Refer to Question ID:107843 being researched by justaskscott-ga.

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Clarification of Question by harv12-ga on 11 Dec 2002 16:30 PST

Verifictiom of Heny Ford Signature on Harvey E. Schluchter's watch.

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Request for Question Clarification by justaskscott-ga on 11 Dec 2002 17:03 PST

Just to be clear (so that I don't claim your $40 without having a
right to it):  As an answer, I should post information about the
source that has records from the Ford Motor Company at the time that
your grandfather received the watch and letter.  Is that correct?

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Clarification of Question by harv12-ga on 12 Dec 2002 06:21 PST

Yes that would be great.

Hello harv12,

As you may know already, the web site of the Ford Motor Company does
not provide any helpful clues about the history relating to your
grandfather's watch or the accompanying letter.  Searching for
"history" will lead you to some basic information about the company's
history, posted to celebrate its upcoming 100th anniversary. 
Searching for "Henry Ford" leads to pieces of memorabilia and
biographical materials which you can purchase.  Searching for the name
"Schluchter" yields no results.  And browsing the site for other
useful information leads only to the telephone number -- which you
already called -- and address for the company.

Fortunately, that is not the end of the story.  There is also a
museum, called the Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village (
http://www.hfmgv.org/ ), in Dearborn, Michigan.  Among other things,
the museum houses the "Library and Archives collections" -- also known
as the "Research Center collections" -- at the Benson Ford Research
Center.  As the museum’s web site notes:

"The largest portion of the Library and Archives collections is the
vast pre-1955 archive of the Ford Motor Company, an archive that will
grow in the near future to include later decades of the company's
history."

"Library and Archives"
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village
http://www.hfmgv.org/collections/Collections/library.asp

Another page explains the extent of this collection:

"The Benson Ford Research Center contains the bulk of the records
created by the Ford Motor Company between 1903 and 1955, over 10,000
cubic feet.  This collection contains legal, financial, operational
and production records documenting the development of the company and
its diverse product lines both nationally and internationally.  In
addition, there are over 470,000 photographs dating from 1890 to 1955
as well as a wide variety of company publications, product literature
and service manuals, product parts drawings, and over 350 oral
histories of the individuals involved in the organization and growth
of this seminal American company.  Also included here are materials
relating to the personal lives of Henry, Clara and Edsel Ford.

"Ford Historical Archives"
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village
http://www.hfmgv.org/collections/Collections/library/ford.asp

If you are in or near Dearborn, or if you know someone that is, you
can do research in the public Reading Room of the Research Center. 
The Research Center requests that researchers who plan to use "primary
materials" -- and the letter to your grandfather would probably be in
that category -- "make an appointment before visiting".

"Benson Ford Research Center: General Information"
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village
http://www.hfmgv.org/research/default.asp

Another page explains how you can use the Reading Room:

"The Reading Room is open without charge to all researchers regardless
of academic or professional affiliation.  Reference staff are
available to assist patrons who wish to conduct their own research. 
Through the manual and computerized access tools available in the
Reading Room, patrons can conduct research in the museum's artifact as
well as archives, book, photographic, and special collections.

The Reference staff can provide photocopies of material from the
archives, book, photographic, and special collections, though we must
reserve the right to deny photocopies of extremely fragile materials
or in instances where fulfillment of the order would involve or
directly lead to violation of the copyright law. ...."

"Benson Ford Research Center: General Information" [under heading
"Public Reading Room"]
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village
http://www.hfmgv.org/research/services.asp

Unfortunately, you cannot research the Ford Historical Archives on the
Internet.  "Currently, Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village's
on-line catalog contains only its library collection - no archival,
manuscript, special collection, photograph, or three-dimensional
artifact records are included in the catalog at this time."

"Benson Ford Research Center: Online Library Catalog"
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village
http://www.hfmgv.org/research/catalog.asp

So, if you (or people you know) are not in or near Dearborn, the only
way you can find out if the letter is in the Ford Historical Archives
is by submitting a research service request.  Rather than copy all of
the descriptions of how to submit the request, what the request should
contain, what the charges might be, the conditions for obtaining
photocopies, and so on, I will provide the primary page on which this
information is located, and you can click the links as appropriate.

"Benson Ford Research Center: General Information" [under headings
"Reference Service by Mail, Fax or Email" and "Submitting a Research
Service Request"]
Henry Ford Museum & Greenfield Village
http://www.hfmgv.org/research/services.asp

As I noted in the update for your original question, my e-mail to the
Research Center asks whether it would have this letter if it still
exists, and if not, who would.  The automatic reply from the Research
Center says, "The Benson Ford Research Center has received your e-mail
request for information.  E-mails are answered  in the same order in
which they are received, and because of the large volume of requests
we receive it will be approximately three weeks before we can send
more than this automatic response."  I will let you know if and when I
receive a further reply.

I am embarrassed to say, I missed another possible source -- though
it's only a small possibility -- the first time around.  Even though
its web site does not say so, and even though you were told otherwise
in your phone call, there are "Ford Motor Company Archives" at Ford
itself.  (These are presumably the archives that the Research Center
plans to add to its collection in the near future.)  A page about the
Archives states that "bulk of the early Ford historical records,
1903-1950", are at the Research Center.  Still, if the Research Center
does not have the information, there is a chance that Ford's own
archives do.

"Ford Motor Company"
Society of American Archivists - Wayne State University - Student
Chapter
http://www.lisp.wayne.edu/saa/ford.htm

I hope that this information is helpful, and that you find what you're
looking for.

- justaskscott-ga


Search terms used on Google:

"henry ford" library
"henry ford" archive
"henry ford" archives
"ford motor" library
"ford motor" archive
"ford motor" archives

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Request for Answer Clarification by harv12-ga on 13 Dec 2002 05:05 PST

I tried Greenfield village several years ago simply trying to obtain
information about my grandfather.  After some time I was told his
records had been transfered to the Ford Motor Company.  I am having a
very hard time why it is so hard to obtain information about a
relative and a former officer of the Ford Motor Company!!

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 13 Dec 2002 09:41 PST

If you tried Greenfield Village several years ago, it might be worth
trying them again -- perhaps the records are back in their collection
by now.

Or, if the records really were transferred back to the Ford Motor
Company, then you should try the second option -- contacting the Ford
Motor Company Archives, whose information I provided at the end of the
answer.

It seems that, if the records exist at all, they should be in one
place or the other.  Perhaps the whole process is like getting
customer service at a large bureaucracy.  While it should be
straightforward, sometimes you have to ask for a supervisor, or call
at a different time of day -- in short, talk to a different person --
in order to get results.

It might be especially helpful if you or someone you know can call up
and then go to Dearborn and actually see the archives, and talk to the
archivists, in person.  Perhaps that will make the difference.

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Request for Answer Clarification by harv12-ga on 13 Dec 2002 09:59 PST

If not with Ford is there anywhere (Florida first)in the U.S. that I
could the signature in the watch authenticated as Henry Fords?

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 13 Dec 2002 11:33 PST

I think that this is a different question from the one I was able to
answer.  (This is why I posted the request for question clarification
on Dec. 11.  I wanted to make sure that I was giving the answer you
wanted.)

I have provided an answer as to where the records relating to the
watch might be located.  You might want to post the question of who
might be able to authenticate the signature as a separate question.

To help you out in the meantime, I've done a little bonus research. 
Here are four signatures that are purportedly by Henry Ford.  Perhaps
the sellers of the first two items (the first one is a famous
Manhattan bookstore) will be able to help you with authentication.

"Ford, Henry"
Argosy Book Store
http://www.argosybooks.com/-autographs/-EFs/Ford_H.html 

"Miscellaneous21 - Henry Ford"
G. Ross Irving Autographs
http://pages.tias.com/746/PictPage/535784.html

"Letter. Protocol Plot Retraction and Apology. Letter from Henry Ford
to Sigmund Livingston, January 7, 1942"
California State University Northridge - University Library
http://library.csun.edu/spcoll/exhibitions/Backyard/protford.htm

"Henry Ford Nice Cut Signature", auctioned by universityarchives02
from Nov. 22-29, 2002
eBay
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=739437082

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Request for Answer Clarification by harv12-ga on 16 Dec 2002 15:08 PST

You have been a real trooper, and I appreciate it. Are you still
waiting for that response over E-mail from Ford.  Please let me know,
and then I
will give a well earned great rating for the work you have done.  I am
still concerned why it so hard to find any information about my
grandfather Harvey E. Schluchter.

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 16 Dec 2002 16:51 PST

Thank you for the words of praise.  I am still waiting for that
response from the Research Center, and will let you know as soon as I
hear anything.  I suppose it's hard to find about your grandfather on
the Internet because he was at Ford many years ago -- well before the
Internet, certainly -- and perhaps because relatively few people post
information about Ford history from that time beyond the history of
the Ford family.

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Request for Answer Clarification by harv12-ga on 16 Dec 2002 19:49 PST

One of the problems I am having is this is the era when some of the
inner feelings or attitudes of Henry Ford became known and shed bad
feelings about him and the Ford Motor Company.  I know, from relatives
who have since passed away,that my grandfather and Henry were good
friends. I just hope the problems that Henry got into were not shared
by my grandfather and this is why we can't find his records.

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 16 Dec 2002 20:16 PST

Perhaps that's another reason to go to the Research Center in person;
I assume that you can learn about your grandfather and the company
records in more detail there.

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Request for Answer Clarification by harv12-ga on 22 Dec 2002 19:32 PST

Have you received any information from Ford. I thought you were given
a response window of three weeks.

Thanks again for all the work you have put in.

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 22 Dec 2002 19:45 PST

The automatic e-mail to me on November 25 said: "E-mails are answered
in the same order in which they are received, and because of the large
volume of requests we receive it will be approximately three weeks
before we can send more than this automatic response."  I had assumed
that I would hear from them by now.  But I suppose that they have
received more e-mails than usual, or that the holidays -- first
Thanksgiving, and now Christmas -- have caused a delay.  (Or perhaps
they really don't answer after three weeks, but some longer period of
time.)

This could be yet another reason for you to find someone in the area
who can visit the research center and see what records are available.

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Clarification of Answer by justaskscott-ga on 02 Mar 2003 21:40 PST

Believe it or not, on February 28 I received a response from the
Benson Ford Research Center:

"Thank you for contacting the Benson Ford Research Center at Henry
Ford Museum & Greenfield Village.  I apologize for the extreme delay
in responding to your request for information about a letter from
Henry Ford to Harvey Schluchter.  I have done a search of our museum
artifact database and found 4 pieces of correspondence regarding
Harvey Schluchter.  They are all pieces that were written by
Schluchter and regarding Ford Motor Company business.  A very limited
amount of archival material is actually cataloged in the artifact
database, therefore it is possible that we have a letter from Ford to
Schluchter.  However, the Ford Motor Company office papers, which
range from 1903 to the early 1950s and include well over 3,000 boxes,
are arranged chronologically and then usually alphabetically. 
Therefore, in order to narrow down the search generally a date in
which the letter was written would be very helpful.

A thorough search through the collections would require either a visit
to the Research Center, which is open to the public and free-of-charge
or the use of our fee-based off-site research service.  You can learn
more about the costs and procedures for the service at
http://www.hfmgv.org/research/offsite.asp. You can learn more about
visiting the Research Center at
http://www.hfmgv.org/research/services.asp.

I hope this information is helpful and again I apologize for the delay
in the response. Thank you for your interest in our collections.

Sincerely, 

Carol Whittaker, Reference Archivist 
Benson Ford Research Center 
Henry Ford Museum and Greenfield Village 
20900 Oakwood Boulevard 
P.O. Box 1970 
Dearborn,  MI  48124-1970 
carolwh@hfmgv.org "

Job well done!!