Your textbooks are filled with stories of innovators whose ideas defined the American experience. At The Henry Ford, we bring those tales to life. For more than eight decades, The Henry Ford has amassed an unparalleled collection of artifacts representing American innovation and ingenuity across multiple fields and disciplines from agriculture and industry to domestic life, transportation and power generation. At The Henry Ford, you can inspire your students by exposing them to the lives of dozens of visionary Americans, all of them ordinary people whose extraordinary ideas changed the world around them.
Michigan History Day 2010
Innovation in History: Impact and Change
State Finals at The Henry Ford - April 24, 2010
We are pleased to be partnering again with the
Historical Society of Michigan to offer the
Michigan History Day State Finals. For more
information on participating in History Days,
visit www.hsmichigan.org. |
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Edison’s Light Fantastic
DRAMATIC PRESENTATION
Meet Thomas Edison and hear about his most “electrifying” invention!
This live one-man show gives a glimpse into the inspiring life, work and
mind of Thomas Edison. Edison speaks to a group of reporters — your
students — who are visiting his complex on New Year’s Day, 1880 — the
day after he introduced the world’s first practical incandescent light bulb.
Location: Greenfield Village
Offered: Fridays in October 2009 and May 3–June 11, 2010
Program Length: 15 minutes
Price: FREE with Village admission |
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Home from Kitty Hawk
DRAMATIC PRESENTATION
It’s one thing to read about the thrill of the Wright brothers’ first flight.
It’s quite another to have Wilbur and Orville tell you about it themselves.
Three actors step into the roles of Orville, Wilbur and their sister,
Katharine. From the porch of the Wright family home — now in
Greenfield Village — they fascinate your students with the dramatic tale of
their experiments, struggles and, finally, the triumph of their first flights
on December 17, 1903.
Location: Greenfield Village
Offered: Fridays in October 2009 and May 3–June 11, 2010
Program Length: 20 minutes
Price: FREE with Village admission |
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Elijah: The Real McCoy
DRAMATIC PRESENTATION
Learn about the fascinating Elijah McCoy, whose inventions got
trains into the station ahead of time. This 15-minute play takes your
students on the stirring eight-decade journey that was McCoy’s life:
how he overcame racial injustice and went on to register 57 patents,
including the automatic lubricating cup, which revolutionized the
industrial machine industry.
Location: Greenfield Village
Offered: May 3–June 11, 2010
Program Length: 15 minutes
Price: FREE with Village admission |
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NEW! Flexing For The Future
SELF-GUIDED ACTIVITY
New methods of production have revolutionized
the auto industry. During this 10-minute handson
assembly line activity, students work together
to discover the flexibility of the modern moving
assembly line.
Location: Ford Rouge Factory Tour
Offered: Daily
Program Length: 10 minutes
Price: FREE with Ford Rouge Factory Tour admission |

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