A Driving Force in Automotive Heritage

Story of the Week

The Edsel: An Entirely New Kind of Car

by A. Wayne Ferens

On January 17, 1956, Ford Motor Company became a publicly owned business after 53 years of Ford family ownership. Henry Ford became the majority stockholder back in 1908 after purchasing the shares from some of the original investors, and by 1919 Henry owned 100 percent of the company.

In the 1950s, Ford was doing well with the pent-up demand for cars after World War II. They introduced many new models that were selling all the company could build with the introduction of the following: the F-series truck in 1948; the new Ford, Mercury and Lincoln cars in 1949, '52 and '55; the development of the OHV V8 engine in 1954; the Thunderbird in '55; and the formation of the Continental Division with the unveiling of the limited production Continental MKII in 1956.

On September 4, 1957, Ford introduced its newest model called the Edsel. The company called that day E-Day.

To learn more about the Edsel models and see more images, click below.

This Week's Story

This Week in Auto Heritage
On January 5, 1934, Chrysler introduced the Airflow, a car that was revolutionary for its time. It was one of the first full-size American production cars to use streamlining as a basis for building a sleeker automobile, one less susceptible to air resistance.

Chrysler attempted a fundamental change in automotive design with the Airflow, but it was ultimately a commercial failure and discontinued in 1937.

Events Coming to the MotorCities

Sunday: Winter Lecture Series Debuts at Gilmore Car Museum in Hickory Corners

The Gilmore Car Museum begins its 2024 Winter Lecture Series with a lecture on "The Streetcar Era in Kalamazoo 1885-1932" presented by historian Mark Tomlonson.

The Gilmore Winter Lecture Series is highly anticipated every year and provides lectures about automotive history in Michigan. Each event is a free for Museum members, included with admission for Museum guests visiting that day, or $5 for those just attending the lecture.

For more information, click here.

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