Any photos or information on when the last Model T car or Ton Truck rolled off the different Branch Assembly Lines?

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Model T Ford Forum: Forum 2014: Any photos or information on when the last Model T car or Ton Truck rolled off the different Branch Assembly Lines?
Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Hap Tucker in Sumter SC on Wednesday, December 24, 2014 - 10:44 pm:

To avoid high-jacking the thread “Quick question” that was dealing with gap between the hood and hood shelf on the 1926-27 cars at: http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/411944/504120.html?1419473003 I am moving John Kuehn question here. John asked, “…is there a photo of the last Model T to come off the assembly line?”

My short answer is: “Not that I have found yet.”

If anyone has photos or information on when the last Model T car or Ton Truck came off any of the assembly lines, would you please share that with us and what your source is?


But the longer more complete answer is: It would depend on which assembly line and if you are talking about a car or a ton truck. Bruce McCalley (R.I.P) states on page 536 of his book “Model T Ford” “A car bearing the engine number of 14,007,033 is reputed to be the last Model T Ford produced [it is implied at the Highland Park Plant]. Engine production, for the most part listed as “truck” continued through the year. Ford branches apparently continued assembling cars until stocks of parts were depleted. So “IF” 15,007,033 was the last car to come off the Highland Park main assembly line it would have been on or slightly after Jun 1, 1927 as the engine was assembled and stamped by the engine shop on Jun 1, 1927 [assuming it went into a car at Highland Park]. Remember that in 1927 the cars were still assembled at the Highland Park Plant but the engines were no longer assembled there. Engine production had already shifted to the River Rouge Plant. [Note at: http://www.mtfca.com/encyclo/1927.htm Bruce states:

"Automobile production ended May 26, 1927 but trucks and engines continued for some time.
ENGINE SERIAL NUMBERS:14,619,255 to 15,076,231 calendar year. 14,049,030 to 15,006,625 approx. model year (August 2, 1926 to May 26, 1927.) Note: Records show that the last Model T was serial number 15,007,032 but according to the engine production records, only engines (not cars) were built on May 31, 1927. There was no production from May 27 to May 31, and then engines and/or trucks began again with serial numbers 15,626,006 to 15,007,032. ]"

Clearly Highland Park stopped automobile production sometime around the end of May while the branches continued to assemble cars.

We know that in Denmark car # 15,007,600 was assembled as there are records of it being sold. And engine # 15,007,600 would have most likely been assembled on Jun 2, 1927 and then shipped overseas [see http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/411944/477877.html . ] And if someone has the link to the thread that discusses the registration / customs paper work for 15,007,600 – please let me know. I saved the photos but I misplaced the link to that thread.

Merry Christmas and respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By G.R.Cheshire on Thursday, December 25, 2014 - 09:01 am:

Hap I think you fat fingered this “Model T Ford” “A car bearing the engine number of 14,007,033... I think that should read 15,007,033. :-)


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Mark Strange on Thursday, December 25, 2014 - 09:17 am:

Here's a 2013 thread talking about the end of Model T production and the Denmark car:

http://www.mtfca.com/discus/messages/331880/383756.html?1377689801


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Barker, Somerset, England on Thursday, December 25, 2014 - 11:26 am:

The Trafford Park story is this:
The last T was completed at 11:58 am on 19th August 1927. This was the 259144th built there. As early T's came from the USA, total UK sales were higher, at about 303000.
The last batch of engine numbers was 14,991,901 to 14,995,900, but around 900 of these numbers were never used. A TT delivered on July 27th was 14,994,880
The Cork factory in Ireland continued building until 31 December 1927.
This isn't all; the day after Manchester production stopped, local dealer H & J Quick set about getting hold of all the parts they could find and in the following months assembled about another 150 - almost certainly vans and trucks.

This information comes from Volume 1 (of 2) of The English Model T Ford, published by the Model T Ford Register of Great Britain.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Burger in Spokane on Thursday, December 25, 2014 - 03:02 pm:

Serial numbers aside, just about every T guy I know is assembling one in his shop today ! :-)


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Hap Tucker in Sumter SC on Thursday, December 25, 2014 - 08:28 pm:

G.R. – yes, it should have been 15,007,033 (at least I got it right one of the times I typed it....).

Chris -- thank you for the update on when England and Ireland stopped factory production.

Burger -- yes, many of us have a T assembled sometime in the last 20 years or so. And they are not one of the 1914s that Ford assembled for the 2003 anniversary.

If anyone has any additional dates/locations please let us know.

Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Fred Miller, Sequim WA on Friday, December 26, 2014 - 04:39 pm:

Hap I'm still trying to put it together from what I studied. Certain articles insinuate that the TTs at least at the Highland Park Plant, continued to be built at least until the AA was ready to be produced at the Rouge. This would be true for the Enclosed Cab as the C-Cab was discontinued in August 1926.
Some of the other Assembly Plants did continue to build the very popular TT right through November and into December 1927. I'm hoping to get to Dearborn this year to see the records on this. It is interesting that a few Cab parts from the late 1927 Enclosed never were shown in the Ford Body Parts Lists such as the 2 reinforcement strips on the back of the cab and a few others that I can't remember right now. The continued re-engineering of the TT past May 1927 leaves a question about the TT only being built until the existing parts ran out. Henry did not store any parts for the Model T, as fast as they were made the were shipped to the Assembly Branches and as for extra 7 months of production. In my opinion Highland Park was still in the business of making parts for the TT many months after the Car had come to an end. It's my understanding that Highland Park was the place that produced the Model T replacement parts for many years afterwards.
As to answer your question Hap at least about the last TT produced, the records that I am looking for would be the accounting records for the TT. I have these up to March 1925 and I need the TT records at least up to December 1927. Some how these accounting records are not all together at the Archives. I fell it will take a special trip to find the missing documents as they must be there somewhere and I believe they will show the production into December 1927.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Dave Henry on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - 05:08 am:

I was doing a google image search tonight and a picture popped up that reminded me of this thread, not sure if it has been posted before.

Last Model T Ford leaves assembly line, Louisville, Kentucky, 1927. :: R. G. Potter Collection


Link to the original - http://digital.library.louisville.edu/cdm/singleitem/collection/potter/id/89/rec/311/rec/311


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Chris Barker, Somerset, England on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - 05:57 am:

That excellent photo is dated 3rd July 27.


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By Hap Tucker in Sumter SC on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - 06:50 am:

Dave – thank you so much for sharing that. It is exactly the type of information I am trying to compile.

Chris -- thank you for adding the date.

From the web link Dave posted it has the following additional information:


Last Model T Ford (motor number 14,987,899) leaves the assembly line at Ford plant on Southwestern Parkway in Louisville, Kentucky on July 3, 1927. Posing with auto, from left to right: Keith Denham, R.G. Potter, Carlton Fry, Elbert J. Lucas (Ford Motor Company), Ed Glass (Louisville Courier-Journal and Times), Charles S. Potter (President, Monarch Auto Company), Edward McPhee (Manager, Ford Motor Company), Edward Schoen (Ford Motor Company) and Torrens A. Smith (Ford Motor Company). Title supplied by cataloger.

And from Bruce's compilation of the Ford Motor Company USA serial number on page 536 of his book “Model T Ford” we can check and find that engine # 14,987,899 was listed under May 23, 1927 of the engine logs. So for this car it was a little over a month between the engine number being entered in the engine log and the car being assembled. The last car may have taken longer than the previous production in say Mar or Apr 1927. Or it might even have taken less time? And we do not know if the engine was assembled on May 23, 1927 at the River Rouge and shipped to the branch plant. Or if the branch plant assembled the engine at a later date and stamped it with the serial number that would have been sent to them on May 23, 1927.

I would guess that other branch plants would have had a short item in the paper stating the last Model T was produced on xx day xx month 1927 etc. If anyone runs across some of those, please let me know. If you post them and I do not add a "thank you" then I most likely did not see the addition. In that case please send me a private message or e-mail using my profile. Just click on my name and the third line down on my profile is my e-mail address.

Again thank you both for adding this information.

Respectfully submitted,

Hap l9l5 cut off


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By john kuehn on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - 08:54 am:

Thanks for the information update!

As much has been written and compiled about Model T's it seems like there would be some photos somewhere and one did come to light.

Dave that's a neat photo you found. It makes you wonder what happened to that 27 Tudor.


I wonder why the group on the right side of the car left their hats on and the left side group took their's off!


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By David Dewey, N. California on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - 12:55 pm:

Hats off, proper etiquette when mourning a loss!!
Folks in front are subject of photo, the ones behind the car are just folks at the "service".


Top of pagePrevious messageNext messageBottom of page Link to this message  By john kuehn on Tuesday, December 30, 2014 - 07:36 pm:

Kind of like saying 'rest in peace' first came to mind when I first saw the photo!


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