Ford Piquette Avenue Plant

The Ford Piquette Avenue Plant is historically significant because it: 1) is the birthplace of the Model T, the most important car in history, 2) the site where the application of the moving assembly line to the manufacture of automobiles was conceived, 3) the site where the world's record for car production was achieved, thereby establishing American dominance and expertise in automobile manufacturing, 4) the site where the Ford Motor Company became the largest American manufacturer of cars, and 5) the first building built and owned by the Ford Motor Company, one of the largest corporations in the world.

The Ford Piquette Avenue Plant is located approximately five miles north of the Detroit River in a section of the City of Detroit just east of Woodward Avenue between the Ford Freeway (I-94) on the south and East Grand Boulevard on the north, known as Milwaukee Junction. The original three-story building measures 402' by 56' in ground dimensions. Its exterior envelope consists of load bearing brick masonry walls constructed of common brick, punctuated with a regular pattern of window openings on all sides. The south (Piquette Avenue) elevation is the front, and exhibits Late Victorian influences with a tripartite arrangement of bays with a low gable over the center. Structurally, the Ford Piquette Avenue Plant is in excellent condition. Its defining features, such as the brick walls, window arrangements, wood columns, and wood floors are all intact. In addition, many original elements such as signage, sprinkler system, fire doors, electrical fuse boxes and rear elevator remain in place.