Henry Ford was an American industrialist, visionary and the founder of Ford Motor Company. He introduced ideas like the five-day workweek and $5 per day wage, which doubled the income of his workers and made sure the best workers remained with Ford.
Ford introduced Model T in 1908. The car was easy to drive and cheap to repair and affordably priced at $825, which lowered every year. It reached as low as $360 in 1916 and the sale reached a figure of 472,000. With Model T, Ford brought automobiles within the reach of middle-class Americans.
Ford contested as a Democrat for the United States Senate from Michigan in 1918. In a close election, he lost to the Republican candidate Truman Newberry.
Ford was chosen among 18 people included in Gallup’s List of Widely Admired People of the 20th Century, from a poll conducted of the American people. In 1946, he was inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame, and in 1996, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America.