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Made in St. Paul

Stories from the Ford plant

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The Twin Cities Assembly Plant, pictured here around 2006, occupied 122 acres adjacent the Mississippi River in Saint Paul. The original plant site consisted of 200 acres, some of which was eventually sold to private developers for the shopping center and apartment buildings along the eastern edge of the property. However, Ford retained the mineral rights under the parcels that had been sold. Courtesy Ford Motor Company

This photo from the late 1920s shows a group of employees at the Ford plant. Courtesy Brian McMahon

Tunnels were constructed approximately 100 feet below the surface to facilitate the mining of silica sand for the glass plant. Other tunnels were built for the steam pipes that connected the steam plant to the assembly plant, and for the electrical cables connecting the hydroelectric plant to the main plant. Traffic tunnels enabled finished vehicles to be transported out to the wharf. Courtesy Brian McMahon

The Twin Cities Assembly Plant was designed by the noted industrial architect Albert Kahn, who had designed dozens of other facilities for Henry Ford and other clients. He developed a new style of construction in which the extensive use of reinforced concrete allowed large, unobstructed interior spaces, perfectly suited to the new assembly line process. Courtesy The Henry Ford.

This view shows the undeveloped land on the east side of the Mississippi River prior to construction of Lock & Dam No. 1 and the Ford assembly plant. Courtesy Gregory Page

Prior to construction of the Twin Cities Assembly Plant, the area known today as Highland Park consisted almost entirely of fields and a few scattered farmhouses. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

Autoworkers in Detroit and around the country mobilized in the 1930s to achieve collective bargaining rights. Chrysler and General Motors accepted the newly-formed United Autoworkers into their plants in 1937, but Henry Ford refused to acknowledge the UAW. It would be another four years before Ford, encouraged by his wife Clara, would accept the UAW. Courtesy Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University

Hundreds of women were hired to assemble and finish parts for the Pratt & Whitney R-2800 18-cylinder air-cooled aircraft engine during World War II. Most of them had to relinquish their positions when servicemen returned to their old jobs at the plant after the war ended. Courtesy Brian McMahon

The Intercity Bridge, better known as the Ford Bridge, was completed in 1927, connecting the growing Longfellow neighborhood of Minneapolis to the area around the new Ford plant. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

The Intercity Bridge, seen under construction in this 1926 photo, was one of the few bridges spanning the Mississippi that connected Minneapolis and Saint Paul. The Twin Cities Assembly Plant can be seen in the background. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

This postcard from the mid-1920s shows how the assembly plant and hydroelectric plant were integrated into the scenic setting on the banks of the Mississippi River. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

This 1955 photo shows the final assembly line located along the west side of the plant. While the generous windows and skylights brought in plenty of natural light, they also made the plant very hot during the summer months. These walls were demolished in the mid-1960s to accommodate a plant expansion project. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

This 1916 photo, taken from the west side of the river, shows Lock & Dam No. 1 under construction. At the upper right are the original foundations built by the Army Corps of Engineers for a future hydroelectric plant. Those foundations would later be demolished to make way for Henry Ford’s larger turbine generators. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

This aerial photo, taken around 1928, shows the different pace at which the two cities were developing along the river. The Minnehaha neighborhood (foreground) showed substantial activity, while the area to the east of the new Ford plant remained largely vacant. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

Leaders of the United Auto Workers Local 879 broke ground on the new UAW Union Hall on Ford Parkway in 1953. The building was later renamed in honor of Ray Busch, one of the early presidents of UAW Local 879. The site is currently occupied by Erik’s Bike Shop. Courtesy Brian McMahon

John Banks was one of the few African Americans employed at the Twin Cities Assembly Plant during the mid-twentieth century. During his three decades on the assembly line, he also became well-known as a photographer and organized the Photography Club and the Fishing Club at the plant. In an era when blacks were not readily accepted into most workplaces, he wanted to show his white co-workers that he could do the same things they did. Courtesy Pat and Toni Conley

This picture shows all of the structures that were key to Ford’s success in Saint Paul: the assembly plant, hydroelectric and steam plants, wharf, and the Intercity (Ford) Bridge. The surrounding property was largely undeveloped.

More than 6,000 M-8 armored tanks were assembled by workers at the Twin Cities Assembly Plant during World War II. The six-wheeled vehicle became known as “The Greyhound” for its speed and maneuverability. It was used primarily for reconnaissance missions in Europe. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

The northwest corner of the building housed a beautiful showroom where the latest models could be displayed. Albert Kahn’s classical design featured carved stone details, ornate light fixtures and expansive windows. The elegance of the façade gave no clues as to what was happening inside the busy assembly plant. Courtesy Brian McMahon

Construction of the Twin Cities Assembly Plant was fast-tracked through the winter of 1924-25. Pouring the concrete foundations in winter required workers to heat water for the concrete mix to 180 degrees and deploy portable heaters to facilitate the drying process. Courtesy Brian McMahon

Children of plant employees were welcomed for tours and family activities at the Twin Cities Assembly Plant. Courtesy Brian McMahon

The interior of the hydroelectric plant has remained virtually unchanged since its construction, as seen in these photographs from 1925 and 2017. The four original Westinghouse generating units are still in use today. Courtesy Brian McMahon (1925) and Peter Myers (2017)

The original foundations for the hydroelectric plant, built by the Army Corps of Engineers in 1917, were too small to accommodate the larger generators that Henry Ford wanted to install, so most of the original concrete structure had to be demolished and replaced with larger foundations. Courtesy Brian McMahon

Construction of the hydroelectric plant was well underway in this 1923 photo. The plant began generating electricity in 1924. Courtesy Brian McMahon

One of the primary features of the Highland Park site was its proximity to the river, which could be harnessed both for hydroelectric power and for navigation. Henry Ford built a wharf along the riverfront to allow the shipment of finished vehicles, but in reality the vast majority of cars were shipped out by rail. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

The first Model T rolled off the assembly line on May 4, 1925. The plant’s opening generated tremendous excitement within the business community, whose leaders expected it to generate a big boost for the local economy. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

Workers used air guns to blast the silica sand out of the many tunnels that had been excavated 100 feet beneath the Ford plant. The sand was loaded into small electric carts and carried by conveyer up to the furnaces where it would be made into glass. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

The workforce at the Twin Cities Assembly Plant was overwhelmingly white and male until the late 1970s, as seen in this photo from the 1950s. Courtesy Pat and Toni Conley

The Highland Pool was one of several notable facilities established in Highland Park by the end of the Great Depression, before residential development had hit its stride. Others included the Edyth Bush Little Theater and the Highland Theatre. Courtesy Minnesota Historical Society

This aerial photo from 1940 shows the Twin Cities Assembly Plant. Above it (to the east) are the Highland Village Apartments, one of the first developments to be completed after the plant opened. The diagonal road is St. Paul Avenue. The rail spur to the plant is also visible. Courtesy Borchert Map Library, University of Minnesota

Workers gathered for group photos during the final days of the Twin Cities Assembly Plant’s operation in December, 2011. Courtesy Artem Vestsorov

“Made in St. Paul: Stories from the Ford plant” is a TPT partnerships co-production with Highland District Council. Produced by Myers Communications Group.

Sponsored by the following: The John and Ruth Huss Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation, The Katherine B. Andersen Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation, Brookfield Renewable, The Hognander Family Foundation of The Minneapolis Foundation, Elizabeth B. Myers, The Allegro Fund of The Saint Paul Foundation, UAW-Region 4, Ackerberg Group, Pearle Vision Highland, and UAW Local 879 Retirees

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