In the early 20th century as Ford Motor Co. in Dearborn was expanding its network of branch offices across the country, it started publishing Ford Times to communicate with employees at its far-reaching outposts.
Online visitors to the Ford Heritage Vault can revisit those early days of Henry Ford’s company by reading historic issues of Ford Times.
Within two years of its 1908 founding, the magazine evolved into a consumer publication focusing on lifestyle and travel, enjoying a successful run until its final issue in 1993.
“To celebrate the magazine’s cultural impact, we are now making all issues of the Ford Times from 1964-1981 publicly available through the Ford Heritage Vault, with more to come in the future,” says Shelby Long, audiovisual archivist at Ford.
Because the earliest issues specifically catered to Ford’s branch operations in the U.S., they were filled with articles about Model T offerings, service instructions, parts availability, and advice on marketing and selling the Tin Lizzie, Long says. In 1910, the publication broadened its appeal to include a more general consumer audience by incorporating articles about lifestyle and travel.
The magazine was put on pause in 1917 due to World War I constraints on using paper and other company resources but made a comeback in 1943 to support Ford’s wartime employees working on the home front, featuring articles on patriotic activities like minimizing waste, gardening, and otherwise being a good citizen and employee.
In 1946, the magazine pivoted once more, this time reemerging as a consumer-facing publication that resonated with the baby-boom generation’s newfound enthusiasm for family road trips on the North American highway system with articles featuring exciting destinations and reviews of the best roadside restaurants along the way.
Beginning in 1950, curated selections of recipes from Ford Times’ “Famous Recipes of Famous Taverns” column were published in stand-alone cookbooks, which proved to be just as popular as Ford Times itself, according to Long. A total of nine cookbooks, with more than 1 million copies sold, were printed through 1979. The success of Ford Times gave rise to related publications, including Continental Magazine, Lincoln Mercury Times, and Ford Truck Times, which were printed for decades.
Ford Times ventured in international markets over the years, including the U.K. and Canada, printing editions featuring products and content tailored to local audiences.
By the 1970s Ford Times had firmly established itself in American culture. Circulation figures would peak at about 2.1 million, with an estimated readership of around 8 million by the mid-1970s.
Whether consumers were gifted their subscription when they purchased a new Ford product, or they subscribed on their own, generations of Ford owners would come to love the stories, pictures, recipes, and adventures featured in the pages of the Ford Times, Long says.
To read the available issues of Ford Times, visit here. To check out all that is available in the Ford Heritage Vault, visit here.
