Research Catalog

The vagabonds : the story of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison's ten-year road trip

Title
The vagabonds : the story of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison's ten-year road trip / Jeff Guinn.
Author
Guinn, Jeff
Publication
  • New York, NY : Simon & Schuster, 2019.
  • ©2019

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Available - Can be used on site. Please visit New York Public Library - Schwarzman Building to submit a request in person.

TextUse in library JFE 20-1006Schwarzman Building - Main Reading Room 315

Details

Description
306 pages, 16 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations; 23 cm
Summary
  • "A brilliant portrait of two American giants, Thomas Edison and Henry Ford, and America entering the automobile age, told through the fascinating but little-known narrative of the summer road trips taken by Edison and Ford"--
  • The fascinating story of two American giants--Henry Ford and Thomas Edison--whose annual summer sojourns introduced the road trip to our culture and made the automobile an essential part of modern life, even as their own relationship altered dramatically. In 1914 Henry Ford and naturalist John Burroughs visited Thomas Edison in Florida and toured the Everglades. The following year Ford, Edison, and tire maker Harvey Firestone joined together on a summer camping trip and decided to call themselves the Vagabonds. They would continue their summer road trips until 1925, when they announced that their fame made it too difficult for them to carry on. Although the Vagabonds traveled with an entourage of chefs, butlers, and others, this elite fraternity also had a serious purpose: to examine the conditions of America's roadways and improve the practicality of automobile travel. Cars were unreliable and the roads were even worse. But newspaper coverage of these trips was extensive, and as cars and roads improved, the summer trip by automobile soon became a desired element of American life. In The Vagabonds Jeff Guinn shares the story of this pivotal moment in American history. But he also examines the important relationship between the older Edison and the younger Ford, who once worked for the famous inventor. The road trips made the automobile ubiquitous and magnified Ford's reputation, even as Edison's diminished. The automobile had come of age and it would transform the American landscape, the American economy, and the American way of life. Guinn brings to life this seminal moment when a new industry created a watershed cultural shift and a famous businessman became a prominent political figure. The Vagabonds is a wonderful story of two American giants and the transformation of the country.
  • In 1914 Henry Ford and naturalist John Burroughs visited Thomas Edison in Florida and toured the Everglades. The following year Ford, Edison, and tire maker Harvey Firestone joined together on a summer camping trip and decided to call themselves the Vagabonds. They continues the summer road trips until 1925, when they announced that their fame made it too difficult for them to carry on. Although the Vagabonds traveled with an entourage of chefs, butlers, and others, they also had a serious purpose: to examine the conditions of America's roadways and improve the practicality of automobile travel. Guinn shares the story of these pivotal moments in American history, and shows how the trips made the automobile ubiquitous and magnified Ford's reputation, even as Edison's diminished. -- adapted from jacket
Subject
  • Ford, Henry, 1863-1947 > Travel > United States
  • Edison, Thomas A. 1847-1931 > Travel > United States
  • Edison, Thomas A. 1847-1931
  • Ford, Henry, 1863-1947
  • 1900-1999
  • Automobile engineers > United States > Biography
  • Businessmen > United States > Biography
  • Inventors > United States > Biography
  • Automobile travel > United States > History > 20th century
  • Vacations > United States > History > 20th century
  • Automobile engineers
  • Automobile travel
  • Businessmen
  • Inventors
  • Travel
  • Vacations
  • United States > Description and travel
  • United States
Genre/Form
  • Biographies.
  • History.
Bibliography (note)
  • Includes bibliographical references (pages 277-288) and index.
Contents
Prologue: Paris, Michigan : mid-August 1923 -- 1914 -- 1915 -- 1916 -- 1918 -- 1919 -- 1920 -- 1921 -- Interim: November 1921-June 1923 -- 1923 -- 1924 -- Jep Bisbee is famous.
Call Number
JFE 20-1006
ISBN
  • 9781501159305
  • 1501159305
LCCN
  • 2018053698
  • 40029275574
OCLC
1056741043
Author
Guinn, Jeff, author.
Title
The vagabonds : the story of Henry Ford and Thomas Edison's ten-year road trip / Jeff Guinn.
Publisher
New York, NY : Simon & Schuster, 2019.
Copyright Date
©2019
Edition
First Simon & Schuster hardcover edition.
Type of Content
text
Type of Medium
unmediated
Type of Carrier
volume
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 277-288) and index.
Chronological Term
1900-1999
Other Standard Identifier
40029275574
Research Call Number
JFE 20-1006
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