As soon as there were automobiles, Eatonville welcomed them. Here’s a shot of the Universal Motor Company that sold Fords. You can barely see the cars inside, but you can easily see the top-of-the-line tires of the day.
I believe this store was run by Harold Pravitz.
Here are a few interesting Ford facts:
1908 – The first 1909 Model T was built at Ford’s Piquette Ave. Plant
1909 – The Model T came in first place in the New York to Seattle race, 4100 miles in 22 days and 55 minutes averaging 7.75 mph.
1910 – Model T production moved to Ford’s Highland Park Assembly Plant, also known as the ‘Crystal Palace’ because of the vast expanse of windows.
1913 – Ford implements the moving assembly line at its Highland Park Assembly Plant, reducing chassis build time from 14 hours per car to just 1.5 hours
1914 – Henry Ford is alleged to have proclaimed, “You can have and color you want, as long as it’s black.” From 1914 to 1925 the Model T was only available in black.
1917 – The 2 millionth Model T Ford rolled off the line on June 14th.
1919 – Ford introduced an electric starter for the Model T which meant owners no longer had to crank the engine to start it.
1921 – The 5 millionth Model T Ford rolled off the line on May 28th.
1924 – The 10 millionth Model T Ford rolled off the line on June 4th. Famed ford racing driver Frank Kulick drove it from New York to San Francisco on the Lincoln Highway, the only coast-to-coast highway at the time. (Per www.modelt.ca)
Photo courtesy of then Christensen family.
Click on image to enlarge.
My best guess for the location of this building is what was Groe St now Center St E next to the real estate office The Eatonville Dispatch was the last occupant.
Really. I should have recognized it. Thanks!
The cars in the picture are either 1915 or 1916 Ford Model T.