Discuss Detroit » Archives - July 2007 » Harry Bennett a$$ beating..... « Previous Next »
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Patrick
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Post Number: 5200
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 5:48 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Here's a picture I found of Henry Ford's thug Harry Bennett. It looks like he just got his ass kicked. I bet this picture has been in some dark room for a few decades. The more I read about this monster the more it bugs me. I wouldn't be surprised if he killed a few people in his lifetime.

http://www.viewimages.com/Sear ch.aspx?mid=2959892&epmid=1&pa rtner=Google
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Detroitrise
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Post Number: 955
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 5:53 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

ECK! He received more than just an "ass kicking." judging from that picture.

It looked like it was snowing outside too.
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Stinger4me
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Post Number: 124
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 6:01 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I heard he had a nice estate up near the town of Lake, Michigan. It is near a Boy Scout Camp.
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Dan
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Post Number: 1463
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 6:05 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

His house on Grosse Ile is quite the thing of legend. It is a pagota right on the river, with boat docks and all. There is a tunnel that goes under a street and connects to the house directly across the street.
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Sstashmoo
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 6:08 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Shows how ruthless the labor unions were at that time. Too bad they weren't successful in keeping them out, we wouldn't be in the mess we're in today. We're all paying for the lay-off rooms, BS medicals and working two hours getting paid for ten nonsense that has went on for decades. Nothing is free.
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Patrick
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 6:32 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I was always under the impression that this guy was an untouchable "deity" of sorts. i can see why Edsel was scared to death of the guy. Good thing Hank the Deuce put his ass in line...eh, or fired him.
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Craig
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 6:36 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Is that Harry Bennet? Dose not really resemble other shots that I've seen.

SS - my read holds that there was plenty of brutality from both sides. I think that it's more instructive of how f-ed we are today that the old adversaries are working together (despite the old battles) for survival.
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Oldredfordette
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 6:41 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

How ruthless the labor unions were? Harry Bennett was a murderer, and should have been locked in a deep cold hole. With that evil old fascist, Henry Ford. Edsel probably would have survived and the company would have been much better off.
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Sstashmoo
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Post Number: 630
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 7:53 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Quote: "How ruthless the labor unions were?"

Sure, there is nothing fair,equitable or civil about any group that will employ violence if necessary to see that their demands for personal gain are met. It's called "extortion". Look it up.

Quote: "Harry Bennett was a murderer,"

And you're basing this claim on?

Quote: "With that evil old fascist, Henry Ford."

Ford provided some of the best working conditions for his employees of the day.

Quote: "Edsel probably would have survived and the company would have been much better off."

So, are you saying Henry Ford or Harry Bennett had something to do with the death of Edsel?
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Mauser765
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Post Number: 2163
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 8:16 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Where the heck does it say this photo is of Bennett ?

"Ford provided some of the best working conditions for his employees of the day."

Even if he had to have his private police machine gun them on a bridge to convince them of this "fact". Then they could kick in their doors to make sure the employee was reading Fords antisemetic newspaper.

Get real dude, Ford was a psychopath.
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Ray1936
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 8:21 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Despite what some may feel about the unions having benefits beyond what they are worth, you MUST keep in mind that the unions only acquire what management agrees to give them. In the collective bargaining process, the unions can only ask; management gives or denies.

Some may respond that's an over-simplification. Nevertheless, it's a fact.
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East_detroit
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Username: East_detroit

Post Number: 1277
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 8:54 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Drive down Miller Rd, observe the bridge to nowhere.

Ask why its there.
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Sstashmoo
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Post Number: 631
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 8:55 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Quote: "Even if he had to have his private police machine gun them on a bridge to convince them of this "fact". Then they could kick in their doors to make sure the employee was reading Fords antisemetic newspaper."

You can't be serious.
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East_detroit
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Post Number: 1279
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 8:57 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Forget the drive down Miller... just crack open a book.
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Xd_brklyn
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 9:46 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

If you put your cursor over the image a rollover description of the photo as Harry Bennett pops up.

I can't find my Robert Lacey book now, but I think it was in there that he mentioned that it was in the 1932 Ford Hunger March that Bennett was hit with a stone/brick and thinking that he had been shot, his men opened fire on the crowd, which led to the tragic deaths of five of its organizers and to the wounding of many participants. This photo of Bennett could be from '32, I don't recall reading that he got injured in the '37 Battle of the Overpass.

Also I have never heard of anyone defending Harry Bennett. After Edsel's death, Henry II packed a gun before going to work everyday just in case he found it necessary to defend himself against Bennett's henchmen. (Source: Lacey's book again)

(Message edited by xD_Brklyn on December 01, 2007)
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Patrick
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 10:15 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Oh yeah, that's def Harry Bennett in the pic. It is him for sure. Roll your mouse over the image and a caption appears.
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Pffft
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Post Number: 1418
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 10:52 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Mr. "You can't be serious" ...ever read up on any Ford or UAW history? You might want to start.

One good book that illuminates the anti-Semitic issue is "Henry Ford and the Jews" by Neil Baldwin. Ford family historians acknowledge all this, as well as the tough Ford moral code laid down to employees, but you seem to be a little behind.
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Dougw
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 10:57 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

quote:

Harry Bennett was a murderer, and should have been locked in a deep cold hole.


quote:

Too bad they weren't successful in keeping them (the unions) out, we wouldn't be in the mess we're in today.


Both of these statements are true.
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Barnesfoto
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 11:06 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Let's see, why would anyone claim Henry was a fascist?
Was it his enthusiastic support for Hitler and the Third Reich (along with Lindbergh and Father Coughlin,
aka the Bill O'Reilly of Detroit Radio)
Was it his reprinting of the the jewish-conspiracy hoax "The Protocols of the Elders of Zion" in the Ford Times?
Was it the medal that Hitler awarded Henry Ford, which is discretely kept in a locked drawer at the Henry Ford Museum?
Obviously, Ford was a flawed genius, and one can argue about the mixed benefits that he brought to Detroit.
But it's absolutely pathetic to see people defending a thug like Bennett, and blaming the demise of the auto industry on the unions...
Did the unions design and market the Pinto, Mustang II and the other shitty products that Ford cranked out in the seventies, leading people to start buying Hondas and Toyotas?
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Patrick
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 11:17 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

You can have any color you like as long as it's black.
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Jams
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Posted on Saturday, December 01, 2007 - 11:21 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Hey, I had a Pinto, and the sister to the Mustang II, a Capri, but I also owned a Fiat 850, a Renault Fuego and a Le Car.

Gee, is there any wonder why I take a bus today?
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Lilpup
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 3:00 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I want someone to come up with any quotes from Ford anywhere to support the contention that he supported Hitler.

As far as the medal goes, Hitler was giving those away to many industrialists before the war. Ford wasn't the first, nor was he the last.

Battle of the Overpass was May 26, 1937 and wasn't a wet day, nor does Bennett appear in any photos from it - /newurl{http://info.detnews.com/history/story/index.cfm?id=119&category=people,Battle of the Overpass}

Something's wrong with that photo anyway. The guy closest to the car seems to have a lower body anatomy problem...or something was cropped

(Message edited by lilpup on December 02, 2007)
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Dan
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 3:20 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Generally speaking the Japanese build reasonably priced, well made, fuel efficient cars. It took the big three how long to figure out this formula?

Don't blame unions for the fact that the leadership of the big three lacked the insight, and capability to learn, or that the fact that mass production is inferior to lean production.

Fact is the Japanese are on top because of consumer demand for a better product.

I believe in Detroit, and I believe in the big three, and I think in 15 years we will be back on top. Unions and all.
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Flyingj
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 3:20 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"Father Coughlin, aka the Bill O'Reilly of Detroit Radio"

Bill O'Reilly? Coughlin's show & influence was nationwide...Rush Limbaugh wishes he had the audience #'s Coughlin had. Coughlin could be credited with getting FDR elected in '32 & gave him big trouble when he felt Roosevelt had, um, "sold out"

I had met a guy outta U of M Birmingham who knew "The Deuce" & had great stories about "The Old Man" I was gonna ask him about Harry Bennett but I didn't get around to it 'til he passed on
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Michmeister
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 3:35 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Lilpup, guess whose factories were pumping out vehicles for the Wehrmacht at least until the USA`s involvement in WWII ? Ford! But, before anyone starts pointing fingers, Opel (GM) was in there too. Keep `em rollin`! I saw a documentary a while ago here on German TV. Must admit, it left me a little embarrassed and disillusioned.
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The_rock
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 5:24 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Call Harry what you want ( I prefer "enforcer"), his book, "We Never Called Him Henry", still available in paperback, makes for fascinating reading.
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Mauser765
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 7:49 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"Quote: "Even if he had to have his private police machine gun them on a bridge to convince them of this "fact". Then they could kick in their doors to make sure the employee was reading Fords antisemetic newspaper."
->You can't be serious."

Ummmmmm. Yeah, hit the library dude - you are seriously short on historical facts, obviously. Those are basic facts I learned in my 11th grade Michigan History class, printed right in the text book. Ever heard the phrase "company store" ? Look it up.

Harry Bennett had a whole mess of escape routes in his primary home. His room had an escape route down a set of stairs that was constructed to make you slip and break a leg - and Bennett would practice scrambling down those stairs in the dark, in the effort to destroy successful pursuit. At the bottom were two passages, one led to an awaiting boat, the other to some hungry critters.

This is how hated the man was.

Stranger than fiction ? Perhaps - but open a damn book if youve never heard this stuff.
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Patrick
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 11:48 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Where on Grosse Ile was/is his house? I heard he also lived near dearborn too.
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Patrick
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 11:50 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

http://www.ypsidixit.com/blog/ archives/2005/08/_a_kind_reade r.html
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Lilpup
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 11:58 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

ah, Michmeister, isn't 20/20 hindsight a wonderful thing?

And aren't so many American industries doing the same now for Bush's invasionary force?

Not to mention how many companies you probably support (albeit unknowingly) that were a part of the 'final solution' (a division of BASF being one of them).

(Message edited by lilpup on December 02, 2007)
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Ferntruth
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 12:23 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"And aren't so many American industries doing the same now for Bush's invasionary force?"

Your comparison isn't valid. If "American industries" were doing the same for the insurgents opposing "Bush's invasionary force" as Ford was for the Germans, then it would hold.
American industries are SUPPOSED to "pump out vehicles" for "Bush's invasionary force" aren't they?
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Mauser765
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 12:26 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Before we go pointing fingers at only automotive Nazi supporters - take a look at Prescott Bushs history of financing a certain infamous WW2 era European regime. (the banking assets were seized by the FBI during the war - oops!)

And to be fair, also take a gander at Joe Kennedys record as Ambassador to the UK.

Our history is quite troubling, especially when you trace those families to current "leadership".
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Ferntruth
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 12:28 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

No argument from me on that Mauser!
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Emu_steve
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 12:32 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Sorry I can't add too much to this thread.

My father was a union man when they had the infamous battle of the overpass on Miller road.

Unfortunately, my father long since passed. His brother was also heavily involved but he passed within the last 10 years.

I believe I heard plenty of what they called Ford's goon squad.

I believe my father was fired for his union activities and got a $ settlement after 'the union got in' at Ford. Remember the story, he used it to buy a new car, a Ford (it damn well not have been anything else but a Ford or else).

In the late 90s I could have gotten a ton of first hand info from my uncle and his wife but they are both deceased.

I never knew who was the bigger activist, my father or my uncle. I believe they were both 'blacklisted'.
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Mikeg
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 12:49 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I agree that something looks odd about that person on the right of the photo, however, it looks exactly the same over on the Getty Images site. The caption information is the same, too.

However, this photo had to have been taken during the riot of March 1932, during which Bennett was cited by Time Magazine as having been injured.
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Rjk
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 12:50 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"Something's wrong with that photo anyway."

Here's another photo from that era that looks like it's been doctored and I've seen a few others. The one guy's foot is pushed through the railroad track and I love the guy standing there looking like he's waiting for a bus as an ass kicking is heading directly at him.

http://people.cohums.ohio-stat e.edu/childs1/387%20Guide%20Fl ivver_files/image005.gif
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Sstashmoo
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 1:46 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"Quote: "Even if he had to have his private police machine gun them on a bridge to convince them of this "fact". Then they could kick in their doors to make sure the employee was reading Fords antisemetic newspaper."
->You can't be serious."

Quote: "Ummmmmm. Yeah, hit the library dude - you are seriously short on historical facts, obviously. Those are basic facts I learned in my 11th grade Michigan History class, printed right in the text book. Ever heard the phrase "company store" ? Look it up."

OK, Henry Ford ordered all his employees to the Miller Rd overpass and gunned them down, those that survived were required to read the Protocols of the elder Zion before returning to work. Sound dumb? Thats essentially what you just wrote.

Quote: "Harry Bennett had a whole mess of escape routes in his primary home. His room had an escape route down a set of stairs that was constructed to make you slip and break a leg - and Bennett would practice scrambling down those stairs in the dark, in the effort to destroy successful pursuit. At the bottom were two passages, one led to an awaiting boat, the other to some hungry critters."

The unions then had ties to organized crime, it's quite logical the man felt endangered to go up against them with Ford. And I'm sure he did.

Quote: "Stranger than fiction ? Perhaps - but open a damn book if youve never heard this stuff."

More than likely, this "stuff" is largely fiction perpetuated over years of coffee breaks by disgruntled employees as urban legend. Even the wiki's claim the battle of the overpass has been embellished in recent years. Show me one instance, where he personally attacked an employee or anyone for that matter. That would've made the papers. He was the head of Ford's security. Go into a bar start causing trouble and see who you'll be dealing with, "Their security", if they have any. Just because someone writes a book or makes a documentary, doesn't mean it's gospel.
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Sstashmoo
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 2:07 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Here's the original article from Time magazine, courtesy CNN/Time:

"Said Henry Ford fortnight ago: "We're going to risk everything we've got to create useful work for just as many people as possible." At that time 70,000 men were working at the Ford Dearborn factory. Last week 1,300 who did not work there, but wanted to, gathered on a Detroit street corner. Quietly they began marching to the River Rouge plant to ask for jobs. At the Dearborn city line their number had doubled, their quietude had yielded to aggressiveness. Fifty Dearborn police tried to turn them back. Out from the mob burst a woman, crying: "Come on, you cowards!" Police went down under a fire of bricks, stones, clubs. Firemen and Detroit police hurried to their aid with tear gas bombs and high pressure hoses. On to the factory gate pressed the mob. There it was met by two volleys of high-aimed pistol fire, forced back. As the crowd reformed, Ford's Service Chief Harry H. Bennett drove into its midst. In an instant his car was toppled over. Someone cried: "Save him!" The police fired point blank into the crowd. Twenty men fell, the rest scattered. Fifty lay injured on the skirmish field, including Bennett and many policemen. Four rioters were dead."

Doesn't sound like the "death squad" that some are trying to portray.
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Lilpup
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 2:41 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"Last week 1,300 who did not work there, but wanted to,"

because they had been laid off from there, and there was no such thing as unemployment benefits then - and it was 1932, the height of the Depression

The Ford Hunger March, as it was called, has been pretty well documented. 1932: A Year of Tragedy and Triumph
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Citylover
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 2:46 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I don't know much but I can clear a few glaring errors. Bennetts house commonly called the castle on Geddes in a2 is not(obviously)

on Grosse isle. It is just east of ann arbor on geddes rd. Bennett was from ann arbor.

The house/castle does contain all the trappings; staggered steps, secret rooms, tunnels, tiger cages gun turrets ,it is all well documented.

There is no doubt Bennett was a thug.I don't know that he was ever convicted of murder.He was ahard scrabble guy, a merchant marine and a boxer and for some reason only known to h.Ford the perfect guy to head up security at ford.

As for Henry ford there is the large fundamental question. Ford created the middle class.He made it possible for the sons and (later in time)daughters of the factory workers to enjoy a lifestyle not available to them before the advent of the assembly line. Ford made it possible for those same sons and daughters to attend college and become teachers, engineers, physicians....etc...I am sure some of you may even have direct knowledge in that area.

So the conflict is do we hate ford because he was anti-semetic? Do we scorn ford because he helped create the idea of a national highway? Or do we accept as someone said above that he was flawed? I prefer the latter.It seems too simple that we simply label him anti this or that without acknowledging his gigantic contributions to humanity.That may sound falsely profound but by creating the middle class all kinds of benefits were available.....indoor plumbing, better sanitary conditions, people could afford doctor visits , could buy better food.....

The unions were necessary. GM had already recognized the unions.Ford would not..........until his wife told him she would sell her interest in the company unless he did.Only then did he recognize the union.
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Gnome
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 2:47 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Back in 1936/37 during the Sit Down strike, Governor Frank Murphy ordered 4,000 National Guardsmen to enforce order.

Murphy worried that the Guard wouldn't do their jobs against their brothers and fathers, so Murphy ordered Detroit and Pontiac guardsmen to Flint and Flint guardsmen to Detroit.

My dad was 16 (lied about his age) and was ordered to Flint. He manned a 50 Caliber machine gun along with his best friend and despite the claim that the Guardsmen didn't have live ammo; I can swear that my dad certainly had live rounds in his machine gun. My dad and his pal actually had their homework assignments brought to them by one of their teachers. True story.

Somewhere, I have a pic of my dad with his machine gun, I'll see if I can dig it out.

But really, when you think about it, the history of Labor/Management rested on the very nervous thumbs of a couple of 16 year olds.

http://info.detnews.com/histor y/story/index.cfm?id=115&categ ory=business
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Mauser765
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 3:14 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Ford was a giant of history, nobody will deny his positive impact, or even his impact in general. It is always important, however, not to gloss over the flawed individuals that sometimes shape history. We get plenty of that crap on Columbus day.

Many anti-labor individuals will attempt to dismiss negative parts of Labor history, especially in the anti-labor atmosphere we are experiencing now. This is shameful, but it happens.

Anybody who thinks Carnegie, Morgan, Ford and all the mine owners back then were simply good people just trying to make an honest living are insane.
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Oldredfordette
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 3:17 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Sstash, Time magazine back in that day was having union problems of their own, Henry Luce was going to be sympathetic of the old man and his hired killers, no matter the truth.

The facts about Harry Bennett are well known, there are many books written about him and those days.

Right wing douchebag David Horowitz even managed to get it right. Here's a link to his book and several others.
http://www.amazon.com/Fords-Am erican-Epic-Peter-Collier/dp/5 557088016

If Bennett was so great, why was the Deuce's first act to get rid of the vicious old pig?

History is clear on the issue.
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Sstashmoo
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Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 4:11 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Quote: "It is always important, however, not to gloss over the flawed individuals that sometimes shape history."

It's equally important to not villify those that have been instrumental in providing one of the best qualities of life in the civilized world. Not everyone that heads up a large industry is an evil tyrant. And no one can fault a man for trying to protect his interests.

Quote: "If Bennett was so great, why was the Deuce's first act to get rid of the vicious old pig?"

Jealousy? I never said he was great. I think he caught Henry at a time in his life where honesty outweighed aptitude. This was likely his reason for his involvement with Harry. It was the sick puppy syndrome that wound up biting him the ass. Just a theory.
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Dan
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Post Number: 1466
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 6:11 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

I am almost sure the pagota house on West River Rd. on Grosse Ile was built either by or for Bennett.

It may not have been his primary residence, and/or there is always the possibility that the man lived in more than one house in his life, but I will find out for sure if this is indeed a "glaring error".

Just a quick search on the internet reveals, "He [Bennett] had various residences in Michigan, including Bennett's Lodge near Farwell, Michigan" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H arry_Bennett.

(Message edited by dan on December 03, 2007)
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Dan
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Username: Dan

Post Number: 1467
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 6:15 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Huh.

Look what I found.

"During the 1920's Henry Ford, founder and president of the Ford Motor Company, bought a sizeable tract of land between West River Road and the Thorofare Canal. Although he never built a home, he did sell pieces of his property to Ford employees. Ford's controversial Personnel Director, Harry Bennett, built the famous "Pagoda House" on West River in 1939," (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/G rosse_Ile_Township,_Michigan).

Heres another source:
"One unique structure on the water, known as the "Pagoda House," was built in 1939 by Ford's personnel director, Harry Bennett," (http://www.epa.gov/med/grossei le_site/grosse.html).


Not so glaring is it?
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Mikeg
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Username: Mikeg

Post Number: 1296
Registered: 12-2005
Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 6:23 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Dan,
according to the person who wrote the very last comment on the link provided by Patrick (above):

quote:

"Harry Bennett's island home "pagoda" was located on Grosse Isle. Bennett had several homes and cottages scattered through Michigan."

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Jams
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Username: Jams

Post Number: 7130
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 6:54 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Probably silly and trivial, but Bennett issued an edict that none of his underlings could own property or live on Grosse Ile.

It was related to us by an old real estate agent in Wyandotte, when my mother was interested in purchasing the former home of one of Bennett's lieutenants in Wyandotte for a B&B.
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Hpgrmln
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Username: Hpgrmln

Post Number: 304
Registered: 06-2007
Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 7:34 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

The pagoda house has a similar-looking garage across the street, leading me to believe that the property is located on BOTH sides of W. River. Very interesting-looking house, but appears to be falling into disrepair. Probably because no one wants to preserve the guys legacy.
Anyone know who owns it now?
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Ddmoore54
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Username: Ddmoore54

Post Number: 337
Registered: 07-2004
Posted on Sunday, December 02, 2007 - 7:50 pm:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Speaking of Bennett's Lodge... The property that was once his up north retreat is now a Boy Scout reservation for the Clinton Valley Council (Oakland County area). The lodge remains on the property in much the same form as when it was built. I've seen the following with my own eyes. Although it looks harmless from the outside, it's more of a fortress than a lodge. Despite having the appearance of being made from logs, the entire outside is very thick concrete, compete with rooftop turrets. The original windows were all bullet proof and it was surrounded by a moat.

Inside there was a tunnel in the main fireplace that connected to the garage quite far from the lodge. There were also secret passages as mentioned above with staggered stairs, each being a different size than the next.

Outside there is a small lagoon next to the house called Devil's Hole that they claim is so deep they haven't found the bottom and bodies could be dumped there, but this seems like urban legend to me.

Also, there is a grass airfield on the far side of the lake.

http://www.cvc-bsa.org/camping /images/llsrWoodcreek.gif
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Barnesfoto
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Username: Barnesfoto

Post Number: 4525
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 12:20 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

"As far as the medal goes, Hitler was giving those away to many industrialists before the war. Ford wasn't the first, nor was he the last".

The Order of the German Eagle was not given to many industrialists. The President of IBM got one, as did a GM Exec. The rest went to nice people like Francisco Franco.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/O rder_of_the_German_Eagle

Henry Ford and Hitler:
http://reformed-theology.org/h tml/books/wall_street/chapter_ 06.htm

The International Jew by Henry Ford:

http://www.jrbooksonline.com/I ntl_Jew_full_version/ijtoc_.ht m


Obviously, the man was complicated. He also had financial dealings with the USSR, and claimed that wars were fought mainly to make certain people richer...When Mexican Artist Diego Rivera came to Detroit to paint the murals at the DIA, He spent many days in the Henry Ford Museum, which was seen by many at the time as a lunatic's junk collection.
Ford crept into the museum and played tricks on Rivera as he inspected some of the exhibits. Ford and Rivera, a lifelong communist, became great friends.

Employment at the Ford Motor Company was the job for life of many Detroiters, including some of my own family members. The man gets credit for that, but not a free pass to have his many flaws overlooked.
Bennett was nothing more than a thug with a very regular and very lucrative job.
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Sstashmoo
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Username: Sstashmoo

Post Number: 637
Registered: 02-2007
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 1:11 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

What people fail to remember or don't realize, the US had much different attitudes and political views 70 years ago.
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Barnesfoto
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Username: Barnesfoto

Post Number: 4528
Registered: 10-2003
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 2:05 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Not Everybody had different attitudes.
Before the US entered the war, a British Immigrant named Charles Chaplin, made the hilarious farce "The Great Dictator".

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v =C4nV7qTJlOI&feature=related

Unfortunately, just over a decade later, Charles Chaplin was deported by Conservocrite Fear Pimp Joseph Mc Carthy for "Unamerican Activities".
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Lefty2
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Username: Lefty2

Post Number: 711
Registered: 07-2007
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 2:29 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

^^ True, most people don't know history and try to apply today with all other times.

That's not Bennett, he wouldn't have been directly fighting with the organizers.
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Gnome
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Username: Gnome

Post Number: 418
Registered: 08-2007
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 9:47 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

Barenesfoto-
I agree Tailgunner Joe McCarthy was a drunken sod, a morally bereft troglodyte and in general a total a-hole; but, sorry ... he didn't deport Chaplin.

Chaplin was out of the country and was denied entry to the US in 1952 - when the US was at war - based on his support of Uncle Joe Stalin. Mr. Chaplin went into self-imposed exile in Switzerland and didn't even try to return to the US until the Nixon era.

Was it fair to deny him re-entry into the US, no; but Charlie was a prickly little guy and his pique was rather self-induced and to color him as a poor blacklisted pawn isn't quite accurate.

http://www.ancestry.com/learn/ contentcenters/contentcenter.a spx?page=immigration&sp=chapli n
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Leob
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Username: Leob

Post Number: 102
Registered: 10-2005
Posted on Monday, December 03, 2007 - 10:18 am:   Edit PostDelete Post   Move Post (Moderator/Admin Only)

When Henry the first died in 1947 the writing was on the wall for Bennett. Its been said that you could smell smoke in the basement of the old world HQ as Bennett burned his papers (pre-shredder days).

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