A car destined to put America on wheels was introduced on this day in 1908. It was Henry Ford’s Model T, and the demand became so great that Ford developed the assembly line to speed up production. At one time, a finished car rolled off the line every 10 seconds, and fully half the cars in the world were Model Ts. In 1924, the basic Model T sold for just $260 — available, as the joke went, in any color you wanted, as long it was black. When the last Model T came off the assembly line in 1927, more than 15 million had been made during its 19-year run. For years, U.S. automakers sold over 16 million new vehicles annually. The recent recession cut that number to 10.5 million. Profile America is in its 16th year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.
Sunday, September 30th. On this date in 1882, the world’s first hydroelectric power plant began operating on the Fox River in Appleton, Wisconsin. Inspired by Thomas Edison, a man named H.F. Rogers built the facility, using a water wheel to power his two papermaking plants and his home. Soon, hydroelectric power plants were spurring industrial growth in many parts of the country. Now, water-generated electricity accounts for 7 percent of power in the U.S., and is most important in the West. Nationally, most power generated is in coal-fired plants, followed by those using natural gas and nuclear power. You can find more facts about America from the U.S. Census Bureau, online at <www.census.gov>.
Saturday, September 29th. Today marks the anniversary of the birth in 1907 of one of America’s favorite singing cowboys — Gene Autry. In his career of some 70 years, he appeared in nearly 100 movies and made hundreds of records. During World War II, he flew cargo planes over the dangerous Himalayan Mountains. His wide-ranging talents resulted in Autry being the only entertainer ever to have five stars on the Hollywood Walk of Fame — for radio, television, motion pictures, recording, and live performance. After retiring from entertainment, he owned a major league baseball team, the Los Angeles Angels, and served as vice president of the American League for many years, whose teams draw more than 32 million fans each year. Profile America is in its 16th year as a public service of the U.S. Census Bureau.