Great Lakes - Henry Ford Museum

I'm cross-posting this from another forum because it occurred to me that a visit to this place might be a good winter activity for others in the region. Detroiters travel to Chicago all the time to visit their great museums, and this one of ours is certainly on a par and worth the trip if you like cars, trains, aircraft, steam engines, power generating equipment, and all that kind of stuff.

We visited the Henry Ford Museum in Dearborn, MI yesterday (a good activity with the -25F wind chill!). I'd been there several times before, but not since my rediscovery of bicycling, and I was surprised by the number of interesting old bikes they had on display from the late 1800s and early 1900s (plus some "late model" bikes from our childhood era). Since bicycles were a really new invention in the 1800s, there were a lot of innovations tried out before they started to take a more standard form. Some of the more interesting ones included:


A "tandem" with side-by-side seating (an interesting challenge to balance!).
A ten-man bicycle. There was also a picture of it being ridden, with all of the riders wearing knickers, suit jackets, and caps).
One of those "big wheel" 1800s bikes that was categorized as a "climber" with the wheel being driven by an interesting linkage from the pedals so you could just pump the pedals straight up and down instead of in a circle.
An early bike with a frame made of hickory (would this qualify as the first "carbon-framed" bike?).
An "adult tricycle" from the 1890s that had two smaller wheels arranged in tandem on one side and a large driving wheel on the other side with the seat in the middle.


Anyway, it was a fascinating history of early bicycling in a couple dozen examples. If you've never been there, The Henry Ford is probably the best museum of the history of technology that I've seen. This was just one small part of it that I really noticed for the first time yesterday.

Doug, I used to live in Detroit (Farmington Hills) as a kid. We'd go to the Ford Museum every year. I loved that place. I would say, it's also a great place for a nice spring/summer day because of the Greenwich village/Edison displays. (If that is still there.) Also toured the Dearborn assembly plant, where I watch them assemble(?) Mustang II's. Thanks for a happy memory.

They have a lot of 20th century items in their collection, too. They have 1940s Chambers gas stove on display there, just like the one in my kitchen. They must have been collecting when everyone else thought it was just old junk.

You guys are killing me, my grandmother had a stove much like that...

Where I live now is a great tech museum in Baltimore. If you like things like that, the Museum of Industry is really neat.

Love the Ford museum. Enjoyed it greatly when I lived worked at a plant in Plymouth. Went 3-4 times in a few months.

I loved looking at the GIANT wrenches used to turn the GIANT nuts and bolts on the old steam engines. Some of the wrenches weigh 300 lbs!

I loved looking at the GIANT wrenches used to turn the GIANT nuts and bolts on the old steam engines. Some of the wrenches weigh 300 lbs!

What I try to imagine is how they built some of those devices. That one powerplant from the early 1900s has a flywheel that looks like it's a one-piece casting that's gotta be about 20 feet in diameter. Can you imagine what that thing weighs?

Wife and kids have been there, awesome place. It was cool watching guys ride around Greenfield Village on those 1880's era "High Wheel" bikes. ( The original single speed fixie! )

I always loved the 4 Hemi powered Goldenrod LSR car.

If you're going to the Henry Ford, don't miss visiting Greenfield Village. They have Wilbur and Orville's original bike shop. There are some very interesting direct-drive (no chain) bikes in their shop. The last time I visited the docent wanted to tell me about their plane and I said, "no thanks, I'm just interested in their bikes." :)

Yep, I loved the Wright Bros. LBS when I was a kid. But what impressed me the most was the rocking chair that Abe Lincoln was shot in. You can still see the blood stains in the upholstery.

Yep, I loved the Wright Bros. LBS when I was a kid. But what impressed me the most was the rocking chair that Abe Lincoln was shot in. You can still see the blood stains in the upholstery.

+1 - Totally forgot about that until I read this. I came away from that going "You'd think they'd advertise the hell out of that! They'd have people lined up around the block if they knew it was here!"

Personally I loved it all, but the Dynaxiom (whatever it was called - Aluminum masted house) house, and the massive steam engines got me. I'm a manufacturer at heart. I can't imagine building plants at the kind of scale to where some of those engines would seem "too small" to get the work done.

I seriously don't think any American who has not been to Detroit has any idea how big this Auto industry they pee on really was.

+1 - Totally forgot about that until I read this. I came away from that going "You'd think they'd advertise the hell out of that! They'd have people lined up around the block if they knew it was here!"

Personally I loved it all, but the Dynaxiom (whatever it was called - Aluminum masted house) house, and the massive steam engines got me. I'm a manufacturer at heart. I can't imagine building plants at the kind of scale to where some of those engines would seem "too small" to get the work done.

I seriously don't think any American who has not been to Detroit has any idea how big this Auto industry they pee on really was.

+1! My wife and kids went up there about a year ago on recommendation from a friend. WE HAD NEVER HEARD OF THE PLACE! It was awesome, blows my mind on why it isn't advertised heavier. Totally agree with you you on the Dymaxion house, massive steam engines and Wright Brothers LBS. It blew my mind to see that they had the car that JFK was shot in.

We spent 2 days there and in Greenfield Village, still did not get it all in.

+1 - Totally forgot about that until I read this. I came away from that going "You'd think they'd advertise the hell out of that! They'd have people lined up around the block if they knew it was here!"

Personally I loved it all, but the Dynaxiom (whatever it was called - Aluminum masted house) house, and the massive steam engines got me. I'm a manufacturer at heart. I can't imagine building plants at the kind of scale to where some of those engines would seem "too small" to get the work done.

I seriously don't think any American who has not been to Detroit has any idea how big this Auto industry they pee on really was.

Good point. Besides the Ford Museum another school field trip was to River Rouge. FAWCK!!! Totally unreal, the size and ower of it, putting the world on wheels and all that.

Now, every day I ride my bike past the GM Grand River Assembly plant. Even with half of it torn down, it takes about 5 minutes to get past it. 10 minutes if you count the power plant with its three 625 foot smokestacks. It all makes me feel kinda small on my bike!

Yep, I loved the Wright Bros. LBS when I was a kid. But what impressed me the most was the rocking chair that Abe Lincoln was shot in. You can still see the blood stains in the upholstery.
My summer job in college was being a tour guide, and that stain isn't from blood but the hair grease that Old Abe used in his hair.

I worked in The Henry Ford Museum as a historical presenter also, during a period of unemployment from my career job. My older son also worked in the Village, hawking refreshments at the Historic Base Ball games. Great place to work! Nice people. A cute college girl who was in my orientation class worked as a Model T driver; she and her girlfriend would give me free rides when they were driving.