Ok, my 2 cents...........
There are many, many good Reminiscences worth reading to develop an "idea" of who Henry Ford was, and who he may have been influenced by.
When I read Oliver Barthel's Reminiscence (several years ago, with a refresher last evening and this morning), I was struck by (and still smacked by) two things.
First, he appeared to be involved in almost every early automobile event that occurred in and around Detroit from 1894 on.
Secondly, he seemed to take credit for almost every early automobile event that occured............
Below is a link to his Reminiscence:
https://cdm15889.contentdm.oclc.org/dig ... 1/download
A few notes:
From an earlier post:
"The only reason the interview still exist is because it was requested and given several years after Henry Ford’s death when Oliver Barthel was still alive and had full mental capacity."
Mr. Barthel's reminiscence was taken in January, 1952. Henry Ford passed in April, 1947. The point being, the two events were not significantly distant from each other.
Mr. Barthel recites much early automobile history in his 1952 account, and as mentioned, earlier, he was present during much of the early motor car development. One other observation that jumps out to me, he doesn't seem to "stick" with one concern or interest long during this early period, when he was, in his defense, a very young man.
What I've found, over several years of amateur "sleuthing" of Ford history is not to accept one or only a few interpretations of events. While Mr. Barthel worked in the industry during this time, he was not often "in the room" with Henry Ford and his subordinates during most of this period.
I found his recounting of his assistance with the Ford six cylinder racer beginning in early 1904 interesting (the reason for my first read years ago). This confirmed the early beginning the Ford six holds within Ford Motor Company history. Otherwise, much of his Reminiscence confirms and recounts many reported évents in Ford and early motor car development in Detroit.
Bottom line, for me, this is just one of many many important Reminiscences. My other take, it appears to me Mr. Barthel's take on his own influence and importance in Ford Motor Company development and success may be a bit embellished. But hey, that's just me..........
Respectfully,
Rob
A couple of excerpts, courtesy of THF.
"It has often been said by those familiar with the dream that it was a lucky day for Henry Ford when Oliver Barthel crossed his path. "It was Oliver Barthel who put the "it" in all these racing cars that Ford made his reputation on."
"It turned out that Henry Ford's greatest asset proved to be his inability to read a blueprint or drawing, together with his complete lack of technical training. That made it necessary to have material objects or samples made in order to visualize what was being designed. This together with his disinterest in the artistic probably influenced the crude appearance of the Model T."
Be it C.H. Wills, Joe Galamb, Ed Huff, Ford himself, or the many others on the team of young talent Henry Ford assembled during the early years of Ford Motor Company, FMC did not turn our "crude" or inartistic motor cars. From the Model A, through the brass T, Ford's were a wonderful combination of efficiency, simplicity, economy and aesthetics. That's why FMC became the largest manufacturer of motor cars in the world................. in 1907.
Again, just my 2 cents............
