Edsel Ford's Excellent Adventure
14 07 15 - 22:46
A century ago, 21-year-old Edsel Ford & six chums set out on a cross-country road trip, as a last blast before the responsibilities of adulthood took them prisoner. The 1915 trip wasn't about the destination as it was about the journey. The intrepid band of young goofballs documented their adventure on film & in a logbook that was seemingly lost & forgotten for decades
These sons of Detroit industry, are a virtual "who's who" of Detroit history:
Edsel Ford, son of Henry Fod, founder of Ford Motor Company.
Horace Caulkins Jr., whose father cofounded Pewabic Pottery after inventing their unique process for glazing ceramics.
Brothers Herbert V. and Frank P. Book, of the family whose name is on the Book Cadillac Hotel and Book Tower in Detroit today
William M. Russel, who died as an WWI aviator in France in 1918, and whose father, businessman Henry Russel, published a book of his letters home, "A Happy Warrior"
Robert T. Gray, probably related to John S. Gray, banker, candy maker and first president of Ford Motor Co.
Thomas C. Whitehead, son of steel magnate and businessman James T. Whitehead.
In addition to Edsel's 1915 Model T, the group piloted a new Cadillac and a new Stutz, a pair of top luxury models that were also outfitted as cross-country pack mules.
Later this week, drivers from the Historic Vehicle Association will leave Edsel's ancestral Ford estate in Dearborn, Michigan in a near identical 1915 Ford Model T Touring Car to recreate their forgotten journey. HVA president Mark Gessler will lead the journey. Unlike the original, this year's trip won't be plagued with brutal roads, axle-deep mud, a lack of services, sleeping in tents, or the 3 flats a day happening.
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