detroit Dearborn 5200 Mercury Drive Dearborn, MI 48126 313.271.1400 DearbornCourtyard.com
THF.ORG/ PACKAGES
NEWLY UPGRADED AND REMODELED!
4 *XHVWURRP WLI
BY
C HOIC E
HOT ELS
6778 South Telegraph Road Taylor, Michigan 48180 %UHDNIDVW WLI
ENJOY A COMFORTABLE STAY WITH OUTSTANDING HOSPITALITY!
A ME N I TI E S I N C LU D E
At the Comfort Inn & Suites of Taylor, we specialize in package rates including tickets to Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village.
• Popcorn and %OXH 7LPH WLI Cookies (Monday-Thursday)
• Free Hot Deluxe Breakfast
• Dry Cleaning Services
• Free Wireless Internet Access
• Guest Laundry Facility
• Board Room
• Premium Bedding
• Indoor Heated Pool and Fitness Center • 40” Flat-Screen TVs and Premium Cable
We’re centrally located within a few miles of The Henry Ford, downtown Detroit and Windsor, Canada.
• Each Room Contains Refrigerator, Microwave, Ironing Set, Hair Dryer, Coffee and Coffee Maker, In-Room Safe
COMFORTINN.COM • (PHONE) 313.292.6730 • (EMAIL) GM.MI189@CHOICEHOTELS.COM
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detroit’s favorite
Pizza!
Check the back of your ticket for a
Special Offer! Now offering
Curbside and Catering! Ann Arbor • Auburn Hills • Bloomfield Hills • Dearborn • Detroit • Farmington Hills • Grand Rapids • Grosse Pointe Lansing • Livonia • Novi • Plymouth • Royal Oak • Portage • Shelby Township • Troy • Warren • Woodhaven
5801 Southfield Freeway Detroit, MI 48228 Phone: 313-336-3340 Fax: 313-336-7037
The Perfect End to a Great Day The DoubleTree by Hilton Detroit-Dearborn is a distinctively designed hotel located minutes from The Henry Ford. Enjoy all of the full-service features we have to offer, starting with the excellent cuisine in Grille 39, the indoor pool and state-of-the-art fitness facility, and our 12-passenger shuttle bus that will take you to and from The Henry Ford. Finish your evening relaxing in one of our signature Sweet Dreams beds. Our hotel is consistently ranked in the top 10 for overall guest satisfaction. Packages for The Henry Ford and assistance with group tour planning are available.
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featuring
Nourish your next big idea, and taste American farm-fresh foods at the new Plum Market Kitchen in Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation®. Stop by for a Zingerman’s pastry and coffee in the morning or a lunch featuring organic, sustainable and artisanal soups, salads, sandwiches and entrees. MEMBERS: Show your card to save 10% on dining and grab-and-go meals. No museum admission is necessary to visit Plum Market Kitchen at The Henry Ford.
Visit thf.org/plummarketkitchen for menus and more information.
Love Your Local. Reimmerse in commerce.
Downtown Dearborn has attracted more locals and visitors alike than ever before. With more than 200 retailers and dining options, we’ve become one of Southeast Michigan’s most diverse and dynamic destinations. Now’s the time to go local and discover worldclass choice and convenience right outside your door.
downtowndearborn.org
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JANUARY-MAY 2021
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T:7”
Redefine Your Detroit Experience T:4.625”
Explore a revitalized downtown at The Westin Book Cadillac Detroit, conveniently located near restaurants, nightlife and casinos. A 1924 landmark restored to its former grandeur, our hotel offers modern furnishings, enriching amenities and unique layouts. Relax in one of our 453 guest rooms, including 35 suites, featuring our signature Heavenly® Beds and Heavenly® Baths. Dine at one of our five award-winning restaurants, including Motor Bar or Roast from celebrity chef Michael Symon. With the rejuvenating Spa 19 and AAA Four Diamond service, every stay with us is a refreshing experience. To make a reservation, visit Marriott.com/DTWCW or call 313.442.1600
©2019 Marriott International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. All names, marks and logos are the trademarks of Marriott International, Inc., or its affiliates.
1113810
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Graphik Starwood (Regular) FreightDisp Pro (Book)
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Studio Artist Q.C. Client
Bleed: 0.125” x 0.125” Safety: 0” x 0”
Account Mgr
Inks:
Artist: Station: Saved: Current:
Eric Simon / Lania Yu OMG-USNY-OSX-019 / Eric Simon 10-24-2019 10:37 AM 10-24-2019 1:58 PM
Detroit Metro Airport Hotel
■
Complimentary airport transportation to/from hotel
■
Indoor pool and spa
■
24-hour Sheraton Fitness
■
Sheraton Club floor
■
Two restaurants: Cultivate and Connections
■
Complimentary Wi-Fi
■
Convenient expressway access to all of metropolitan Detroit and Ann Arbor
8000 Merriman Road Romulus, MI 48174 734.729.2600 sheratondetroitmetroairport.com
Great People. Great Camping. DETROIT GREENFIELD RV PARK 6680 Bunton Road Ypsilanti, MI 48197 PHONE 734.482.7722 FAX 734.544.5907
· Private spring-fed lake and scenic forest setting · Large private beach and lakeside trails · Excellent boating, fishing and swimming · Long pull-thrus and full hookups + 50 amp · Holiday weekend family events · Just 35 miles from Detroit attractions
Plan your trip and make reservations at www.detroitgreenfield.com
Camp Dearborn
• 20-, 30- and 50-amp RV campsites • Two beaches and three stocked fishing lakes • Heated pool with lifeguards • Laundromats 626 acres of rolling hills, trees • Extensive seven-day and lakes that offer a wide variety recreation program for kids of amenities for outdoor activities • Paddle boat rentals and Canteen food service • 27-hole championship Mystic Creek Golf Course & Banquet Center • 18-hole miniature golf course • Resort-style cabins, rustic cabins and tent rentals 1700 General Motors Rd., Milford, MI 48380 (248) 684-6000 • campdearborn.com thf.org
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Best outdoor venue in Michigan
Looking for a WOW company picnic? Greenfield Village picnics immerse attendees in our 80-acre outdoor attraction filled with family fun and inspiration. Packages for groups of 150 to 5,000 include admission, parking and picnic-style lunch in the Village Pavilion. Our professional planners will make it easy. Learn more at thf.org/picnics or call 313.982.6220.
EXPLORE MORE WITH OUR FREE APP Download THF Connect to transform your visit to Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation with curator-led audio tours, augmented reality experiences, an interactive map and more. Unlock stories that cross exhibits. Find your way to your favorite objects. Explore our collections and even create your own virtual innovation. thf.org/ConnectApp
ESPECIALLY FOR MEMBERS: Download the app to access your digital membership card — the best way to activate your membership benefits from any place at any time.
A LOOK BACK
FORDSON TRACTOR NO. 100,000
(completed at Dearborn, Feb. 21, 1920) Henry Ford & Son organized on July 27, 1917, to make Fordson tractors. David L. Lewis, author of The Public Image of Henry Ford, explains that the first 7,000 went to England to support British food production during the Great War. Distribution to U.S. customers began early in 1918. Aggressive advertising got the public’s attention, and the tractor’s price — $750 — made it a reasonable investment. It quickly became a bestseller. Just three years after its debut, on Feb. 21, 1920, the 100,000th Fordson rolled off the assembly line in Dearborn, Michigan. In November 2020, this photographic print marking the tractor’s milestone manufacturing moment became The Henry Ford’s 100,000th artifact to be digitized. READ
84
Page 11 of this issue of The Henry Ford Magazine for more news on The Henry Ford’s digitization effortsc
JANUARY-MAY 2021
DID YOU KNOW? / The 100,000th Fordson shares the limelight with other historical milestones, including New Mexico’s ratification of the 19th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution on Feb. 21, 1920, making it the 32nd state of the 36 needed to grant American women the right to vote.
d When line workers
completed the 100,000th Fordson tractor in Dearborn, Michigan, nearly 50% of the U.S. population lived in rural places, either in small communities of 2,500 people or fewer, or they lived on nearly 6.5 million farms, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
THE HENRY FORD ARCHIVE OF AMERICAN INNOVATION
OUR ELECTRIC FUTURE IS NOW General Motors has been designing for the future for more than a century. As we pursue our vision of Zero Crashes, Zero Emissions and Zero Congestion, we’re thoughtfully reimagining mobility for generations to come.
gm.com Š2020 General Motors. All rights reserved.
MAGAZINE For access to past issues of THF Magazine, please visit issuu.com/thfmagazine.